In depth notes on Chapter 5 of the Pitt to Peel textbook. These include notes from the textbook, my class notes and my extended research. The notes include parliamentary reform, Peel as Prime Minister, Peel's success, the economic issue's under Peel and the Corn Laws.
Summary OCR A Level History - OCR A Level History: From Pitt to Peel 1783-1846 - AS Unit F961 - British History Period Studies
Summary OCR A Level History - OCR A Level History: From Pitt to Peel 1783-1846 - AS Unit F961 - British History Period Studies
Exemplar Essay 'How far do you agree that 'the Tory governments were no more liberal from 1822-1830 than from 1812-1822'.
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How successful was Peel as party leader 1834-1841 rejecting reform. He wanted to look toward the future and did put in place
a number of reforms.
Peel left office in November 1830 and adopted the unofficial role of leader
of the Tory opposition in the House of Commons. As a highly experienced Peel recognised that the larger electorate of 1832 meant that the party
minister, his opinions were influential. The Duke of Wellington sat in the needed to be reorganised to appeal to more people
House of Lords, so Peel led in Commons but the prospect of remaining in
power was not encouraging. There were serious problems In 1832 the Carlton Club was set up. This was a central
headquarters in London for the party run by Sir Francis Bonham.
The party was divided. Some more progressive Tories who had It sent out information about policies to MPs and candidates.
followed Canning joined the Whigs. The ultra Tories were still Conservative associations were set up in the constituencies. Often
furious about Catholic Emancipation. run by local solicitors these ensured that Conservative supporters
The Tories were divided about parliamentary reform, some were registered to vote under the new regulations of the 1832
supported it, others opposed. Reform Act. They also organised speakers and gave voters
The mood of the country was for change but the majority of the information at elections.
Tories opposed it. Peel also made his policies clear to his own voters and to the wider
The reform proposals would have ended a lot of Tory control of public so that they knew his position in advance on key policies.
rotten boroughs. The famous Tamworth Manifesto, which Peel issued in December
The Tories did not do well in the 1832 general election and had 1834, appealed directly to the voters in his Staffordshire
fallen to 170 seats. constituency Tamworth, outlining his views. Such a practice was
highly unusual in Peel’s day but has become accepted in modern
Peel and Parliamentary Reform politics.
Had Peel simply opposed parliamentary reform, he would have been going By modern standards these changes were modest. There was not much
against considerable support for change in the country. If he had supported money available and the party did not issue the posters and pamphlets that
it, he would have put a barrier between himself and Wellington and many became common later on but the idea of party organisation and a distinct
others in the party. Worse, he would have been accused of helping the manifesto were new for the time and they played a big role in the party’s
Whigs. Peel however, showed himself to be a clever party leader; he electoral success in 1841.
opposed reform in the debates of 1830-1832 but did not block it entirely
by forming a government which would have abandoned it. He refused to Peel’s relations with others in the Party
condemn reform but was not eager to be seen as supporting it. Wellington
There were different reactions to Peel’s changing the ‘Tories’ to the
summed it up as ‘Peel is for parliamentary reform provided it is not carried
‘Conservatives’. Not everyone was happy; the Duke of Wellington was
by us’. This was Peel’s view and was why in May 1832 he refused to take
definitely not. Peel led the party to victory in the general election of 1841
office when the Lords rejected reform and Lord Grey resigned. Thus he
but his strong conviction that his policies were right led to limited
kept a balance between opposing the Whigs and yet not completely
, consultation with the party. The opinion of Disraeli, a Conservative MP of his ministers were negotiating with the Irish leader O’Connell to relax
who disliked Peel and took a leading role in bringing about his fall, was the Coercion Laws. The final straw was when the Chancellor of the
shared by many in the party. Peel’s measure to repeal the Corn Laws was Exchequer, Lord Althrop, had to resign when he inherited his father’s title
deeply unpopular yet he did not do much to gain the support of his cabinet. and moved to the House of Lords as Lord Spencer. The King argued that
the Whigs were too weak to carry on and asked Peel to form a
How effective was Peel as Prime Minister
government.
Before 1832, a prime minister had to ensure that his cabinet colleagues
Peel took office in order to support the King but he knew that only a
worked effectively, he had to meet the problems of the day, he had to serve
general election victory would give him control of the House of Commons
the monarch, and he had to command the support of a majority in
but to do this he had to win over an electorate who had rejected the Tories
parliament. He did not need to be a striking personality or a charismatic
2 years earlier. But he changed the focus of political debate when he issued
leader, as Liverpool had demonstrated. Liverpool was known for his
his Tamworth Manifesto in December. The Whigs’ obvious weaknesses
judgement in dealing with his colleagues and his parliamentary supporters,
and Peel’s reassurances that he would not oppose any reforming measures
and his ability to make changes when necessary and to assess and deal
without consideration, helped the Conservatives to win 100 more seats in
appropriately with problems at home and abroad. He was also able to
the 1835 election than they had in 1832. This was not enough though. The
maintain a working relationship with the monarch. From 1832 the
Whigs made a pact with the Irish MPs which closed the door on any
demands increased as elections could not so easily be influenced either by
prospect of a Conservative majority in the House of Commons. Peel
influential borough owners or government patronage and the need for
resigns in April 1835. The King, rather than Peel was the real loser though.
government to offer policies to meet Britain’s changing industrial society
This election made it clear that royal support was no longer enough to
and economy grew. It was also more important for a national leader to
establish a secure government, support from the electorate was crucial.
have the support and approval of a wider electorate.
In his brief time in office Peel introduced an Act to authorise civil
Peel first became prime minister in November 1834 in circumstances
marriage and to allow non conformists to arrange the marriage service as
which seemed very pre-1832 as the King, William IV had dismissed the
they wished and Peel also began an enquiry which led to reform of tithes
Prime Minister Lord Melbourne. The issues over which he had been
in 1835.
dismissed seemed hardly relevant to the industrial age. The Whig
Government had split over the plan to abolish some of the bishoprics of Peel and the ladies of the Bed Chamber - In 1939 Prime Minister
the Church of Ireland (the Anglican Church in Ireland) and take their Melbourne resigned over lack of support for a bill to take over running
revenues to improve conditions for the people and to reform tithes, a local Jamaica. Peel could have become PM then but declined when Queen
tax paid by everyone to the Church of Ireland, even though they were not Victoria refused to dismiss ladies of her bedchamber who were known to
members. Four cabinet ministers resigned over the issue. The King favour the Whigs. Ladies of the bedchamber were close confidantes of a
disapproved of any interference with the state church and he suspected that monarch and could influence the queen themselves or through their
some Whigs were not supporting his policy on maintaining control in husbands. Pitt particularly objected to the presence of Lady Normanby, the
Ireland. Grey had resigned over the issue in 1834 when he found that some
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