Reform League
Encyclopedia
The Reform League was established in 1865 to press for manhood suffrage
and the ballot in Great Britain. It collaborated with the more moderate and middle class
Reform Union
and gave strong support to the abortive Reform Bill 1866 and the successful Reform Act 1867
. It developed into a formidable force of agitation at the very heart of the country.
planned to form a new organisation which would concentrate solely on manhood suffrage
. As a result the Reform League was established on 23 February 1865 and the Universal League for the Material Elevation of the Industrious Classes
became defunct. The Reform League's founders were mostly the same men who had been known as the Propagandists
and had been led by John Bedford Leno
. Leno was elected a member of the Reform League's council almost unanimously.
The barrister, Edmond Beales
, was made president of the League and George Howell the Secretary. Other senior members included George Odger
, Charles Bradlaugh
, William Randal Cremer
, Lt. Col. Dickson, Captain Dresser Rogers and J. Baxter Langley.
During the first few months of the League's existence, it proved important that Howell's role was a full time one that was paid for by a few wealthy supporters. This enabled him to concentrate on marketing the League in newspapers and communicating announcements of the Reform League's Executive Committee. This helped recruit supporters. New branches were rapidly opened in both London and the provinces. During its first year the League received donations of £621, of which £476 came from rich Radicals such as P.A. Taylor
MP, Samuel Morley
MP and Sir Wilfred Lawson MP.
In the 1865 election
Liberal Members of Parliament (MPs) who were sympathetic to the working classes entered the Parliament of the United Kingdom
for the first time. This gave great encouragement to the Reform League.
William Ewart Gladstone
introduced a Reform Bill in March 1866. It was criticised on all quarters; some thought it went too far, others that it didn't go far enough.
Three months later an amendment to the bill brought down the Russell
-Gladstone government in June and the bill was dropped. Robert Lowe, 1st Viscount Sherbrooke
M.P. enraged the working class by describing them as "impulsive, unreflecting, violent people" guilty of "venality, ignorance, drunkenness and intimidation". A succession of Tory Ministers further frustrated the working classes and the Reform League saw the chance to start major agitations which were to achieve pre-eminent national importance and put the Reform Union
in the shade.
on 29 June 1866. Its size and violence surprised everyone. Speeches were made which refused support for any future Reform Bill which was not based on the League's programme. It was also declared that the advent of Tories to power was "destructive to freedom at home and favourable to despotism abroad". Red flags and the cap of liberty were sported by a march from Clerkenwell Green. Crowds cheered the Liberal
Reform Club
in Pall Mall
and Gladstone's house in Piccadilly
and jeered loudly outside the Conservative
Carlton Club
.
A second meeting on 2 July 1866 was even more heated, with rioting in the West End by a "fortuitous concourse of the waifs and strays and roughs of a great city".
on 23 July 1866. The Tory
Home Secretary
, Spencer Horatio Walpole
declared it to be illegal, and issued a Police Notice, but the Reform League thought otherwise and were determined it should go ahead.
The procession started off from the Reform League's headquarters, at 8 Adelphi Terrace
, headed by a cab containing the Reform League's president, Edmond Beales
, his friend Colonel Dickson and a few other aristocratic supporters. As they headed up Regent Street
it was decided that these gentlemen would visit Gunter's Tea Shop
in Berkeley Square and so left the procession.
This left John Bedford Leno
, his brother, and a few others in the same cab, at the head of the procession. It was so vast that when the leading carriage reached Bond Street
, the last had not yet left Holborn
. When the procession reached Marble Arch
they were confronted by a line of policemen and the park's gates were chained. 1600 constables, on foot and mounted, guarded Marble Arch alone. Barricades of omnibuses were on every side; the carriages of the wealthy blocked the way.
They demanded to be let through, but were refused, and so signified their intention to break through the line. This they tried, only to be laughed at. While arguing with the police, John Bedford Leno's friend, Humphreys, noticed that the railings would stand no pressure and began to sway them backwards and forwards. He was soon helped by the masses and the railings fell in what was to become known as the "Hyde Park Railings Affair". The people flooded into Hyde Park despite the efforts of the police to restrain them.
Simultaneously, two other parts of the demonstration also broke into the park; one from Knightsbridge
headed by Charles Bradlaugh
, and another from Park Lane
. In addition to the members of the procession, large numbers of bystanders, who were sympathetic to the cause, joined in the storming of Hyde Park and the police were overwhelmed "like flies before a waiter's napkin". It is estimated that 200,000 people invaded the park leading the police to call for military support. When the Horse Guards Blues arrived the crowds cried "Three cheers for the Guards - the people's Guards!". The soldiers held back and merely manoeuvred at a distance, despite the police commissioner, Sir Richard Mayne
, and others being stoned by the mob.
The meeting proceeded as planned under the Reformer's Tree. At its end it was decided to hold another meeting the next evening in Trafalgar Square
. John Bedford Leno and the leaders of the Reform League heard a rumour that the government was determined to crack down on the demonstrators and so decided to confront the Home Secretary, Walpole
. They pointed out to him that if the police or military stepped in bloodshed would ensue. With tears in his eyes Walpole agreed that restraint was the best option. John Bedford Leno and George Odger
went back to the crowds and announced the next evening's meeting at Trafalgar Square. As the sun set the crowds dispersed and the police and military held back, out of sight, and the meeting passed without undue violence.
The next evening's meeting at Trafalgar Square was chaired by John Bedford Leno and was also peaceful.
The "Hyde Park Railings Affair" was widely reported and made the Reform League's leaders household names. They were in hot demand to speak at public meetings and demonstrations across the country and saw a rapid increase in support of the Reform League.
The Reform League thought it vital to embrace the more middle-class supporters of the Reform Union
and were careful to avoid violence or illegitimate actions. Meetings were closely controlled with one reputedly having 10,000 stewards. They encouraged John Bright
to speak at events as he was one of the Reform movement's intellectual leaders. Bright addressed meetings including Manchester (24 September), West Riding/Leeds (8 October), Glasgow (16 October) and Dublin (2 November).
Keen to avoid scaring their new-found middle-class supporters the Reform League's London Executive decided to avoid holding meetings in central London for a while. On 3 December 1866 thousands of League supporters marched from Whitehall
to the grounds of Beaufort House, Chiswick
to hold a meeting. The march was made in a dispiriting downpour, but the fine discipline displayed by the rain-sodden men gave their leaders another claim to public attention. The next day it was reported in the Times
that the working men had done enough to show they were earnest in their demand for enfranchisement and asked them to stop their disturbing actions and to wait for the reforms that the Parliament
was now certain to make.
In the winter of 1866 discontent increased as cold gripped the nation with great East End distress, a growing Fenian
problem in Ireland and amongst the Irish in English cities, Trade Union restlessness grew and a feverish international atmosphere followed Bismarck
's foundation of an apparent democracy in the North German Confederation
. The Reform League continued to campaign and soon found that it was supported by the whole working class world.
. The procession included every sort of Trade Union and Reform League branch from all around the country, all carrying banners and accompanied by bands.
That evening a number of "advanced Liberal" MPs arrived fresh from a sitting at the House of Commons
with news of how "unsatisfactory" the Tory government's proposals for reform were. This made the working men at the packed and excited meeting all the more determined not to give up the "pressure from without" until the Tory cabinet made much more generous proposals for reform.
Lord Shaftesbury
's appeal to the Reform League to cancel a proposed Good Friday
procession to Hyde Park
, due to fear of a gigantic "profanation", was accepted by the League's leaders as they were concerned it might mobilise religious sentiment against them. This was a disappointment as the prospect of a procession on a bank holiday, like Good Friday, was an excellent opportunity to draw large crowds of workers who had the day off.
As pressure for reform built up nationally, the League decided to hold another Hyde Park meeting. The government banned it, saying it was illegal, but the League countered that the ban itself was illegal and posted posters to this effect on 1 May. The government backed down. Eventually 200,000 met at Hyde Park on 6 May and speeches were made on ten different platforms. The government planned to use violence, having sworn in large numbers of special constables on 4 May, but backed down at the last minute.
Walpole subsequently resigned over the confusion of free speech in Hyde Park and it was never again questioned.
fled Ireland and arrived in London immediately after the Reform League's Trafalgar Square
meeting. He met a dozen members of the Reform League, including John Bedford Leno
, in a private room of the "White Horse" in Rathbone Place. He proposed that they create civil war in England and offered the service of two thousand sworn members of the Fenian
body, and that he would act as their leader.
John Bedford Leno was the first to reply and denounced the proposal, stating that it would surely lead to their "discomfiture and transportation", and added that the government would surely hear of the plot. During subsequent speeches Leno noticed that only a matchboard partition divided the room they occupied, with another adjoining room, and that voices could be heard on the other side. Leno declared his attention to leave at once, the others agreed, and the room was soon cleared. The next day the meeting was fully reported in The Times
, although Leno's speech had been attributed to George Odger
, who had in fact supported Cluseret
's proposal. Leno concluded that there had been a leak and that the traitor had been Robert Hartwell, the editor of The Bee-Hive
journal.
John Bedford Leno was fully satisfied with the success the Reform League had met and, being opposed to unnecessary violence, bitterly opposed the interference of Cluseret, as did most of the other members of the Reform League. Cluseret's "call to arms" was rejected and he left England for Paris to start his "War of the Commune".
which gave the vote to representatives of working class men for the first time.
Despite a Reform Bill being on the Statute Book by mid-August, the League's leaders resolved that the organisation needed to be kept going to watch over the Scottish and Irish Representation Bills, whose enactment was reserved for 1868, and to forward Vote by Ballot and a wider county franchise.
They received support from John Bright
, who hoped the League would be spurred on by its success and would continue to campaign for the ballot. Tories were alarmed at the prospect of two permanent bodies of agitation (the League and the Union) of a kind they had never known before.
Demonstrations continued, culminating in the surprisingly successful "working men's" assembly of 11 Nov 1867 in Crystal Palace
. However, the focus of the league started to recede once most "respectable" working men had received the householder or lodger vote. Years of demonstrations began to tire the workers and the thought of many more years of the same no longer held the same appeal.
In addition, the Sheffield Outrages
and the Fenian
"martyrdoms" took over as the main working class issues of the day. Notable events of this time include the "funeral processions" of 24 Nov 1867 and the "Fenian Outrage" at Clerkenwell Prison
on 13 Dec 1867. Pro-Fenian indiscretions by some members of the Reform League, such as George Odger
and James Finlen were seized by the Tory press as chances to scare the population that the Reform League would continue agitation indefinitely.
"Advanced Liberal" politicians of respectability, who had worked with the League in 1866–7 and had tasted its power to cause reform, were determined not to let the League die at a time when they needed support against Conservative resistance to changes in Ireland. The very wealthy Samuel Morley
gave the League £250 in November 1867, followed by £25 from P.A. Taylor and £20 from A.W. Paulton in January 1868, £100 from Titus Salt
in April 1868 and £100 from Thomas Thomasson
in June 1868. However, Samuel Morley gave another donation of £1,900 which enabled the League to send out numerous "deputations" to boroughs where a useful Trade Union and working-class vote might be won for the "advanced Liberalism" of the General Election of Nov 1868. Their help was gratefully received and enough "advanced Liberals" were elected in Nov 1868 to cause the immediate resignation of Benjamin Disraeli's cabinet.
As reward for their help, Morley had also allowed some of his £1,900 to finance a number of the Reform League's leaders (e.g., Edmond Beales
in Tower Hamlets, George Howell (aided by John Bedford Leno
) in Aylesbury
and William Randal Cremer
in Warwick
, etc.) to stand themselves in the election. None succeeded, mainly due to a lack of respectability and also due to a failure of negotiations to allow them to contest suitable constituencies.
The Reform League was dissolved in March 1869, and some of its members went on to become Liberal
MPs
or activists.
Suffrage
Suffrage, political franchise, or simply the franchise, distinct from mere voting rights, is the civil right to vote gained through the democratic process...
and the ballot in Great Britain. It collaborated with the more moderate and middle class
Middle class
The middle class is any class of people in the middle of a societal hierarchy. In Weberian socio-economic terms, the middle class is the broad group of people in contemporary society who fall socio-economically between the working class and upper class....
Reform Union
Reform Union
The National Reform Union was formed in 1864 and was composed mainly of Liberal party members. At the start of 1867 the Reform Union had 150 branches compared to the Reform League's 400....
and gave strong support to the abortive Reform Bill 1866 and the successful Reform Act 1867
Reform Act 1867
The Representation of the People Act 1867, 30 & 31 Vict. c. 102 was a piece of British legislation that enfranchised the urban male working class in England and Wales....
. It developed into a formidable force of agitation at the very heart of the country.
Origins
During the autumn and winter of 1864–65 members of the Universal League for the Material Elevation of the Industrious ClassesUniversal League for the Material Elevation of the Industrious Classes
The Universal League for the Material Elevation of the Industrious Classes was a 19th Century English political movement and organization.It was founded on 14 December 1863 by Marquis Townshend who was one of the few aristocrats to support the reform movement. It was made up of Radicals and trade...
planned to form a new organisation which would concentrate solely on manhood suffrage
Suffrage
Suffrage, political franchise, or simply the franchise, distinct from mere voting rights, is the civil right to vote gained through the democratic process...
. As a result the Reform League was established on 23 February 1865 and the Universal League for the Material Elevation of the Industrious Classes
Universal League for the Material Elevation of the Industrious Classes
The Universal League for the Material Elevation of the Industrious Classes was a 19th Century English political movement and organization.It was founded on 14 December 1863 by Marquis Townshend who was one of the few aristocrats to support the reform movement. It was made up of Radicals and trade...
became defunct. The Reform League's founders were mostly the same men who had been known as the Propagandists
The Propagandists
The Propagandists were a Nineteenth Century political group in The United Kingdom led by the Radical ex-Chartist John Bedford Leno. They would speak on behalf of common workers in legal and social matters and met weekly at the "Windsor Castle" pub in Holborn....
and had been led by John Bedford Leno
John Bedford Leno
John Bedford Leno was a Chartist, Radical, Poet and printer who acted as a "bridge" between Chartism and early Labour movements, as well as between the working and ruling classes. He campaigned to give the vote to all common men and women, driven by a strong desire for "justice and freedom for all...
. Leno was elected a member of the Reform League's council almost unanimously.
The barrister, Edmond Beales
Edmond Beales
Edmond Beales was the President of the Reform League and was a central figure in the 19th century British reform movement.-Biography:...
, was made president of the League and George Howell the Secretary. Other senior members included George Odger
George Odger
George Odger was a pioneer British trade unionist. He is best remembered as the head of the London Trades Council during the period of formation of the Trades Union Congress and as the first President of the First International.-Early years:...
, Charles Bradlaugh
Charles Bradlaugh
Charles Bradlaugh was a political activist and one of the most famous English atheists of the 19th century. He founded the National Secular Society in 1866.-Early life:...
, William Randal Cremer
William Randal Cremer
Sir William Randal Cremer usually known by his middle name "Randal", was an English Liberal Member of Parliament and pacifist....
, Lt. Col. Dickson, Captain Dresser Rogers and J. Baxter Langley.
During the first few months of the League's existence, it proved important that Howell's role was a full time one that was paid for by a few wealthy supporters. This enabled him to concentrate on marketing the League in newspapers and communicating announcements of the Reform League's Executive Committee. This helped recruit supporters. New branches were rapidly opened in both London and the provinces. During its first year the League received donations of £621, of which £476 came from rich Radicals such as P.A. Taylor
Peter Alfred Taylor
Peter Alfred Taylor was a British politician and radical.He was the son of another Peter Alfred Taylor, a silk merchant, and the nephew of Samuel Courtauld. He was educated at a school in Hove, Sussex, run by J. P. Malleson, his cousin and the Unitarian minister for Brighton. Here he met Clementia...
MP, Samuel Morley
Samuel Morley (MP)
Samuel Morley , was an English woollen manufacturer, philanthropist, dissenter , abolitionist, political radical, and statesman.-Introduction:...
MP and Sir Wilfred Lawson MP.
In the 1865 election
United Kingdom general election, 1865
The 1865 United Kingdom general election saw the Liberals, led by Lord Palmerston, increase their large majority over the Earl of Derby's Conservatives to more than 80. The Whig Party changed its name to the Liberal Party between the previous election and this one.Palmerston died later in the same...
Liberal Members of Parliament (MPs) who were sympathetic to the working classes entered the Parliament of the United Kingdom
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
for the first time. This gave great encouragement to the Reform League.
Reform Bill 1866
Support quickly grew for the League and meetings were held in pubs all over London. It was positioned on the left-wing of a broader-based national movement that built up rapidly over the winter of 1865–6.William Ewart Gladstone
William Ewart Gladstone
William Ewart Gladstone FRS FSS was a British Liberal statesman. In a career lasting over sixty years, he served as Prime Minister four separate times , more than any other person. Gladstone was also Britain's oldest Prime Minister, 84 years old when he resigned for the last time...
introduced a Reform Bill in March 1866. It was criticised on all quarters; some thought it went too far, others that it didn't go far enough.
Three months later an amendment to the bill brought down the Russell
John Russell, 1st Earl Russell
John Russell, 1st Earl Russell, KG, GCMG, PC , known as Lord John Russell before 1861, was an English Whig and Liberal politician who served twice as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in the mid-19th century....
-Gladstone government in June and the bill was dropped. Robert Lowe, 1st Viscount Sherbrooke
Robert Lowe, 1st Viscount Sherbrooke
Robert Lowe, 1st Viscount Sherbrooke PC , British and Australian statesman, was a pivotal but often forgotten figure who shaped British politics in the latter half of the 19th century. He held office under William Ewart Gladstone as Chancellor of the Exchequer between 1868 and 1873 and as Home...
M.P. enraged the working class by describing them as "impulsive, unreflecting, violent people" guilty of "venality, ignorance, drunkenness and intimidation". A succession of Tory Ministers further frustrated the working classes and the Reform League saw the chance to start major agitations which were to achieve pre-eminent national importance and put the Reform Union
Reform Union
The National Reform Union was formed in 1864 and was composed mainly of Liberal party members. At the start of 1867 the Reform Union had 150 branches compared to the Reform League's 400....
in the shade.
Trafalgar Square demonstration of 1866
Disappointed with the failure of the Bill, the Reform League, organised a demonstration in Trafalgar SquareTrafalgar Square
Trafalgar Square is a public space and tourist attraction in central London, England, United Kingdom. At its centre is Nelson's Column, which is guarded by four lion statues at its base. There are a number of statues and sculptures in the square, with one plinth displaying changing pieces of...
on 29 June 1866. Its size and violence surprised everyone. Speeches were made which refused support for any future Reform Bill which was not based on the League's programme. It was also declared that the advent of Tories to power was "destructive to freedom at home and favourable to despotism abroad". Red flags and the cap of liberty were sported by a march from Clerkenwell Green. Crowds cheered the Liberal
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
Reform Club
Reform Club
The Reform Club is a gentlemen's club on the south side of Pall Mall, in central London. Originally for men only, it changed to include the admission of women in 1981. In 2011 the subscription for membership of the Reform Club as a full UK member is £1,344.00, with a one-off entrance fee of £875.00...
in Pall Mall
Pall Mall, London
Pall Mall is a street in the City of Westminster, London, and parallel to The Mall, from St. James's Street across Waterloo Place to the Haymarket; while Pall Mall East continues into Trafalgar Square. The street is a major thoroughfare in the St James's area of London, and a section of the...
and Gladstone's house in Piccadilly
Piccadilly
Piccadilly is a major street in central London, running from Hyde Park Corner in the west to Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is completely within the city of Westminster. The street is part of the A4 road, London's second most important western artery. St...
and jeered loudly outside the Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
Carlton Club
Carlton Club
The Carlton Club is a gentlemen's club in London which describes itself as the "oldest, most elite, and most important of all Conservative clubs." Membership of the club is by nomination and election only.-History:...
.
A second meeting on 2 July 1866 was even more heated, with rioting in the West End by a "fortuitous concourse of the waifs and strays and roughs of a great city".
Hyde Park demonstration of 1866
The Trafalgar Square meetings were followed by a giant meeting held at Hyde ParkHyde Park, London
Hyde Park is one of the largest parks in central London, United Kingdom, and one of the Royal Parks of London, famous for its Speakers' Corner.The park is divided in two by the Serpentine...
on 23 July 1866. The Tory
Tory
Toryism is a traditionalist and conservative political philosophy which grew out of the Cavalier faction in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. It is a prominent ideology in the politics of the United Kingdom, but also features in parts of The Commonwealth, particularly in Canada...
Home Secretary
Home Secretary
The Secretary of State for the Home Department, commonly known as the Home Secretary, is the minister in charge of the Home Office of the United Kingdom, and one of the country's four Great Offices of State...
, Spencer Horatio Walpole
Spencer Horatio Walpole
Spencer Horatio Walpole, QC, LLD was a British Conservative politician who served three times as Home Secretary in the administrations of Lord Derby.-Background and education:...
declared it to be illegal, and issued a Police Notice, but the Reform League thought otherwise and were determined it should go ahead.
The procession started off from the Reform League's headquarters, at 8 Adelphi Terrace
Adelphi, London
Adelphi is a district of London, England in the City of Westminster. The small district includes the streets of Adelphi Terrace, Robert Street and John Adam Street.-Adelphi Buildings:...
, headed by a cab containing the Reform League's president, Edmond Beales
Edmond Beales
Edmond Beales was the President of the Reform League and was a central figure in the 19th century British reform movement.-Biography:...
, his friend Colonel Dickson and a few other aristocratic supporters. As they headed up Regent Street
Regent Street
Regent Street is one of the major shopping streets in London's West End, well known to tourists and Londoners alike, and famous for its Christmas illuminations...
it was decided that these gentlemen would visit Gunter's Tea Shop
Gunter's Tea Shop
Gunter's Tea Shop in London's Berkeley Square had its origins in a food business named “Pot and Pine Apple” started in 1757 by Italian Domenico Negri. Various English, French and Italian wet and dry sweetmeats were made and sold from the business. In 1777 James Gunter became Negri’s business...
in Berkeley Square and so left the procession.
This left John Bedford Leno
John Bedford Leno
John Bedford Leno was a Chartist, Radical, Poet and printer who acted as a "bridge" between Chartism and early Labour movements, as well as between the working and ruling classes. He campaigned to give the vote to all common men and women, driven by a strong desire for "justice and freedom for all...
, his brother, and a few others in the same cab, at the head of the procession. It was so vast that when the leading carriage reached Bond Street
Bond Street
Bond Street is a major shopping street in the West End of London that runs north-south through Mayfair between Oxford Street and Piccadilly. It has been a fashionable shopping street since the 18th century and is currently the home of many high price fashion shops...
, the last had not yet left Holborn
Holborn
Holborn is an area of Central London. Holborn is also the name of the area's principal east-west street, running as High Holborn from St Giles's High Street to Gray's Inn Road and then on to Holborn Viaduct...
. When the procession reached Marble Arch
Marble Arch
Marble Arch is a white Carrara marble monument that now stands on a large traffic island at the junction of Oxford Street, Park Lane, and Edgware Road, almost directly opposite Speakers' Corner in Hyde Park in London, England...
they were confronted by a line of policemen and the park's gates were chained. 1600 constables, on foot and mounted, guarded Marble Arch alone. Barricades of omnibuses were on every side; the carriages of the wealthy blocked the way.
They demanded to be let through, but were refused, and so signified their intention to break through the line. This they tried, only to be laughed at. While arguing with the police, John Bedford Leno's friend, Humphreys, noticed that the railings would stand no pressure and began to sway them backwards and forwards. He was soon helped by the masses and the railings fell in what was to become known as the "Hyde Park Railings Affair". The people flooded into Hyde Park despite the efforts of the police to restrain them.
Simultaneously, two other parts of the demonstration also broke into the park; one from Knightsbridge
Knightsbridge
Knightsbridge is a road which gives its name to an exclusive district lying to the west of central London. The road runs along the south side of Hyde Park, west from Hyde Park Corner, spanning the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea...
headed by Charles Bradlaugh
Charles Bradlaugh
Charles Bradlaugh was a political activist and one of the most famous English atheists of the 19th century. He founded the National Secular Society in 1866.-Early life:...
, and another from Park Lane
Park Lane (road)
Park Lane is a major road in the City of Westminster, in Central London.-History:Originally a country lane running north-south along what is now the eastern boundary of Hyde Park, it became a fashionable residential address from the eighteenth century onwards, offering both views across Hyde Park...
. In addition to the members of the procession, large numbers of bystanders, who were sympathetic to the cause, joined in the storming of Hyde Park and the police were overwhelmed "like flies before a waiter's napkin". It is estimated that 200,000 people invaded the park leading the police to call for military support. When the Horse Guards Blues arrived the crowds cried "Three cheers for the Guards - the people's Guards!". The soldiers held back and merely manoeuvred at a distance, despite the police commissioner, Sir Richard Mayne
Richard Mayne
Sir Richard Mayne KCB was a barrister and the joint first Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis, the head of the London Metropolitan Police...
, and others being stoned by the mob.
The meeting proceeded as planned under the Reformer's Tree. At its end it was decided to hold another meeting the next evening in Trafalgar Square
Trafalgar Square
Trafalgar Square is a public space and tourist attraction in central London, England, United Kingdom. At its centre is Nelson's Column, which is guarded by four lion statues at its base. There are a number of statues and sculptures in the square, with one plinth displaying changing pieces of...
. John Bedford Leno and the leaders of the Reform League heard a rumour that the government was determined to crack down on the demonstrators and so decided to confront the Home Secretary, Walpole
Spencer Horatio Walpole
Spencer Horatio Walpole, QC, LLD was a British Conservative politician who served three times as Home Secretary in the administrations of Lord Derby.-Background and education:...
. They pointed out to him that if the police or military stepped in bloodshed would ensue. With tears in his eyes Walpole agreed that restraint was the best option. John Bedford Leno and George Odger
George Odger
George Odger was a pioneer British trade unionist. He is best remembered as the head of the London Trades Council during the period of formation of the Trades Union Congress and as the first President of the First International.-Early years:...
went back to the crowds and announced the next evening's meeting at Trafalgar Square. As the sun set the crowds dispersed and the police and military held back, out of sight, and the meeting passed without undue violence.
The next evening's meeting at Trafalgar Square was chaired by John Bedford Leno and was also peaceful.
The "Hyde Park Railings Affair" was widely reported and made the Reform League's leaders household names. They were in hot demand to speak at public meetings and demonstrations across the country and saw a rapid increase in support of the Reform League.
Winter of Discontent
During the next few months the Reform League expanded its branches and demonstrations around the country. A notable success was achieved at the Birmingham Reform demonstrations on 28 Aug 1866 which allowed a Midland Department of the Reform League to be formed. This prospered and boasted almost 10,000 members and held great mass meetings at critical stages of the Reform campaign of 1867.The Reform League thought it vital to embrace the more middle-class supporters of the Reform Union
Reform Union
The National Reform Union was formed in 1864 and was composed mainly of Liberal party members. At the start of 1867 the Reform Union had 150 branches compared to the Reform League's 400....
and were careful to avoid violence or illegitimate actions. Meetings were closely controlled with one reputedly having 10,000 stewards. They encouraged John Bright
John Bright
John Bright , Quaker, was a British Radical and Liberal statesman, associated with Richard Cobden in the formation of the Anti-Corn Law League. He was one of the greatest orators of his generation, and a strong critic of British foreign policy...
to speak at events as he was one of the Reform movement's intellectual leaders. Bright addressed meetings including Manchester (24 September), West Riding/Leeds (8 October), Glasgow (16 October) and Dublin (2 November).
Keen to avoid scaring their new-found middle-class supporters the Reform League's London Executive decided to avoid holding meetings in central London for a while. On 3 December 1866 thousands of League supporters marched from Whitehall
Whitehall
Whitehall is a road in Westminster, in London, England. It is the main artery running north from Parliament Square, towards Charing Cross at the southern end of Trafalgar Square...
to the grounds of Beaufort House, Chiswick
Chiswick
Chiswick is a large suburb of west London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It is located on a meander of the River Thames, west of Charing Cross and is one of 35 major centres identified in the London Plan. It was historically an ancient parish in the county of Middlesex, with...
to hold a meeting. The march was made in a dispiriting downpour, but the fine discipline displayed by the rain-sodden men gave their leaders another claim to public attention. The next day it was reported in the Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
that the working men had done enough to show they were earnest in their demand for enfranchisement and asked them to stop their disturbing actions and to wait for the reforms that the Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
was now certain to make.
In the winter of 1866 discontent increased as cold gripped the nation with great East End distress, a growing Fenian
Fenian
The Fenians , both the Fenian Brotherhood and Irish Republican Brotherhood , were fraternal organisations dedicated to the establishment of an independent Irish Republic in the 19th and early 20th century. The name "Fenians" was first applied by John O'Mahony to the members of the Irish republican...
problem in Ireland and amongst the Irish in English cities, Trade Union restlessness grew and a feverish international atmosphere followed Bismarck
Otto von Bismarck
Otto Eduard Leopold, Prince of Bismarck, Duke of Lauenburg , simply known as Otto von Bismarck, was a Prussian-German statesman whose actions unified Germany, made it a major player in world affairs, and created a balance of power that kept Europe at peace after 1871.As Minister President of...
's foundation of an apparent democracy in the North German Confederation
North German Confederation
The North German Confederation 1866–71, was a federation of 22 independent states of northern Germany. It was formed by a constitution accepted by the member states in 1867 and controlled military and foreign policy. It included the new Reichstag, a parliament elected by universal manhood...
. The Reform League continued to campaign and soon found that it was supported by the whole working class world.
Agricultural Hall, Islington meeting of 1867
The Reform League's leaders were determined not to make the mistake of easing off that they had made at the time of the Reform Bill 1866, and so continued demonstrating. On 11 February 1867, the very day the Tory government had fixed for the announcement of its reforms, the League arranged an impressive demonstration that started from Trafalgar Square and ended at a meeting at the Agricultural Hall in IslingtonIslington
Islington is a neighbourhood in Greater London, England and forms the central district of the London Borough of Islington. It is a district of Inner London, spanning from Islington High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the area around the busy Upper Street...
. The procession included every sort of Trade Union and Reform League branch from all around the country, all carrying banners and accompanied by bands.
That evening a number of "advanced Liberal" MPs arrived fresh from a sitting at the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
with news of how "unsatisfactory" the Tory government's proposals for reform were. This made the working men at the packed and excited meeting all the more determined not to give up the "pressure from without" until the Tory cabinet made much more generous proposals for reform.
Hyde Park demonstration of 1867
The league now numbered one hundred branches in London alone and its deputations to Gladstone on 30 March 1867 and to Disraeli on 2 April 1867 were received with great attention.Lord Shaftesbury
Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 7th Earl of Shaftesbury
Anthony Ashley Cooper, 7th Earl of Shaftesbury KG , styled Lord Ashley from 1811 to 1851, was an English politician and philanthropist, one of the best-known of the Victorian era and one of the main proponents of Christian Zionism.-Youth:He was born in London and known informally as Lord Ashley...
's appeal to the Reform League to cancel a proposed Good Friday
Good Friday
Good Friday , is a religious holiday observed primarily by Christians commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and his death at Calvary. The holiday is observed during Holy Week as part of the Paschal Triduum on the Friday preceding Easter Sunday, and may coincide with the Jewish observance of...
procession to Hyde Park
Hyde Park, London
Hyde Park is one of the largest parks in central London, United Kingdom, and one of the Royal Parks of London, famous for its Speakers' Corner.The park is divided in two by the Serpentine...
, due to fear of a gigantic "profanation", was accepted by the League's leaders as they were concerned it might mobilise religious sentiment against them. This was a disappointment as the prospect of a procession on a bank holiday, like Good Friday, was an excellent opportunity to draw large crowds of workers who had the day off.
As pressure for reform built up nationally, the League decided to hold another Hyde Park meeting. The government banned it, saying it was illegal, but the League countered that the ban itself was illegal and posted posters to this effect on 1 May. The government backed down. Eventually 200,000 met at Hyde Park on 6 May and speeches were made on ten different platforms. The government planned to use violence, having sworn in large numbers of special constables on 4 May, but backed down at the last minute.
Walpole subsequently resigned over the confusion of free speech in Hyde Park and it was never again questioned.
English Civil War
Gustave Paul CluseretGustave Paul Cluseret
Gustave Paul Cluseret was a French soldier and politician who served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Biography:...
fled Ireland and arrived in London immediately after the Reform League's Trafalgar Square
Trafalgar Square
Trafalgar Square is a public space and tourist attraction in central London, England, United Kingdom. At its centre is Nelson's Column, which is guarded by four lion statues at its base. There are a number of statues and sculptures in the square, with one plinth displaying changing pieces of...
meeting. He met a dozen members of the Reform League, including John Bedford Leno
John Bedford Leno
John Bedford Leno was a Chartist, Radical, Poet and printer who acted as a "bridge" between Chartism and early Labour movements, as well as between the working and ruling classes. He campaigned to give the vote to all common men and women, driven by a strong desire for "justice and freedom for all...
, in a private room of the "White Horse" in Rathbone Place. He proposed that they create civil war in England and offered the service of two thousand sworn members of the Fenian
Fenian
The Fenians , both the Fenian Brotherhood and Irish Republican Brotherhood , were fraternal organisations dedicated to the establishment of an independent Irish Republic in the 19th and early 20th century. The name "Fenians" was first applied by John O'Mahony to the members of the Irish republican...
body, and that he would act as their leader.
John Bedford Leno was the first to reply and denounced the proposal, stating that it would surely lead to their "discomfiture and transportation", and added that the government would surely hear of the plot. During subsequent speeches Leno noticed that only a matchboard partition divided the room they occupied, with another adjoining room, and that voices could be heard on the other side. Leno declared his attention to leave at once, the others agreed, and the room was soon cleared. The next day the meeting was fully reported in The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
, although Leno's speech had been attributed to George Odger
George Odger
George Odger was a pioneer British trade unionist. He is best remembered as the head of the London Trades Council during the period of formation of the Trades Union Congress and as the first President of the First International.-Early years:...
, who had in fact supported Cluseret
Gustave Paul Cluseret
Gustave Paul Cluseret was a French soldier and politician who served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Biography:...
's proposal. Leno concluded that there had been a leak and that the traitor had been Robert Hartwell, the editor of The Bee-Hive
The Bee-Hive (journal)
The Bee-Hive was a trade unionist journal published weekly in the United Kingdom between 1861 and 1878.The Bee-Hive was established in 1861 by George Potter, with professional journalist George Troup as editor and Robert Hartwell as the main contributor...
journal.
John Bedford Leno was fully satisfied with the success the Reform League had met and, being opposed to unnecessary violence, bitterly opposed the interference of Cluseret, as did most of the other members of the Reform League. Cluseret's "call to arms" was rejected and he left England for Paris to start his "War of the Commune".
The End of the League
The Reform League's campaigning culminated in the passing of the Reform Act 1867Reform Act 1867
The Representation of the People Act 1867, 30 & 31 Vict. c. 102 was a piece of British legislation that enfranchised the urban male working class in England and Wales....
which gave the vote to representatives of working class men for the first time.
Despite a Reform Bill being on the Statute Book by mid-August, the League's leaders resolved that the organisation needed to be kept going to watch over the Scottish and Irish Representation Bills, whose enactment was reserved for 1868, and to forward Vote by Ballot and a wider county franchise.
They received support from John Bright
John Bright
John Bright , Quaker, was a British Radical and Liberal statesman, associated with Richard Cobden in the formation of the Anti-Corn Law League. He was one of the greatest orators of his generation, and a strong critic of British foreign policy...
, who hoped the League would be spurred on by its success and would continue to campaign for the ballot. Tories were alarmed at the prospect of two permanent bodies of agitation (the League and the Union) of a kind they had never known before.
Demonstrations continued, culminating in the surprisingly successful "working men's" assembly of 11 Nov 1867 in Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace, London
Crystal Palace is a residential area in south London, England named from the former local landmark, The Crystal Palace, which occupied the area from 1854 to 1936. The area is located approximately 8 miles south east of Charing Cross, and offers impressive views over the capital...
. However, the focus of the league started to recede once most "respectable" working men had received the householder or lodger vote. Years of demonstrations began to tire the workers and the thought of many more years of the same no longer held the same appeal.
In addition, the Sheffield Outrages
Sheffield Outrages
Sheffield's early success in steel production had involved long working hours, in desperately unpleasant conditions which offered little or no safety protection. quotes a local doctor, Dr. Knight, regarding the so-called "Grinder's Asthma" suffered by the Sheffield cutlery workers in the mid 19th...
and the Fenian
Fenian
The Fenians , both the Fenian Brotherhood and Irish Republican Brotherhood , were fraternal organisations dedicated to the establishment of an independent Irish Republic in the 19th and early 20th century. The name "Fenians" was first applied by John O'Mahony to the members of the Irish republican...
"martyrdoms" took over as the main working class issues of the day. Notable events of this time include the "funeral processions" of 24 Nov 1867 and the "Fenian Outrage" at Clerkenwell Prison
Clerkenwell Prison
Clerkenwell Prison, also known as the Clerkenwell House of Detention or Middlesex House of Detention was a prison in Clerkenwell, London...
on 13 Dec 1867. Pro-Fenian indiscretions by some members of the Reform League, such as George Odger
George Odger
George Odger was a pioneer British trade unionist. He is best remembered as the head of the London Trades Council during the period of formation of the Trades Union Congress and as the first President of the First International.-Early years:...
and James Finlen were seized by the Tory press as chances to scare the population that the Reform League would continue agitation indefinitely.
"Advanced Liberal" politicians of respectability, who had worked with the League in 1866–7 and had tasted its power to cause reform, were determined not to let the League die at a time when they needed support against Conservative resistance to changes in Ireland. The very wealthy Samuel Morley
Samuel Morley
Samuel Morley may refer to:*Samuel Morley , recipient of the Victoria Cross*Samuel Morley , British Member of Parliament and philanthropist*Sam Morley , full name Samuel Robertson Morley, American football player...
gave the League £250 in November 1867, followed by £25 from P.A. Taylor and £20 from A.W. Paulton in January 1868, £100 from Titus Salt
Titus Salt
Sir Titus Salt, 1st Baronet , born in Morley, near Leeds, was a manufacturer, politician and philanthropist in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. His father Daniel Salt was a businessman and was sent Titus to Batley Grammar School...
in April 1868 and £100 from Thomas Thomasson
Thomas Thomasson
Thomas Thomasson was a political economist and a campaigner for the repeal of the Corn Laws who was one of Bolton's greatest benefactors....
in June 1868. However, Samuel Morley gave another donation of £1,900 which enabled the League to send out numerous "deputations" to boroughs where a useful Trade Union and working-class vote might be won for the "advanced Liberalism" of the General Election of Nov 1868. Their help was gratefully received and enough "advanced Liberals" were elected in Nov 1868 to cause the immediate resignation of Benjamin Disraeli's cabinet.
As reward for their help, Morley had also allowed some of his £1,900 to finance a number of the Reform League's leaders (e.g., Edmond Beales
Edmond Beales
Edmond Beales was the President of the Reform League and was a central figure in the 19th century British reform movement.-Biography:...
in Tower Hamlets, George Howell (aided by John Bedford Leno
John Bedford Leno
John Bedford Leno was a Chartist, Radical, Poet and printer who acted as a "bridge" between Chartism and early Labour movements, as well as between the working and ruling classes. He campaigned to give the vote to all common men and women, driven by a strong desire for "justice and freedom for all...
) in Aylesbury
Aylesbury
Aylesbury is the county town of Buckinghamshire in South East England. However the town also falls into a geographical region known as the South Midlands an area that ecompasses the north of the South East, and the southern extremities of the East Midlands...
and William Randal Cremer
William Randal Cremer
Sir William Randal Cremer usually known by his middle name "Randal", was an English Liberal Member of Parliament and pacifist....
in Warwick
Warwick
Warwick is the county town of Warwickshire, England. The town lies upon the River Avon, south of Coventry and just west of Leamington Spa and Whitnash with which it is conjoined. As of the 2001 United Kingdom census, it had a population of 23,350...
, etc.) to stand themselves in the election. None succeeded, mainly due to a lack of respectability and also due to a failure of negotiations to allow them to contest suitable constituencies.
The Reform League was dissolved in March 1869, and some of its members went on to become Liberal
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
MPs
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
or activists.