|
|
|
History at key stage 3 (Year 8/9)
Unit 16: The franchise why did it take so much longer for British women to get the vote?
Section 3: Who was struggling for political change between 1815 and 1848?
|
|
Objectives |
| Children should learn: |
- to carry out an investigation into the ways in which different groups sought to challenge the existing political system between 1815 and 1832
- to refine skills in the selection of relevant items when researching the activities of a nineteenth-century protest group
- about the reasons for, and limitations of, the 1832 Reform Act
- to explain the main reasons for the immediate failure of the Chartist Movement
- about the ultimate achievement of five of the Chartists' six demands and whether or not this was directly, or indirectly, due to the Chartists
- that the Chartists' attitudes to women were typical of attitudes common in Victorian Britain
|
Activities |
|
Outcomes |
|
Children: |
- Tell pupils that the period 1815-28 was a period of great tensions - of repressions, riots and risings. Remind them of the recency of the French Revolution, of corresponding societies, the returning soldiers and the government's fear of revolution in Great Britain.
- In pairs or groups, pupils research one of: Spa Fields Riot 1816, Derbyshire Rising 1817, the Blanketeers, Peterloo Massacre 1819, the Cato Street Conspiracy 1820.
- Each group reports findings to the class as if they were advising the government. Initiate a whole-class discussion on which event posed the greatest threat to the government. Build up a timeline of revolt and repression.
- Tell pupils the story of the events 1828-32 that led to the 1832 Reform Act. Ask pupils to consider the apparent strangeness of people like William IV and Earl Grey supporting parliamentary reform at that time.
- Outline the main changes made by the Reform Act. What has changed? How does this reflect changes happening in Britain? What about women?
- Ask pupils to speculate about what radicals and the working class were likely to do next, given their disappointment with the 1832 Act. Remind them, first, of constraints on action.
- Tell pupils that the Chartists were one group of largely working-class people agitating for change. Give pupils a summary of the Six Points of the People's Charter. Ask pupils to annotate this with reasons why the governing classes were unlikely to agree with these.
- Use this activity to monitor and review pupils' understanding of the existing government system.
- Provide pupils with a series of information cards about women and the Chartist Movement 1838-48. Each card should focus on a specific activity, development or individual.
- Ask pupils to use their knowledge of Victorian Britain to discuss and explain why the Chartists, who made such radical demands, had these attitudes to women.
|
|
- provide an account of events and developments by which different groups sought to challenge the political system between 1815 and 1832
- select information pertinent to the investigation
- create a timeline and timeline commentary indicating the significance of key events between 1815 and 1832
- use knowledge of the 1832 Reform Act to speculate about the options open to those who were disappointed by this legislation
- demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the implications of the Chartists' 'Six Points' by suggesting the likely reaction of the governing classes to these demands
- demonstrate an understanding of the attitude of the Chartists towards women's participation in the political system
|
|
Points to note |
- Teachers might prefer to choose just two or three violent protests, 1815-28, depending on resources available and the degree of detail that time or pupils' ability will allow. The main criterion for choice should be: What will help as many pupils as possible to understand (i) types of people that were struggling for change; (ii) why most struggles were bound to fail?
- Reports by government spies on the activities of the campaigning or plotting group could provide opportunities to model an appropriate style of language for pupils so that they produce an official report that demonstrates 'period-feel' and avoids anachronistic references.
- The introduction of 'radicals' here will need an explanation.
- Teachers may wish to extend the study of Chartists and Chartism by addressing it, additionally, as a response to economic hardship and by considering the links between the Chartists' economic situation and their political aspirations.
- Teachers may wish to place Chartism in the context of eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century radical and working-class demands concerning the franchise.
|
|
|
This unit is divided into sections. Each section contains a sequence of
activities with related objectives and outcomes. You can view this unit by
moving through the sections or print/download the whole unit.
|
|
|
|
