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Mar 22, 2024 · William Lovett was a Chartist leader in England, the person mainly responsible for drafting the People’s Charter of 1838, demanding electoral reform. A cabinetmaker in London after 1821, he was self-educated in economics and politics and a follower of the utopian socialist Robert Owen.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Chartism, British working-class movement for parliamentary reform named after the People’s Charter, a bill drafted by the London radical William Lovett in May 1838. It contained six demands: universal manhood suffrage, equal electoral districts, vote by ballot, annually elected Parliaments, payment.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
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Chartism was a mass movement that emerged in the political disappointments and economic difficulties of the later 1830s and was active until 1848. The movement centered on the People's Charter (May 1838), which made six demands: universal manhood suffrage, annual parliaments, a secret ballot, equal electoral districts, abolition of the property qua...
1818:In a decisive defeat of Spanish forces, soldier and statesman Simón Bolívar leads the liberation of New Granada, which includes what is now Colombia, Panama, Venezuela, and Ecuador. With Spani...1823: U.S. president James Monroe establishes the Monroe Doctrine, whereby the United Stateswarns European nations not to interfere in the political affairs of the Western Hemisphere.1830: French troops invade Algeria, and at home, a revolution forces the abdication of Charles V in favor of Louis Philippe, the "Citizen King."1836: Boer farmers embark on their "Great Trek" into the hinterlands of South Africa, forming the enclaves of Natal, Transvaal, and the Orange Free State.Origins and Causes
Chartism was not, as portrayed in the past, "hunger politics"—an irrational, untutored response to economic hardship—but economic circumstances were significant in its origins and course. The movement grew as industrialization took hold. Artisanal trades were increasingly subject to market pressures and mechanized competition; although Chartism was not the prerogative of the so-called declining trades, these literate craftsmen formed a significant component of its support. Skilled factory wor...
The Course of Chartism
Chartism represented a powerful convergence of experience, agitation, and organization, yet it remained rooted in the fallible radical conviction that the strength of mass public opinion could persuade the ruling classes to relinquish their power. The General Convention discussed a variety of "ulterior measures " to be implemented should the petition fail. These included a "Sacred Month " (general strike), a run on banks, and a boycott of hostile traders. The delegates were divided in tempera...
Significance and Interpretation
Chartism did not achieve any of its objectives though all (with the exception of annual parliaments) were enacted subsequently. Parliament abolished the property qualification for MPs in 1858, extended the franchise to working-class males in 1867 and 1884, introduced the secret ballotin 1872, redistributed constituencies in 1885, and established payment for MPs in 1911. Traditionally, the Chartist movement failure was explained by the "premature " and "extreme " nature of its demands and the...
Attwood, Thomas (1783-1859): Attwood, a successful Birmingham banker, believed in currency reform to stimulate trade and supported parliamentary reform to achieve a House of Commonsrepresentative of manufacturing interests. A founder of the Birmingham Political Union (BPU) in 1830 and a leading campaigner for reform in the early thirties, Attwood s...
In 1837, William Lovett who had founded the London Working Men’s Association only a year earlier, joined six MPs and other working men to form a committee. This group would by the following year publish the People’s Charter, outlining six main sources of interest centred on the principle of giving working men the ability to influence, vote ...
In June 1836 William Lovett, Henry Hetherington, John Cleave and James Watson formed the London Working Men's Association. At a meeting in 1838 the leaders of the Association drew up a Charter of political demands which gave the group the name ‘Chartists’.
Lovett is best known for his role in the Chartist movement. Chartism, a campaign for parliamentary reforms intended to correct inequities remaining after the Reform Act of 1832, spanned roughly 1838 to 1850. Arrest and prison term. Like most leading Chartists, Lovett was arrested.
Quick Reference. (1800–77) British radical political reformer. He became involved in working‐class radical groups, and in 1836, with Francis Place (1771–1854), set up the London Workingmen's Association. Lovett outlined a programme of political reform, which in 1838 was presented as the People's Charter.
