I did my abortive PhD on 1820s Britain. My God it was boring; I dread to think how many years of my life I wasted on something I never even finished.
But something about that period is being repeated now, which is why the thread below is well worth your time.
But something about that period is being repeated now, which is why the thread below is well worth your time.
The thing about the first 30 years of the nineteenth century in Britain was: society was changing rapidly. The industrial revolution; the rise of a rentier middle class. But Parliament did not represent this at all.
The popular press emerged too, giving voice to the middle class... while Parliament was paralysed for decades.
After the 1801 Act of Union subsumed Ireland, the key question was that of Catholic emancipation. The King believed his coronation oath could not allow it.
After the 1801 Act of Union subsumed Ireland, the key question was that of Catholic emancipation. The King believed his coronation oath could not allow it.
So a whole succession of Tory ministries refused to consider it: while theoretically maintaining it as an 'open' question by choosing a selection of 'pro-Catholic' and 'anti-Catholic' ministers. It was a colossal stitch-up.
And after 1815, the corn laws made things worse. The distance between London and the rest of the country became ever greater; changes happening bottom-up were not being reflected at all. Instead, we had hideous things like Peterloo, or Spencer Perceval's assassination.
Slowly, in the 1820s, liberal Tories like George Canning and William Huskisson rose to the fore. But the rest of their party, led by people who'd drink toasts to the 'Protestant ascendancy', despised them. Still, no change - even when Canning became PM with the help of some Whigs
All this time, society continued to change. No taxation without representation could've just as easily applied to Britain at this time as it did to the US in 1776. And in the end, just as Nixon went to China, it was Wellington and Peel who conceded Catholic emancipation.
Cue the Tories breaking apart. Cue the path suddenly opening for Parliamentary reform in 1832. Lord Grey was not a good man and a quite appalling snob. But his great reform ministry finally granted it - with the monarchy now losing the power to determine the direction of politics
It took at least 30 years (in many ways, more like 50) for that to happen. I'm frequently reminded of that time in British politics now. Society is changing all the time - but progressive voices are not being represented.
Charles James Fox, a truly great man, never achieved the eminence his politics and oratory warranted... but what he believed in (support for the French revolution excepted) would ultimately be implemented long after his death.
What does all this mean? Britain WILL be remade in the end. It's impossible for Parliament to lock out the masses demanding huge change forever. Pressure will just build, and build, and build some more... and ultimately reach critical mass. It has to.
That's why Johnson's right to invest in the north - if, that is, words are followed by actions. That's why the Tories are right to be terrified of the consequences for them if Brexit proves a disaster.
Sadly, the scale of Labour's defeat means that great moment of real, dramatic change is further away now than it was in 2017. And in Britain, small 'c' conservative to a tee, it may well take until 2030, even 2032 to finally arrive.
But it WILL happen. It's only a matter of time
But it WILL happen. It's only a matter of time
And when that day comes, will Corbyn be seen as ahead of his time? Indeed he will. As will all those activists and commentators who supported him so strongly.
They know the reality on the ground for ordinary people. So many in Parliament either don't, or just ignore it.
They know the reality on the ground for ordinary people. So many in Parliament either don't, or just ignore it.
Well. It can't be ignored forever. Centrifugal forces cannot be resisted - and that goes just as much for the Labour Party's future direction as it does for Britain's.
