19th Century Reform

As we progress through the 19th century, change is happening all around us. European countries are politically changing and reforming their laws and governments to make the people happy. In Great Britain, change has been happening slowly but they have remained stable. They are creating laws and reforms that are meant to benefit the people and make the government as fair and as just as possible. It has taken time to get there, and they have had some bumps along the way, but they are making steady progress. In France, on the other hand, the government has had a difficult time keeping a democratic government. Within the time of reform, uprisings and a small civil war occurred in France as well. The two countries acted very differently during reform,
Laws like the Corn Laws were passed, which meant that the importation of gran was banned in order to protect the prices for British producers. These laws were eventually repealed in 1846 because they did not benefit the majority. Acts like the Catholic Emancipation Act of 1829 overturned laws that prevented Catholics from serving in Parliament. The first Reform Bill in 1832 expanded the electorate for the first time. It permitted males owning £10 of property or more to vote. This increased the electorate by 50 percent, which was very significant. The Second Reform Act in 1867 granted the right to vote for all householders and renters. Allowing at least 1 million more people to vote, the electorate continued to expand. The third Reform Act in 1884 extended the right to vote to people living in the country, which meant that the electorate grew to 5 million people out of the 30 million members of the population. Finally, in 1918, the Representation of the People Act gave women over the age of 30 the right to vote, and all males over the age of 21. In addition to suffrage laws, the British government passed laws to make labor fair and just. The Factory Act in 1833 made it illegal for children under the age of 9 to work in factories and for children between the ages of 9 and 13 to work more than 48 hours in one week. In 1847, the 10 Hours Act limited the individual
He was elected by the pope in 1848 and made himself emperor of France. Napoleon began a process of reform that included industrialization, economic expansion, and public works programs. He increased and restored pride of France in the people. However, Napoleon’s foreign policy drove France into unsuccessful wars, and he was removed. After Napoleon’s reign ended, a civil war broke out in France. A group of radicals called the Paris Commune created a temporary government. They were made up of a coalition of radicals, revolutionaries, Socialists, and anarchists, most of whom were from the working classes. Their government was based on communal welfare. They established things like a minimum wage and abolished rent to represent and look out for those who were not a part of the upper class. While their intentions were good, they spent most of their time fighting, so they were not all that successful in the end. There was a revolution leaving the Paris Commune