Age of Reform

  • Catholic Emancipation Act is passed by Parliament

    Catholic Emancipation Act is passed by Parliament
    The Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829 (10 Geo IV c.7) was passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom on 24 March 1829, and received Royal Assent on 13 April. It was the culmination of the process of Catholic Emancipation throughout the nation.
  • Great Reform Act (1st reform Act) is passed by British Parliament

    Great Reform Act (1st reform Act) is passed by British Parliament
    Calls for reform had been mooted long before 1832, but perennially without success. The Act which finally succeeded was proposed by the Whigs led by the Prime Minister Lord Grey.
  • Second Reform Act is passed by British Parliament

    Second Reform Act is passed by British Parliament
    According to its preamble, the act was designed to "take effectual Measures for correcting divers Abuses that have long prevailed in the Choice of Members to serve in the Commons House of Parliament."
  • Slavery is banned in all British colonies

    Slavery is banned in all British colonies
    The Slavery Abolition Act 1833 was an 1833 Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom abolishing slavery throughout most of the British Empire.
  • Queen Victoria ascends to the throne

    Queen Victoria ascends to the throne
    Queen Victoria ruled the UK for over 63 years, longer than any other British monarch. Her reign coincided with the height of the Industrial Revolution and was marked by significant social, economic, and technological changes in the UK. Though the Irish Potato Famine adversely affected Victoria's popularity, she was mostly well liked
  • Irish Potato Famine Begins

    Irish Potato Famine Begins
    Began in 1845;The Irish crop failed to grow and all people had no food and starved. Lasted 7 years. 1 million people died, and millions moved to Canada and the United States.
  • Use of Secret Ballot in Great Britain passes

    Use of Secret Ballot in Great Britain passes
    The secret ballot is a voting method in which a voter's choices in an election or a referendum are confidential. The key aim is to ensure the voter records a sincere choice by forestalling attempts to influence the voter by intimidation or bribery. The system is one means of achieving the goal of political privacy.
  • British Parliament ends all public hangings

    British Parliament ends all public hangings
    The modern expression Gala Day is derived from the Anglo-Saxon gallows day. After hangings retreated inside prisons, large crowds would still often gather outside the gates to see the posting of the death notice or to protest the execution.
  • Queen Victoria dies

    Queen Victoria dies
    She died at the age of 81. She had been sickly for around a month before.
  • All women 30 and older gain the right to vote in Great Britain

    All women 30 and older gain the right to vote in Great Britain
    The 1918 Representation of the People Act was the start of female suffrage in Great Britain. The bill was passed by an overwhelming majority in the House of Commons (385 for to 55 against)