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British History Timeline 2

  • Habeas corpus Act

    Habeas corpus Act

    "you can have the body" in Latin. Everyone is entitled to a legal and fair trial when it comes to crime.
  • Establishment of the Bank of England

    Establishment of the Bank of England

    Caused the country to be in debt
  • The Riot Act

    The Riot Act

    allowed troops to use force if people didn’t disperse within one hour.
  • Period: to

    Corn Law

    Tariffs and other trade restrictions on imported food and corn enforced. The word corn
    denotes all cereal grains, including wheat, oat and barley. The laws were designed to keep corn prices high to favour
    domestic farmers, and represented British mercantilism. The laws raised food price and the costs of living for the British
    public
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    Industrial Revolution

  • Burning down of the Westhougton Mill

    Burning down of the Westhougton Mill

    One of the most violent Luddites’ manifestation. This was considered
    as the first major terrorist acts in Britain according to a local history website. After rioters were arrested, they were executed
    by hanging publicly outside the Lancaster Castle.
    This led to Destruction of Stocking Frames : Machine breaking became a capital crime. Government reaction to the Luddites.
  • The March of the Blanketeers

    The March of the Blanketeers

  • The Peterloo Massacre

    The Peterloo Massacre

  • The Six Acts

    The Six Acts

    repression towrds acts of manifestation.
  • The Queen Caroline affair

    The Queen Caroline affair

    The Queen Caroline Affair (1820) saw King George IV attempt to divorce his wife, Queen Caroline, by accusing her of adultery. Public sympathy for Caroline was overwhelming, forcing the government to drop the case. The scandal damaged the king’s reputation and showed the rising power of public opinion in politics.
  • Catholic Emancipation Act

    Catholic Emancipation Act

    Allowed catholics to sit in Parliament; major religious milestone.
  • Great Reform act

    Great Reform act

    Gave the right to vote to all householders who paid 10 pounds or more in yearly rent. Abolished many "rotten boroughs," and gave more represent to industrial cities. Brought negativeand restrictive toward women, Made changes possible for the future.
  • Tolpuddle Martyrs

    Tolpuddle Martyrs

    Members of the Friendly Society (union of solidarity between workers) were sentenced to seven years' penal transportation to Australia for violation of the unlawful Oaths Act. Public backlash led to enormous protests, mass meetings and a petition signed by 800,000 people. Their case became a nationally symbolic fight for labourers and workers' rights
  • Royal Pardon of the Tolpuddle Martyrs

    Royal Pardon of the Tolpuddle Martyrs

    After negotiation between Russel and King William IV
  • Period: to

    Victorian Era

  • Custody of Infant act

    Custody of Infant act

    If previously in the majority of the cases the child custody was awarded to the father, the Custody of Infants Act 1839 permitted a mother to petition the courts for custody of her children up to the age of seven, and for access in respect of older children
  • Royal Commission of Inquiry into Children's Employment

    Royal Commission of Inquiry into Children's Employment

    They conducted hundreds of interviews primarly with children, not merely about their working conditions but also as regards what education they received and their day-to-day diet.
  • Mines Act

    Mines Act

    Created civil divorce and a divorce court, though women faced stricter conditions
  • Repeal of the Corn Laws

    Repeal of the Corn Laws

    Marking full commutment to free trade
  • The Great Exhibition

    The Great Exhibition

    In the Crystal Palace; census shows Britain as a majority urban nation
  • Matrimonial Causes Act

    Matrimonial Causes Act

    The act reformed the law on divorce, moving litigation from the jurisdiction of the ecclesiastical court of the civil courts, establishing a model of marriage based on contract rather that sacraments and wideninf the availability of divorce beyonf those who could affort to bring proceedings for annulment or to promote a private bill. Men could divorce for adultery, women only with added proof of cruelty or incest.
  • Period: to

    The Indian Rebellion

  • Government of India Act

    Government of India Act

    Tranferred rule of India from East India Company to the Crown
  • Offences Against the Person Act

    Offences Against the Person Act

    Crimimnalized male homosexuality acts ("buggery") as felonies punishable by life imprisonment.
  • Secret Ballot Act

    Secret Ballot Act

    Introduced anonymous voting to reduce corruption and intimidation during elections.
  • The Second Reform Act

    The Second Reform Act

    Extended the franchise from landowners of freehold property above a certain value, to leaseholders and rental tenants as well. Doubled the number of men who could vote.
  • Elementary Education Act

    Elementary Education Act

    Expamded literacy among the working class, opening arts, fiction, and newspapers to a mass audience. Made elementary education available for all children, though gendered.
  • married women's property act

    married women's property act

    Allowed married women to be the legal owners of the money they earned and to inherit property
  • Period: to

    Economic Depression

    The "Great Depression" of the Victorian Era
  • Queen Victoria becomes Empress of India

    Queen Victoria becomes Empress of India

    Symbolic of Britain's global dominance and the formalization of the British Raj
  • Period: to

    Social Purity Movement

    Abolishment of prostirution and other sexual activities that were believed to be immoral according to Christian morality.
  • Third Reform Act

    Third Reform Act

    Extended the franchise to rural male workers, creating a more democratic electorate
  • Period: to

    The Berlin Conference

    Scramble for Africa. European powers divided Africa into colonies; Britain gained large territories.
  • Criminal law Amendment Act

    Criminal law Amendment Act

    Raised the age of consent to sixteen, influenced by W.T. stead's sensational campaign The Maiden Tribute of Modern Babylon
  • Period: to

    The Second Boer War

    Fought in South Africa between British and Dutch settles (Boers); highlighted imperial tensions and brutality
  • Universal suffrage

    Universal suffrage

    Representation of thr people Act -- gave the vote to women over 30 who met property or education qualifications. Equal suffrage (full): 1928, Representation of the People (Equal franchise) Act -- Granted all women over 21 the same voting rights as men