Democratic reform and activism

Setting the stage

-​ Urbanization and industrialization brought sweeping changes to
Western nations.
-​ People looking for solutions to the problems created by these
developments began to demand reforms.
-​ Many people also began to call for political reforms.
-​ They demanded that ordinary people be given a greater voice in
government.

Britain adopts Democratic reforms

In the late 1600s, Britain became a constitutional monarchy, with the
monarch as the head of state and Parliament holding real power. The
British Parliament consists of the House of Lords and the House of
Commons, with members elected by the British people. In the early 1800s,
the British government was not a true democracy, with only 6% of the
population having the right to elect the House of Commons members.
However, democracy gradually expanded in the 1800s, with liberalism ideas
spreading among the middle and working classes, demanding a greater
share of power from aristocratic landowners.
-​ Reform bill of 1832: The Reform Bill of 1832 was a legislative act passed
by Parliament in 1832 to extend suffrage to the wealthy middle class,
who had been demanding a greater voice in politics since the
Revolution of 1830 in France. The bill eased property requirements,
modernized electoral districts, and eliminated "rotten boroughs" to
give industrial cities more representation, ensuring that the middle
class could vote and contribute to the growth of the British economy.
-​ Workers demand suffrage:The Chartist movement emerged as a
popular movement among workers and other groups who were
unable to vote, presenting their demands to Parliament through a
petition called The People's Charter of 1838. The Charter called for
suffrage for all men and annual Parliamentary elections, as well as
reforming Parliament to make it more responsive to the interests of
the lower classes. The Chartists demanded a secret ballot, an end to
property requirements for serving in Parliament, and pay for
members of Parliament. Despite Parliament's rejection, their protests
convinced many people that workers had sound complaints. In 1867,
working-class men were granted the vote, and in 1884, most adult
males in Britain had the right to vote. By the early 1900s, all Chartists'
demands, except for annual elections, became law.
The Victorain Age :
-​ The figure who presided over all this historic change was Queen
Victoria.
-​ Victoria came to the throne in 1837 at the age of 18.
-​ She was queen for 64 years, one of the longest reigns in his- tory.
-​ During the Victorian Age, the British empire reached the height of its
wealth and power: Victoria was popular with her subjects, and she
performed her duties wisely and capably.
-​ However, she was forced to accept a new, virtually powerless role for
the British monarchy.
-​ The kings who preceded Victoria in the 1700s and 1800s had exercised
great influence over Parliament.
-​ The spread of democracy in the 1800s shifted political power almost
completely to Parliament, and especially to the elected House of
Commons.
-​ Now the government was completely run by the prime minister and
the cabinet.
-​ Thus, ever since Queen Victoria, British monarchs have been mainly
symbolic rulers with no political power.
Women demand the right to vote
By 1890, several industrial countries had universal male suffrage (the right
of all men to vote). No country, however, allowed women to vote.
As more men gained suffrage, more women demanded the same.
-​ Organization and resistance: In the 1800s, women in Great Britain and
the US worked to gain the right to vote, with women like Lucretia
Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton organizing a campaign in 1848.
They issued a declaration of women's rights, modeled on the
Declaration of Independence. British women also organized reform
societies and protested unfair laws. However, resistance grew as
women became more vocal, believing women's suffrage was too
radical and unsuitable for politics.
-​ Militant Protests: Emmeline Pankhurst, a British woman, formed the
Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) in 1903 to fight for women's
suffrage. The WSPU, along with her daughters Christabel and Sylvia,
led protests, demonstrations, and even arson to draw attention to
the cause. Despite facing arrests and imprisonment, Pankhurst and
her daughters led hunger strikes and were forced to feed their
children. One member, Emily Davison, even gave her life in protest at
the English Derby. Despite its success, women did not win the right to
vote in national elections in Great Britain and the United States until
after World War I.
Democracy in France
While Great Britain moved toward true democracy in the late 1800s,
democracy finally took permanent hold in France. However, France's road
to democracy was rocky.
-​ The Third Republic: After the Franco-Prussian War, France faced
numerous crises, including Napoleon III's exile in Britain and the
formation of the National Assembly. In 1871, the Paris Commune took
control of Paris, leading to a massacre and burning of the city. The
National Assembly only agreed on a new government in 1875, which
eventually established the Third Republic, lasting over 60 years.
However, France remained divided, with a dozen political parties
competing for power, and the government changed every ten months
between 1871 and 1914.
-​ The Dreyfus Affair: The Dreyfus affair, a scandal involving Captain
Alfred Dreyfus, a Jewish officer in the French army, was a significant
battleground for opposing forces in the 1880s and 1890s. Dreyfus was
accused of selling military secrets to Germany, leading to his life
imprisonment. However, new evidence revealed that Dreyfus had
been framed by other army officers. Public opinion was divided, with
many refusing to let the case be reopened, fearing it would cast
doubt on the army's honor. Dreyfus's defenders argued for justice
and his release. In 1898, writer Émile Zola published an open letter
denouncing the army for covering up the scandal, which
strengthened Dreyfus's cause.
-​ The Rise of Zionism: Zionism, a movement led by Vienna writer
Theodor Herzl, emerged in the 1890s as a response to the severe
persecution of Jews in Eastern Europe, particularly in France and
the United States. The persecution led many Jews to seek a separate
homeland in Palestine, but the establishment of Israel took years,
despite the long history of exile and persecution.