The Chartists and the Struggle for Democracy

The Chartist movement grew out of widespread anger following the 1832 Reform Act. Although the Act had extended voting rights, it still excluded the vast majority of working-class men. Political frustration combined with economic hardship — high unemployment, poor working conditions, and the harsh Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834 — created fertile ground for a mass democratic movement.

In 1836, the cabinet maker William Lovett formed the London Working Men's Association (LWMA). In 1838, Lovett and fellow radical Francis Place drafted the People's Charter, a document that set out six demands for parliamentary reform:

1. Universal manhood suffrage — the right to vote for all men aged 21 and over 2. Secret ballot — voting by secret ballot to prevent intimidation 3. No property qualification for MPs — abolishing the requirement that MPs own property 4. Payment of MPs — so working-class men could afford to serve in Parliament 5. Equal electoral districts — constituencies of roughly equal size 6. Annual parliaments — general elections to be held every year

• The Charter was published in May 1838
• It had six demands (remember: all about making Parliament more democratic)
• Five of the six demands were eventually achieved — only annual parliaments was not
• The movement was led by both "moral force" (peaceful) and "physical force" (militant) factions

Think "SUPAPE" for the six points: Suffrage, Universal; Payment of MPs; Annual parliaments; Property qualification abolished; Equal districts. Or simply remember: the Chartists wanted every man to vote, in secret, for fairly elected MPs who were paid.