The Advent of Democracy: The Impact of The 1918 Reform Act on British Politics (Parliamentary History Book Series) - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1119511194 ISBN 13: 9781119511199

Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell, 2018

Synopsis

In its centenary year, this volume is a study of the Representation of the People Act of 1918 which was a landmark in modern British history and the most substantial change ever made in the electoral system.

• Investigates how it nearly trebled the electorate, extending the franchise to all adult men and giving the vote to women for the first time
• Examines its effects upon the Conservative, Liberal, and Labour Parties; in the three diverse regions of the West Midlands, Scotland, and Ireland
• Demonstrates its impact on the house of commons, the national press, and the evolution of the women’s franchise from 1918 to full equality with men in 1928

About this title

About the Author

Stuart Ball is emeritus professor of modern British history at the University of Leicester, where he taught from 1979 to 2016. He has published extensively on the history of the Conservative Party in the 20th century, and his most recent books are Portrait of a Party: The Conservative Party in Britain 1918–1945 (Oxford, 2013), and Conservative Politics in National and Imperial Crisis: Letters from Britain to the Viceroy of India 1926–31 (Farnham, 2014). He has also has written a short biography of Churchill, Winston Churchill (2003), and edited the political diaries of Sir Cuthbert Headlam (2 vols, 1992 and 1999).

From the Back Cover

The Representation of the People Act of 1918 was a landmark in modern British history and the most substantial change ever made in the electoral system. It nearly trebled the electorate, extending the franchise to all adult men and giving the vote to women for the first time by enfranchising 8.5 million women aged over 30 years, and it also made other significant changes to the conduct of elections. However, its provisions and effects have rarely been closely examined by historians. In its centenary year, this volume addresses that gap by focusing upon the impact of the 1918 Reform Act in key areas. The essays examine its effects upon the Conservative, Liberal, and Labour Parties; in the three diverse regions of the West Midlands, Scotland, and Ireland, and in relation to the house of commons, the national press, and the evolution of the women’s franchise from 1918 to full equality with men in 1928.

Edition details

• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell
• Publication date: 2018
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1119511194
• ISBN 13: 9781119511199
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 204
• Editor: Ball Stuart