What If...THE CHARTISTS HAD SUCCEEDED?

Winning the vote, and a voice, for the working man would change the political and social structure of Britain forever

- David J Williamson

Working people had gathered enormous momentum by the early part of the 19th century. Cities and towns with their factories and mills devoured the landscape, with a huge volume of labour needed to power the vast and greedy British industrial engine. But with it came frustration at the continued lack of recognition for the vital role of the ordinary working population. No longer willing to be treated as disposable fuel to generate wealth for their bosses, they decided to make their voice heard, with a dream of an equal say in politics, turning a rotten and cruelly unequal society on its head. This took the form of a People’s Charter calling for six major electoral reforms.

What would the social, political and economic landscape have looked like if the Chartists had succeeded?