The British Working Class and the General Election of 18681

Royden Harrison

doi:10.1017/S0020859000001681

The British Working Class and the General Election of 18681

Published online by Cambridge University Press: 18 December 2008

Royden Harrison

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The history of working-class politics in Britain during the last hundred years might be written in terms of changing attitudes towards Liberalism; a Liberalism which was continuously redefining itself as its social composition altered and political circumstances changed. Successive generations of working-class leaders attempted both to identify themselves with Liberalism and to disengage themselves from it. Those who saw the political future of labour in terms of full incorporation within the Liberal party were never left unchallenged; those who believed in political independence rarely thought of that independence as involving a complete break with Liberal values. From the eighteen-sixties onwards the conflict between the desire to be assimilated and the urge to independence was continuously present within individuals as well as within movements.

Type: Research Article
Information: International Review of Social History , Volume 5 , Issue 3 , December 1960 , pp. 424 - 455

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0020859000001681 [Opens in a new window]
Copyright: Copyright © Internationaal Instituut voor Sociale Geschiedenis 1960

References

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^{page 428 note 3} ibid., p. 215.

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^{page 431 note 1} A List of Departments and Branches of the National Reform Laegue, 1867. Inside volume entitled: Election Reports in the Howell Collection, Bishopsgate Institute, London. Henceforth all references to unpublished materials are references to this collection unless otherwise stated.

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^{page 432 note 1} Report of Saint Martin's Hall Conference, Bee-Hive, 9th March 1867.Google Scholar

^{page 432 note 2} Dyer, G. H., Benjamin Lucraft, London 1879.Google Scholar

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^{page 432 note 4} Howell, to Prof. Thorold Rogers, 23rd November 1867Google Scholar and to Forster, W. E., M. P., 17th. Dec. 1867.Google Scholar

^{page 433 note 1} Howell, to Hills, C., 26th. Nov. 1867.Google Scholar (Howell kept carbon copies of letters, which are bound in date order in a series of letter books.)

^{page 433 note 2} Minutes, G. C. R. L., 4th Dec. 1867.Google Scholar

^{page 433 note 3} Howell, to Elk, 27th. Oct. 1867.Google Scholar

^{page 433 note 4} Howell, to Clayton, , 28th. Feb., 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 433 note 5} Reform League cash book, 1866–7.

^{page 433 note 6} Samuel Morley, Dictionary of National Biography.

^{page 434 note 1} Howell, Draft Autobiography.

^{page 434 note 2} ibid.

^{page 434 note 3} Howell, to Thomas, W., 4th May 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 434 note 4} Beesly, E. S. “The General Election of 1869Google Scholar: Programme for Trade Unions”. (Undated, but 1867Google Scholar). (Webb T. U. Collection; London School of Economics, Coll. E. Section B. Vol. cxx Item 41).

^{page 435 note 1} Howell, to Morrison, , M. P., 30th. Nov. 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 435 note 2} Howell, to DrBlack, 22nd Febr. 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 435 note 3} Draft Autobiography.

^{page 435 note 4} Howell's, Diary, 1868.Google Scholar (Personal Financial Review for the past year).

^{page 435 note 5} Howell, to “Dear Brother”, 14th April 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 436 note 1} Howell's, diary, 3rd. Jan. 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 436 note 2} For this controversy, see Bradford, Review, 31st. Aug. to 28th. Dec. 1867.Google Scholar This was a continuation of an earlier struggle: see The Commonwealth, 12th. May to 16th. June 1866.

^{page 436 note 3} Howell's, Diary 5th. Feb. 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 436 note 4} ibid., 6th. Febr. 1868.

^{page 437 note 1} Howell, to Kell, R., nth. Feb. 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 437 note 2} Howell, to Illingworth, A., 11th. Feb. 1867.Google Scholar

^{page 437 note 3} Minutes of the Executive Committee of the Reform League, 12th. Feb. 1868. (Hereafter referred to as E.C.R.L.)

^{page 437 note 4} SirJames, Stansfeld, 1820–1893.Google Scholar D.N.B. Also Hammond, J. L. & Barbara, Hammond, James Stansfeld: A Victorian Champion of Sex Equality, London 1932.Google Scholar

^{page 437 note 5} Howell, Diary, 8th. Feb. 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 437 note 6} Howell, to Stansfeld, J., M. P., 18th. Nov. 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 437 note 7} Draft Appeal for the Adelphi Club, 9th. April 1869. (Howell's letter book fot 1868.)

^{page 438 note 1} Beesly, E. S. to Howell, Geo., 26th. April 1868.Google Scholar (Letters to Howell are kept in packages for each year and arranged in alphabetical order.)

^{page 438 note 2} Howell's, Diary 11th. Dec. 1867.Google Scholar

^{page 438 note 3} Howell's, letters of thanks to Potter and to Childers, 24th. March 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 438 note 4} Howells, draft of Lecture to Pimlico Branch, 24th. March 1868.Google Scholar (In letter book for 1868.)

^{page 438 note 5} Howell, to Jackson, Geo., IIth. May 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 439 note 1} See Ch. IV.

^{page 439 note 2} Howell, to Hiscot, C.(?), 2nd. April 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 439 note 3} Howell, to Samuelson, B., M. P., 20th. April 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 439 note 4} Howell, to Salt, T., 3rd. April 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 439 note 5} Howell, to Salt, T., 25th. April 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 439 note 6} See Ch. V.

^{page 439 note 7} Minutes E. C. R. L. 6th. May 1868.

^{page 439 note 8} ibid., 9th. May 1868.

^{page 440 note 1} Minutes RLEC, 17th. June 1868 on the Sub-Committee's report.

^{page 440 note 2} ibid, 15th. July 1868.

^{page 440 note 3} ibid.

^{page 440 note 4} ibid., 3 tst. July 1868.

^{page 440 note 5} Minutes of E.C.R.L., 24th. June and 13th. July 1868.

^{page 440 note 6} Minutes of the E.C.R.L., 31st. July and 6th. August 1868.

^{page 441 note 1} Reform League Report and Balance Sheet for May 1st.-30th. November 1868.

^{page 441 note 2} ibid.

^{page 441 note 3} Reform League Cash Ledger, “Special Fund” Folios 127–133. (Samuel Morley sent £ 100 on 8th. August and the same amount on 15th. and 24th. August. The same amount again on 5th. and 15th. September. He sent £ 200 on 19th. September and the same sum on Oct. 1st. and 23rd. He sent £ 300 on 7th. November and the final instalment of £ 500 on 20th. November).

^{page 441 note 4} Howell's, copy of letter to Stansfeld, 26th. August 1868Google Scholar in small black diary for 1868.

^{page 441 note 5} Howell, to Morley, S., M.P., 1st. Dec. 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 441 note 6} Howell, to Stansfeld, J., M.P., 6th. Jan. 1869.Google Scholar

^{page 442 note 1} Thompson, A. F., Gladstone's Whips and the General Election of 1868, in: English Historical Review, April 1948, p. 193.Google Scholar (Glyn, to Gladstone, on 31st. August and 14th. Sept. 1868.)Google Scholar

^{page 442 note 2} ibid., Brand, to Gladstone, , 4th. August 1868, p. 33.Google Scholar

^{page 442 note 3} ibid., Glyn, to Gladstone, , 12th. Sept. 1868, p. 195.Google Scholar

^{page 442 note 4} Glyn, to Gladstone, , 10th. Sept. 1868.Google Scholar (B.M. Add. MSS, 44, 348 ^F 157).

^{page 443 note 1} “Election Reports” - a volume in the Howell collection, hereafter referred to as ER. The volume contains reports on boroughs arranged in alphabetical order and gives the names of the reporters. All future references will take the form “ER: Andover: Leno and Worley).

^{page 443 note 2} Leno, J. B., Autobiography, London 1892.Google Scholar

^{page 443 note 3} Mins, L. E. (editor), Founding of the First International, New York 1937, pp. 43–44.Google Scholar

^{page 443 note 4} Howell's Draft Autobiography.

^{page 443 note 5} Howell, to Stansfeld, J. M. P., 26th. August 1868.Google Scholar (Copy in Howell's, small black leather diary for 1868Google Scholar). The minutes of the Executive Committee of the League for 6th. August 1868 mentions 15 men being selected to work under “Special Fund” arrangements. They include Connolly and William Dell, sometime Treasurer of the I. W. M. A. He did not go out. Bartlett and Wade appear to have taken the places of Connolly and Dell.

^{page 443 note 6} Howell, to Hales, and Brighty, 13th. August 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 444 note 1} Andover, Bath, Beverley, Birkenhead, Bolton, Boston, Brecon, Bridport, Buckingham, Cambridge, Chichester, Chippenham, Christchurch, Cockermouth, Colchester, Coventry, Cricklade, Devizes, Derby, Dorchester, Durham, Exeter, Grantham, Guildford, Harwich, Haverford West, Helston, Hereford, Huntingdon, Ipswich, Knaresborough, Kidderminster, Leeds, Lichfield, Liverpool, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Ludlow, Macclesfield, Maldon, Marlborough, Monmouthshire, Newark, Newport, Northallerton, Preston, Plymouth, Pontefract, East Retford, Stamford, Southampton, Sunderland, Tewkesbury, Thirsk, Tiverton, Truro, Warwick, Warrington, Weymouth, Westbury, Whitehaven, Whitby, Wigan, Wilton, Winchester, and Woodstock.

^{page 445 note 1} ER: Huntingdon: Hales and Brighty.

^{page 445 note 2} ER: Woodstock: Walsher and Bartlett.

^{page 445 note 3} ER: Beverley: Sanders and Wade.

^{page 445 note 4} ER: Harwich: Davis.

^{page 445 note 5} ER: Macclesfield: Mottershead and Bannister.

^{page 445 note 6} ER: Birkenhead: Sanders, Wade and Bartlett.

^{page 446 note 1} ER: Southampton: Worley and Leno.

^{page 446 note 2} ER: Liverpool: Sanders. Wade and Bartlett.

^{page 446 note 3} ER: Cambridge: Osborne and Davis.

^{page 446 note 4} ER: Truro: Odger and Coffey.

^{page 446 note 5} ER: Weymouth: Bartlett and Walsher.

^{page 446 note 6} ER: Ipswich: Davis and Osborne.

^{page 446 note 7} ER: Brecon: Leno and Worley.

^{page 446 note 8} ER: Stamford: Hales and Brighty.

^{page 447 note 1} ER: Bridport: Unsigned (Bartlett?).

^{page 447 note 2} ER: Guildford: Leno and Worley.

^{page 447 note 3} ER: Cockermouth: Mottershead and Bannister.

^{page 447 note 4} Howell to J., Stansfeld, M.P., 26th. August 1868.Google Scholar (Copy in Howell's, small black leather diary for 1868.Google Scholar)

^{page 447 note 5} ER: Andover: Leno and Worley.

^{page 447 note 6} ER: Cricklade: Davis and Osborne.

^{page 448 note 1} ER: Guildford: Leno and Worley.

^{page 448 note 2} ER: Leeds: Hales and Brighty.

^{page 448 note 3} ER: Preston: Sanders, Wade and Bartlett.

^{page 448 note 4} ER: Derby: Hales and Brighty.

^{page 448 note 5} ER: Sunderland: Mottershead and Bannister.

^{page 448 note 6} ER: Wigan: Sanders and Wade.

^{page 449 note 1} Howell's, notes of his trips to the factory districts. (Small black leather diary for 1868Google Scholar).

^{page 449 note 2} Marx, to Kugelmann, , 6th. Apr. 1868.Google Scholar (Letters to Kugelmann, , London 1936, p. 67).Google Scholar

^{page 449 note 3} The Permissive Bill was designed to permit a majority of rate-payers to impose prohibition on a district.

^{page 449 note 4} ER: Cambridge: Osborne and Davis.

^{page 449 note 5} ER: Coventry: Hales and Brighty.

^{page 449 note 6} ER: Macclesfield: Mottershead and Bannister.

^{page 450 note 1} ER: Kidderminster: Davis and Osborne.

^{page 450 note 2} ibid.

^{page 450 note 3} ER: Colchester: Davis.

^{page 450 note 4} ER: Preston: Sanders, Wade, and Bartlett.

^{page 450 note 5} ER: Sunderland: Mottershead and Bannister.

^{page 450 note 6} ER: Warwick: Hales and Brighty. Also ER: Whitby: Mottershead and Bannister.

^{page 450 note 7} ER: Beverley: Sanders and Wade.

^{page 451 note 1} Glyn, to Gladstone, , 8th. Oct. 1868. B. M. Add Mss: 44347 ^f 190.Google Scholar

^{page 451 note 2} Howell, to Stansfeld, J., M.P., 26th. August 1868.Google Scholar (Copy in small black leather diary for 1868).

^{page 451 note 3} Guedalla, J., The Political Situation, London 1868, p. 32.Google Scholar

^{page 451 note 4} ER: Whitby: Mottershead and Bannister.

^{page 451 note 5} ER: Bath: Davis and Osborne.

^{page 452 note 1} Glyn, to Gladstone, , 28th. Oct. 1868. B. M. Add Mss. 44347 ^f220.Google Scholar

^{page 452 note 2} The Halifax, Guardian, 24th. Oct. 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 452 note 3} Mundella, A. J. to George, Howell, 29th. August 1868.Google Scholar (H.C.B.I.)

^{page 452 note 4} ER: Maldon: Davis and Osborne.

^{page 452 note 5} ER: Kidderminster: Davis and Osborne.

^{page 452 note 6} Howell, to Stanhope, H. S., M.P., 29th. Oct. 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 453 note 1} Howell, to Morley, S., 4th. Nov. 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 453 note 2} ER: Sunderland: Mottershead and Bannister.

^{page 453 note 3} ER: Newark: Hales and Brighty.

^{page 453 note 4} ER: Whitehaven: Mottershead and Bannister.

^{page 453 note 5} ER: Warwick: Hales and Brighty.

^{page 453 note 6} Howell, to DrSandwith, , 6th. Aug. and 8th. Aug. 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 453 note 7} Howell, to Walton, , 7th. Aug. 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 453 note 8} Howell, to Smith, W., 7th. Aug. 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 454 note 1} Glyn, to Glasdtone, , 9th. Sept. 1868.Google Scholar B.M. Add. Mss: 44357 ^f 154.

^{page 454 note 2} ER.: Tiverton: Odger and Coffey.

^{page 454 note 3} ER: Exeter: Odger and Coffey.

^{page 454 note 4} ER: Wigan: Sanders and Wade.

^{page 455 note 1} Howell, to Ellis, , 12th. Oct. 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 455 note 2} Howell, to John, Holmes, 14th. Oct. 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 455 note 3} Howell, to Glyn, G. G., M.P., 30th. Sept. 1868.Google Scholar

^{page 455 note 4} Op. cit., p. 10.

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The British Working Class and the General Election of 18681

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