BRITISH HISTORY CLASS ESSAY: WORKING CLASS IN BRITAIN 1851-1885
Gloucestershire College
A-level history
Source of the essay: Shepley, N. & Byrne, M. (2015).
Aqa A-Level History: Britain 1851-1964: Challenge and Transformation. Hodder Education
‘The improvement in the condition of the working-classes in the period 1851-1885 was mainly
due to the efforts of Gladstone’. Agree or disagree?
All the reforms and improved living conditions for working-classes began with Gladstone who
became chancellor in 1852 after Peel’s demise in 1850. While he was a chancellor in periods
1852-1855 and 1859-1865, his policies were compatible with rising prosperity and improved
living conditions. Unemployment was declining, value of real wages (value of goods or services
that wages can actually buy) for working classes increased as well as diet of working-class
people was better. When he was a prime minister, Gladstone made some significant social
reforms to increase the prosperity of working-class people. However, in period of 1874-1880,
Disraeli and Conservatives took over and made quite impressive reforms. Therefore, in this
essay, I will argue whether Gladstone was the one who mainly improved the conditions of
working-class people or was it Disraeli and his government after all.
Clearly, it is not possible to analyse every social reform that Gladstone or Disraeli had created in
one essay. So I will mention 3 of them for each Gladstone and Disraeli to show, if the opinion is
valid or not.
The efforts of Gladstone were mainly increasing the prosperity of working-class people in the
period of 1851-1885 and I have a few evidence to defend this idea.
The first and very important reform of Gladstone was education reform. ‘’From the moment you
entrust the masses with power, their education becomes an important necessity…Having placed
the government of this country in the hands of the masses…you must therefore give them an
education’’. These are the words of the Whig Robert Lowe. According to W.E. Foster, Britain was
falling behind other industrial countries in terms of working-class education. He was the one
who worked out The Elementary Education Act 1870 which made elementary education more
available for the masses (working-class in particular). Act included interference with schools
that were run by churches and involved the issue of public finance for education. Money
spending on education was patchy across the country. That is why, School Boards were set up
where most members were, in fact, women. The act contributed to minimizing government
spending on education, therefore local rates were increased. This was the greatest of the
reforms of the ministry and it impacted many questions that mattered to Gladstone which are,
for example, work of church in education, distrust of compulsion and freedom of voluntary
work. It was a starting point for modern education. Of course, it had limitations as well. For
instance, it made only few people happy, non-conformists thought that Gladstone had yielded
much to pressure from church schools. So result was conflicts between non-conformists and
Anglicans.
Other, quite significant act was The Married Women’s Property Act 1870 regarding women’s
rights. Before this act came into force, women had practically no rights when it came to finance
of married couple. Namely, all her earnings (income) and property was legally her husband’s.
This act gave financial independence for women. Money earned was legally hers and if she
made investments with the money, it was separated from her husband’s assets. This act also
applied to inheriting money. Women could inherit it up to 200£. With money from their
Gloucestershire College
A-level history
Source of the essay: Shepley, N. & Byrne, M. (2015).
Aqa A-Level History: Britain 1851-1964: Challenge and Transformation. Hodder Education
‘The improvement in the condition of the working-classes in the period 1851-1885 was mainly
due to the efforts of Gladstone’. Agree or disagree?
All the reforms and improved living conditions for working-classes began with Gladstone who
became chancellor in 1852 after Peel’s demise in 1850. While he was a chancellor in periods
1852-1855 and 1859-1865, his policies were compatible with rising prosperity and improved
living conditions. Unemployment was declining, value of real wages (value of goods or services
that wages can actually buy) for working classes increased as well as diet of working-class
people was better. When he was a prime minister, Gladstone made some significant social
reforms to increase the prosperity of working-class people. However, in period of 1874-1880,
Disraeli and Conservatives took over and made quite impressive reforms. Therefore, in this
essay, I will argue whether Gladstone was the one who mainly improved the conditions of
working-class people or was it Disraeli and his government after all.
Clearly, it is not possible to analyse every social reform that Gladstone or Disraeli had created in
one essay. So I will mention 3 of them for each Gladstone and Disraeli to show, if the opinion is
valid or not.
The efforts of Gladstone were mainly increasing the prosperity of working-class people in the
period of 1851-1885 and I have a few evidence to defend this idea.
The first and very important reform of Gladstone was education reform. ‘’From the moment you
entrust the masses with power, their education becomes an important necessity…Having placed
the government of this country in the hands of the masses…you must therefore give them an
education’’. These are the words of the Whig Robert Lowe. According to W.E. Foster, Britain was
falling behind other industrial countries in terms of working-class education. He was the one
who worked out The Elementary Education Act 1870 which made elementary education more
available for the masses (working-class in particular). Act included interference with schools
that were run by churches and involved the issue of public finance for education. Money
spending on education was patchy across the country. That is why, School Boards were set up
where most members were, in fact, women. The act contributed to minimizing government
spending on education, therefore local rates were increased. This was the greatest of the
reforms of the ministry and it impacted many questions that mattered to Gladstone which are,
for example, work of church in education, distrust of compulsion and freedom of voluntary
work. It was a starting point for modern education. Of course, it had limitations as well. For
instance, it made only few people happy, non-conformists thought that Gladstone had yielded
much to pressure from church schools. So result was conflicts between non-conformists and
Anglicans.
Other, quite significant act was The Married Women’s Property Act 1870 regarding women’s
rights. Before this act came into force, women had practically no rights when it came to finance
of married couple. Namely, all her earnings (income) and property was legally her husband’s.
This act gave financial independence for women. Money earned was legally hers and if she
made investments with the money, it was separated from her husband’s assets. This act also
applied to inheriting money. Women could inherit it up to 200£. With money from their
