The Victorian Age

THE VICTORIAN AGE SUMMARY

The Victorian Age.

The Victorian Age comprises a period of 64 years, between 1837-1901. Before the coming of Queen Victoria there were two political parties: the conservative and the liberals. The conservative were the old Tories or the old aristocratic which supported the principals to maintain all the institutions which were important for the nobles. On the contrary the liberals, which were the old Whig party, believed into the importance of progress and individual energy, so they supported the manufacturing classes and above all the free trade. There were important ministries who supported these political parties: the most famous were: Peel and Disraeli for the conservative, and W.E.Gladstone for the liberals.

THE VICTORIAN AGE PERIOD

They both brought some reforms in favour of social classes and they didn’t consider their personal political interest, one reforms had a particular interest for the free trade: the abolition of the corn laws (tassa sul grano). There was also the poor law amendment act. Which abolished parishes and promoved the  building of workhouses. Apparently it seems to be a changing which improved the standard of living of the workers, but really it offered very hard condition for them, besides women and children lived in different buildings. Working-class problems could be solved only with their own representative in parliament, but being disappointed, they issued the people’s charter (1838), in which they asked for the extention of the right to vote to the working class. In 1867, with the second reform Bill all male house holders in towns had a right to vote. Later, with the 3rd and 4th reform Bill. The right to vote was extended to all male and women too. Moreover, the Trade Union Act of 1781 made unions legal and brought to the foundation of the Labour Party ( 1906), the representation  of the working class in the parliament. Another important reform was the policy of laissex-faire. The free exchange of good without  the payment of any taxes. However many reforms were issued and kept Britain safe from the several revolution in Europe in 1848. Among these reforms mostly advocated by philanthropists.

THE VICTORIAN AGE LITERATURE

There were:
-The Ten-Hours Act, which limited the working hours to ten a day;
-Several Mines Acts, that regulated the employment of children and women;
-Factory Act, which forbad to assume anyone under 14, for a full-time job;
-Education Act provided a system of state primary schools;
-The Emancipation of All Religion sects, by which Catholics were allowed to enter university and work in government jobs.
Moreover, as England got importance all over the world. The queen Victoria made open an exhibition, The Great Exhibition, in Hyde park, where all scientific invention were shown.

Il periodo vittoriano: riassunto

THE VICTORIAN AGE CHARACTERISTICAS

Cultural and Social context
-Socialism
The revolutionary socialism in Europe didn’t involve Britain, because of its politic based on a gradual reform movement. The condition of British working class influenced the revolutionary theories of Karl Marx, who, together with Friedrich Engel, wrote The Communist Manifesto. A derivation of Marx’s doctrine was the Fabians Society, founded by Sidney and Beatrice Webb. It was an intellectual’s group that based their activity on conferences and pamphleteering, and believed in gradual reforms, as well as the emperor Fabius, from who they took the name.