Democracy & Suffrage Archives - Page 5 of 7 Bristol Radical History Group

Newport Chartist Convention

This year's 'Newport Chartist Convention' is being held at the City Campus of the University at Newport from 11am to 3pm Key note speaker: Professor Malcolm Chase (Leeds University) "Welsh Chartism: Looking beyond November 1839" Malcolm Chase is the leading Chartist historian in the UK today - author of 'Chartism: a new history" (2007) In this lecture, Professor Chase will draw upon his recent Llafur article (2010) "Rethinking Welsh Chartism" and place the Rising at Newport in 1839 into a […]

Bristol 1831: The Queens Square Uprising

The Bishop's Palace after the 1831 uprising.

A poster calling for people to sign a petition for reform. Courtesy of Bristol Central Reference Library refinfo@bristol.gov.uk

A celebration of the Reform Act being passed, J Rowbotham & W Müller (sic).

A postcard of the riots. Courtesy of Bristol Central Reference Library refinfo@bristol.gov.uk

Garnett Vrs. Churchill

‘Every Cook Can Govern’: From Athens to the Electoral Lottery

Cheerleaders for parliamentary democracy often hark back semi-legendary ‘golden ages’ as a foundation of the modern electoral process. Do these myths have any basis in reality and what relevance do they have today? Dan Bennett uncovers the hidden history of Athenian popular democracy and proposes a modern alternative. Watch this talk: If you see this text the video has failed to play. Please let us know by emailing brh@brh.org.uk.

Suffragette!

They Fought for it, They Starved for it: THE VOTE Using visual sources Dawn Dyer charts the struggle for Women's Suffrage in Bristol and the South West Votes for Ladies: The Suffragette Movement 1903-1914 An examination of the established narrative of the struggle for the enfranchisement of women. Anny Cullum critiques the composition and outlook of this iconic movement from a class perspective. Anny Cullum is daughter of Dave and a ledgend in her own life time. Dawn Dyer is a librarian at […]

How Protest And Riot Won Working Men The Vote

There were three main phases of extension to the male franchise in the 19th Century. The '‘Great Reform' of 1832 was preceded by a period of intense unrest in Western Europe. Roger Ball considers the impact these various social and political movements had upon the British ruling class and the first extension of the franchise. Dave Cullum analyses the popular pressure which led to the later Reform Acts of 1867 and 1884. Roger Ball is an Easton Cowboy and a West Ham United fan. He has bored his […]

Thomas Spence The Forgotten Revolutionary

Thomas Spence was one of the leading English revolutionaries of the late 18th Century. His tracts, such as The Rights of Man (Spence was, perhaps, the first to use the phrase) and The Rights of Infants, along with his utopian visions of 'Crusonia' and 'Spensonia', were the most far-reaching radical statements of the period. Although sometimes hailed as England's 'first modern socialist', Spence is not easily corralled by later ideologies. He was a mortal enemy of tyranny and what he called […]

Mills & Bone Subverting Democracy

Ian Bone relates his experiences of contemporary interventions into the electoral process including The Alarm the Swansea based forerunner of The Bristolian, the legendary anarchist tabloid Class War and the Vote Nobody campaign of 2001. Millsy will briefly analyse democracy is this country for the working classes, and describe what it means for us now. How democratic are society, our political parties, and our organisations? These two renowned local troublemakers will also provide their own […]

Mock Election Bonfire Night

To round off this series of events come and stick two fingers up at electoral politics in 2010. Write your own manifesto! Bring and burn an effigy of your most despised public figure! Join us for seditious toasting and acoustic merriment from Eirlys Rhiannon and members of Who's Afear'd and the Surfin' Turnips by the flickering flames of our pyre of politicians. Easton based singer songwriter whose repertoire contains hints of blues, folk, rock and pop, but Eirlys's musical and song writing […]

Leon Rosselson And Robb Johnson The Liberty Tree

Tickets available in advance from: Bristol Ticket Shop 26 Union Street Broadmead, BS1 2DP Tel: 0117 929 9008 Legendary protest singer Leon Rosselson celebrates his fiftieth year in music with a special performance with songwriter/activist Robb Johnson. The Liberty Tree is an evening of contemporary songs reflecting the revolutionary ideas of Thomas Paine. These were influenced by the American War of Independence and were to have a huge effect on the French Revolution and the fight for modern […]