BRITAIN IN THE 19TH CENTURY
In the 19th century the post-Napoleonic wars period of reaction was being gradually reformed and more li�beral ministers were included in the Gov�ernment, more progressive policies and laws were adopted. Under ultra-con�servatory Wellington, who became Prime minister in 1828, some reforms were in�troduced: R. Peel, the Home Secretary, created an efficient police force, and the policeman were called peelers or bobbies.
The Catholic Emancipation Act was a forced decision that split the Tory party and brought the Whigs to power in 1830. The Whigs were determined to reform the Parliament which had not changed since the reign of Elizabeth I. The distribution of seats in Parlia�ment was in a mess. Different parts of the country were represented in an un�even and unjust way. The county of Cornwall where the population was less than the population of Manchester or Birmingham elected 44 men to the House of Commons, but neither of these big industrial cities elected a single Member of Parliament. The voting was not secret, the whole system was corrupt and unrepresentative.
The confusion at Westminster re�flected the situation in the country. There were outbreaks of machinebreaking and riots: people exploited at the factories by factory owners and left unemployed by machines replacing them, were outraged; they smashed machines blaming Ned Ludd for it and bearing his name � Luddites, wearing masks and damaging the factories.
The Parliament Reform came to�gether with railways. The Manchester and Liverpool Railway was opened by the Duke of Wellington in 1830. George Stephenson built a locomotive � "the Rocket", which reached a maximum speed of fourty eight kilometres per hour.
The technological revolution was go�ing on strengthened by social reforms that were obviously lagging behind.
The reformed Parliament passed a number of progressive acts. Thus, due to Lord Shaftesbury the first effective Factory Act was passed, limitting the hours worked by children in cotton factories to nine, prohibiting their employment under nine years of age, and appointing inspectors to see that the decisions were enforced.
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| Вопрос №1: According to the text in Great Britain some reforms were introduced in the 19th century by | |
| Ваш ответ: A. ultra-conservative Home Secretary Wellington. B. Prime Minister R. Peel. C. the Tory Party. D. the Head of the Government. | |
| Вопрос №2: The author states that the Catholic Emancipation Act | |
| Ваш ответ: A. created an efficient police force. B. brought the Tory Party to power and split the Wigs in 1830. C. was a necessary and urgent political action. D. reformed the House of Commons. | |
| Вопрос №3: It follows from the text that the situation in the country in the middle of the 19th century was characterised by | |
| Ваш ответ: A. a fair and just electoral system. B. certain social reforms. C. replacing new machines with workers. D. broad representation of working people in the Parliament. | |
| Вопрос №4: According to the author Lord Shaftesbury | |
| Ваш ответ: A. opened Manchester and Liverpool railway. B. promoted the law which let children work less in cotton works. C. built a locomotive. D. reformed the Parliament. | |
| Вопрос №5: Which of the following was not among the articles of the Factory Act: | |
| Ваш ответ: A. only children not less than nine could be employed to work in cotton factories. B. children under nine years of age were to go to the workhouses. C. children should work less than ten hours a day. D. some officials were sent to factories to control the execution of the Law. |
Ответы: D C B B B