CHARTISM. — An English political movement, predominantly working-class, of the first half of the 19th century. The force sustaining it was a general discontent caused by the extreme poverty suffered by the workers, but its programme was political and comprised six points: universal suffrage for all male adults, secret ballot, annual elections, eligibility without a property qualification, payment of members of Parliament, and electoral constituencies of uniform proportions. Naturally, these demands were regarded only as means, since, by taking hold of political power, the workers would have established a better social organisation. But the various groups of Chartists were not in agreement regarding the use to be made of this political power once it had been attained, and their unity around a programme of purely political reforms served only to conceal the divergences of purpose among the leaders.
The Charter, with its famous six points, was drawn up by a small group of London artisans under the leadership of William Lovett; it was published in 1838 and received enthusiastically by the workers. In 1839 a petition in favour of the Charter was presented to Parliament, but it was rejected by a large majority, producing a split among the agitators. The advocates of “moral force,” such as Lovett, wished to continue the struggle by peaceful means, whereas those of “physical force” preferred recourse to violence, either by proclaiming a “sacred month” or “national holiday” (general strike), or by organising an armed revolt. Their threats, led by O'Connor, resulted in sporadic and isolated acts of violence: a small Chartist uprising took place at Newport, and three years later an epidemic of strikes broke out in the north and in the interior of England. These events did nothing but provide the authorities with a pretext for imprisoning the principal Chartists. The la-
st great demonstration took place in 1848. A petition to be presented to Parliament was prepared, and a grand procession was organised in London. The government, somewhat exaggerating the danger, filled the capital with troops and, at the time of the gathering, forbade the demonstrators to march on Westminster; after attempting to cross the bridges over the Thames, they dispersed peacefully. O'Connor then brought the petition to the House of Commons in three carriages, where it was received with loud laughter.
Chartism never recovered from the effects of these failures and gradually died out. This failure was almost inevitable for several reasons: lack of leadership, lack of common understanding, and above all because it was premature. The workers of a century ago possessed neither the education nor the political experience necessary to direct a campaign successfully without the support of the middle classes, and these could not support a movement that attacked private property.