ABSTRACT
In the wake of the 1832 Reform Act, which extended the franchise predominantly to the urban middle class, there was widespread radical feeling that the majority of people had been politically betrayed. There was also intense resentment to the harshness of the 1834 Poor Law Amendment Act, which made poor relief more degrading and difficult to acquire. Chartism harnessed such resentments, building on a well-established tradition of popular democratic politics. Chartism was distinguished by its large scale, its national character, and its predominantly working-class support.
