ABSTRACT
The French Revolution led to a significant realignment in British politics. The vestiges of the old Whig Party, which had dominated parliament under the first two Georges, split finally and irrevocably. Military failure had prompted a massive extra-parliamentary movement during the war calling for reform. The movement, initially organised by the Revd Christopher Wyvill, had begun in Yorkshire in 1779 among county electors who blamed the war, and particularly the lack of success, on corrupt ministers. There was a long and lively tradition of popular political culture in eighteenth-century England. The government considered introducing new legislation to clarify the law regarding sedition, but opted instead for encouraging local action under the existing law. Legislative independence in Dublin, however, scarcely weakened the influence of the parliament and government in Westminster.
