How successful was William Pitt in dealing with the threat of revolution, 1790-1801?
When the French Revolution broke out in 1789, Britain initially welcomed the changes because the newly created constitutional monarchy reflected many features of Britain's political system. However, as the French Revolution became more extreme, Pitt's government feared a repeat of the French experience in Britain. The creation of a republic in 1792 and the beginning of the Revolutionary Terror created great concern in Britain. The execution of Louis XVI in January 1793 led to the outbreak of war between Britain and France.
From 1793 to 1801, Britain feared invasion by France. In 1797, a small French force landed at Fishguard in Wales but was easily captured. In 1798, a French military force succeeded in landing in Ireland to assist Irish rebels.
(Consider how serious the threat of revolution in Britain was between 1790 and 1800, and how effectively Pitt's government dealt with the problem.)
Why was the government frightened about the possibility of Revolution?
In 1791, the Englishman Thomas Paine published The Rights of Man, which advocated increased political liberty and supported the changes made in the French Revolution. The Priestley riots took place in Birmingham against supporters of reform and Nonconformists.
In 1792, the London Corresponding Society was formed to encourage correspondence between supporters of political liberty. By 1795, other Corresponding Societies had been created and the London society had approximately 5,000 members.
In 1793, a trial of radical reformers took place in Scotland, increasing fears of revolutionary activity in Britain.
Royal Navy sailors mutinied at Spithead and the Nore in 1797. Although the main reason for the mutiny was poor wages, it led to a fear of revolutionary activity in the armed forces.
In 1798 a rebellion in Ireland was led by the United Irishmen, a secret society which had links with the French revolutionary government. Theobald Wolfe Tone, a leading United Irishman, was an officer in the French army. It took a considerable military effort to subdue the rebellion.
How did the government deal with this threat?
Most discontent and radical protest was more to do with the economy than political radicalism. High food prices in 1795 marked the height of radical discontent and there were similar riots in 1801. However, the government's actions had the effect of forcing revolutionary activity underground. The following measures were passed.
1793 - the Aliens Act prevented French revolutionary agents entering Britain
1794 - the Habeas Corpus Amendment Act was suspended, allowing the government to arrest and imprison people without trial
1795 - the Treasonable Offences Act extended the crime of treason to include speaking and writing, and made it a crime to hold the king or the government in contempt
1795 - the Seditious Meetings Act required public meetings of more than 50 persons to be licensed by a magistrate .
1798 - new taxes and government regulation of newspapers were introduced to prevent poorer people from reading about revolutionary ideas
1799 - ban on London Corresponding Society and United Irishmen
1799 and 1800 - Combination Acts made trade unions illegal
1801 - Habeas Corpus suspended a second time
As well as legal measures Pitt and the government had the army to putdown the possibility of Revolution
Fear of revolution was sufficient to split the Whig Party in 1794. A group of Whigs under the Duke of Portland joined Pitt's government on the issue of defending law and order, and this greatly strengthened Pitt's position.
Most Radical middle class opinion was against revolution. While some radicals wanted the reform of the electoral system they were frightened by what had happened in France.
The Act of Union. 1800, followed the Irish Rebellion. It created the United Kingdom by uniting Britain and Ireland and abolishing the separate Irish Parliament. As part of the political change. Pitt had promised Catholic emancipation, but George III's veto led to Pitt's resignation.
Pitt returned again as prime minister from 1804 to 1806 when his main contribution was to join a coalition (political alliance) against Napoleon and resume war with France. In 1805, Nelson's naval victory at Trafalgar prevented an invasion of Britain.
The result of Pitt’s strong and repressive policies was that England and Wales did not have a revolution in this period.