From the Crown to the people

This is a thematic study: it tracks one big question across 800 years — how did power move from an all-powerful monarch towards ordinary people?

It falls into four broad parts:

• Challenging authority & feudalism — Magna Carta (1215), Simon de Montfort's Parliament (1265), the Peasants' Revolt (1381).
• Challenging royal power — the English Civil War (1642–1651), the execution of Charles I, the Glorious Revolution (1688).
• Reform & workers' rights — Peterloo, the Great Reform Act, Chartism, trade unions, the anti-slavery campaign.
• Equality & modern rights — votes for women, the welfare state, race relations and workers' rights in the 20th century.

Exam tip: because it is thematic, examiners love questions about change and continuity across the whole period — e.g. "How far did protest methods change from 1381 to 1918?"

The feudal world

In medieval England society was a feudal pyramid. The King claimed to rule by God's will; below him barons held land in return for loyalty, and at the bottom peasants worked the land and owed service.

Kings needed the barons' money and soldiers. When a king pushed the barons too far — as King John did — they could push back. That is where our story begins.

Magna Carta, 1215

King John was an unpopular ruler — he lost wars in France and demanded heavy taxes. In 1215 the angry barons forced him to seal Magna Carta ("the Great Charter") at Runnymede.

• It limited royal power — for the first time the King agreed the law was above him.
• A famous clause said no free man could be imprisoned "except by the lawful judgement of his equals or by the law of the land".
• The King could not raise certain taxes without the agreement of a council of barons.

Misconception alert: Magna Carta was really about protecting the barons' interests, not ordinary people. But its principle — that even a king must obey the law — became hugely important centuries later.

What did Magna Carta do?

Simon de Montfort's Parliament

A generation later, King Henry III also clashed with his barons. The baron Simon de Montfort defeated the King in battle and, in 1265, called a Parliament.

• For the first time it included not just barons but elected representatives from the towns and counties (knights and burgesses).
• This is often seen as an early step towards a representative Parliament.

De Montfort was defeated and killed soon after — but the idea that a Parliament should include representatives of the people did not die with him.

The Peasants' Revolt: causes

In 1381 came the biggest popular uprising of the Middle Ages — the Peasants' Revolt. Several causes came together:

• The Black Death (from 1348) had killed so many people that surviving labourers were scarce — and could demand higher wages.
• The Statute of Labourers (1351) tried to freeze wages at old levels, angering peasants.
• A hated new Poll Tax (a flat tax on every adult) was the final trigger.

Link it up: the Revolt shows economic change (the Black Death) creating the conditions for people to challenge those in power.

The Peasants' Revolt: events

Rebels from Kent and Essex, led by Wat Tyler and the radical preacher John Ball, marched on London.

• The 14-year-old King Richard II agreed to meet the rebels and appeared to accept their demands.
• At Smithfield, Wat Tyler was killed during a scuffle with the King's men.
• Once the crowds went home, the King broke his promises and the revolt was crushed; ringleaders were executed.

Misconception alert: the revolt failed in the short term — but the hated Poll Tax was not collected again in that form, and it showed ordinary people could frighten the Crown.

Name the leader

The English Civil War: causes

By the 1600s the great struggle was between the King and Parliament over who really ran the country. Under Charles I this broke into open war in 1642. The causes were mainly:

• Money — Charles tried to raise taxes without Parliament's consent, and even ruled for 11 years without calling one.
• Religion — many feared Charles was too sympathetic to Catholicism, when England was Protestant.
• Power — Charles believed in the Divine Right of Kings (that he answered only to God); Parliament wanted a real say.

This was a direct clash over authority — the theme running through the whole course.

The execution of a king

Parliament's New Model Army, with Oliver Cromwell as a leading commander, defeated the King. Charles I refused to compromise, and something unheard-of happened.

• Charles I was put on trial and executed on 30 January 1649 — the only English king ever executed by his own people.
• England became a republic (the Commonwealth), led by Cromwell.

This was the ultimate challenge to royal authority: Parliament claimed the power even to put a king to death.

Restoration and the Glorious Revolution

The republic did not last. After Cromwell's death the monarchy was restored in 1660 under Charles II. But the balance of power had changed for good:

• In the Glorious Revolution (1688) Parliament removed the Catholic James II and invited William and Mary to rule.
• The Bill of Rights (1689) set limits on the Crown — the King now needed Parliament's agreement to make laws or raise taxes.

Key idea: Britain became a constitutional monarchy — the monarch reigned, but Parliament held real power. Authority had shifted from the Crown towards elected politicians.

When was Charles I executed?

After 1689

New ideas about rights

By the late 1700s revolutions abroad and radical new thinking made people at home ask: why can't ordinary men have rights and a vote too?

• The American Revolution (1776) showed people could reject a distant, unrepresentative government ("no taxation without representation").
• Thomas Paine's book Rights of Man (1791–92) argued that governments should protect people's rights and could be changed by the people.

These ideas alarmed the government — but they inspired a generation of reformers demanding change at home.

The Peterloo Massacre

On 16 August 1819 a huge, peaceful crowd (around 60,000) gathered at St Peter's Field in Manchester to demand the vote and reform of Parliament.

• Local magistrates panicked and sent in cavalry, who charged into the crowd with sabres.
• Around 15 people were killed and hundreds injured. It was nicknamed "Peterloo" (mocking the battle of Waterloo).

Consequence: the government responded with harsh new laws (the "Six Acts"), but Peterloo shocked many and became a rallying symbol for the reform movement.

The Great Reform Act, 1832

After years of pressure, Parliament passed the Great Reform Act in 1832 — the first big step in changing who could vote.

• It gave the vote to more middle-class men (based on how much property they owned).
• It redistributed seats, taking MPs away from tiny "rotten boroughs" and giving them to fast-growing industrial towns.

Misconception alert: the 1832 Act did not give the vote to working-class men or any women — only a small slice of men gained it. Disappointment with 1832 helped spark the next movement: Chartism.

Chartism

Working people who felt betrayed by 1832 launched Chartism (1838–48), a mass movement demanding the vote for working men. Its demands were set out in the People's Charter — six points.

The Chartists' huge petitions (1839, 1842, 1848) were all rejected, and the movement faded. But five of the six points eventually became law — a "failure" that shaped modern democracy.

What did the Chartists want?

The campaign against slavery

One of the great human-rights campaigns ran alongside the fight for the vote — the movement to abolish slavery. Campaigners such as the MP William Wilberforce led the fight in Parliament.

• 1807 — the slave trade was abolished across the British Empire.
• 1833 — the Slavery Abolition Act ended slavery itself in most of the British Empire.

This showed how a determined pressure group — using petitions, meetings and public opinion — could change a huge injustice through Parliament.

Trade unions and workers' rights

The Industrial Revolution created factories with long hours and low pay. Workers began to organise into trade unions to demand better conditions — often facing fierce opposition.

• Tolpuddle Martyrs (1834) — six Dorset farm workers were transported to Australia just for forming a union; a huge protest campaign won their pardon.
• Factory Acts (from 1833) began to limit child labour and working hours.
• The Trades Union Congress (TUC) was founded in 1868; the match girls' strike (1888) and dockers' strike (1889) showed unskilled workers could win too.
• The General Strike of 1926 saw millions stop work in support of the miners.

The story of workers' rights is one of gradual, hard-won gains — often through strikes, unions and public sympathy rather than through Parliament alone.

Name the martyrs

Event ↔ significance

Tap an event on the left, then tap its significance on the right.

The Suffragists

By 1900 many men could vote, but no women could. Two very different movements set out to change that.

• The Suffragists — the NUWSS, led by Millicent Fawcett from 1897.
• They used peaceful, law-abiding methods: petitions, meetings, leaflets and lobbying MPs.

The Suffragists believed patient, respectable campaigning would slowly win over Parliament — and they built a large, well-organised movement.

The Suffragettes

Frustrated by slow progress, Emmeline Pankhurst founded the WSPU — the Suffragettes — in 1903. Their motto was "Deeds not words".

• They used militant tactics: chaining themselves to railings, smashing windows, hunger strikes in prison.
• In 1913 Emily Davison died after running onto the track at the Derby, in front of the King's horse.

Debate: historians argue about whether the militant Suffragettes helped or harmed the cause. Their protests kept votes for women in the headlines — but some think they lost moderate support.

Two movements, two methods

Women win the vote

Women's vital work in the First World War (1914–18) made it far harder to deny them the vote. Change came in two stages:

• Representation of the People Act (1918) — gave the vote to women over 30 (who met a property rule) and to all men over 21.
• Equal Franchise Act (1928) — women could finally vote at 21, on equal terms with men.

Misconception alert: the 1918 Act did not give all women the vote — only those over 30 with property. Full equality with men came only in 1928.

When did (some) women first vote?

The welfare state and the NHS

In the 20th century "power to the people" also meant the right to be cared for. The Beveridge Report (1942) proposed attacking the "five giants" of want, disease, ignorance, squalor and idleness.

• After 1945 the government built the welfare state — benefits, pensions and council housing.
• The National Health Service (NHS) was launched in 1948, giving free healthcare to everyone.

This was a huge extension of what the state did for ordinary people — arguably one of the biggest changes in the whole 800-year story.

Race, equality and modern rights

In the later 20th century campaigns pushed for equal rights for everyone, whatever their race or sex.

• The Bristol Bus Boycott (1963) protested against a company refusing to employ Black or Asian drivers — and won.
• Race Relations Acts (1965, 1968, 1976) gradually made racial discrimination illegal.
• The Equal Pay Act (1970) was a key step towards equal pay for women.
• Mass protests against the Poll Tax in 1990 helped force the government to scrap it.

Notice the continuity: from the Poll Tax of 1381 to the Poll Tax protests of 1990, unfair taxes have again and again driven people to challenge those in power.

Timeline: 1215 → 1948

Put the events in order

Tap the events in the correct time order, from earliest to latest.

Change, continuity and factors

Because this is a thematic study, examiners want you to compare across the whole period. Two habits win marks:

• Track how methods of protest changed. From armed revolt (1381) to peaceful mass petitions (Chartism) to organised campaigns (Suffragists) — but also spot continuity, like unfair taxes sparking anger in 1381 and 1990.
• Use the "factors". Explain change through causes like the role of individuals (Wilberforce, Pankhurst), ideas (Paine), war (WWI and votes for women) and the economy (the Black Death, industrialisation).

Interpretations differ: for example, historians disagree over whether the militant Suffragettes helped or hindered women getting the vote — being aware of the debate is exactly what the exam rewards.

Thinking like a historian

How power shifted, 1170 → today

Across the whole period, power flowed step by step from the Crown towards the people:

Each stage built on the last: a principle (the King must obey the law) grew into Parliament's power, then a wider vote, then rights for all.

The essentials to remember

You've covered the whole AQA Power and the people thematic study. Press Finish to see your score.