how effective was the agitation of the anti corn law league?

Question

explanations if possible please.

Answer 1

One might say very effective in that the Corn Laws (protecting English agriculture from imports unless prices were very, very high) were repealed. But it was not just because of the anti corn law league. In the 1840s Britain abandoned its old mercantile-based economic system and moved to a free-trade regime to facilitate industrial development. This included repeal of the corn laws but also repeal of preferential duties on a variety of colonial products, repeal of the navigation acts, repeal of the ban on the export of machinery and emigration of skilled emigrants. The new political forces in Parliament following the Reform Bill had more to do with these changes than the anti corn law league.

Answer 2

Well, it led to the Repeal of the Corn Laws by (I think) Sir Robert Peel's government. Please note that Peel was a Conservative PM so they weren't all bad! I wish I could remember more of my O Level history but, sadly, it was a long time ago. I think Cobden and Bright also come into this somewhere!

Answer 3

very.

basically the landowners tried to set teh price on corn, a basic commodity... this was much like the fuel companies setting up a cartel to charge an inflated price at the pumps, whilst getting it for nothing from teh suppliers.

back in the 1700's this was life or death for poor peasant farmers, and there were many massacres and bloody riots. look at wikipaedia... my schoolboy history is 40 years old...