Little Circle

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The Little Circle was a Manchester-based group of Non-conformist Liberals, mostly members of the Portico Library, who held a common agenda with regards to political and social reform. The first group met from 1815 onwards to campaign for expanded political representation and gain social reform in the United Kingdom. The second group operated from 1830 onwards and was key in creating the popular movement that resulted in the Reform Act 1832.

Background

In 1819,

Salford, Bolton, Blackburn, Rochdale, Ashton-under-Lyne, Oldham and Stockport, with a combined population of almost one million, were represented by either the two county MPs for Lancashire, or the two for Cheshire in the case of Stockport. By comparison, more than half of all MPs were elected by a total of just 154 voters.[2]
These inequalities in political representation led to calls for reform.

First Little Circle

The first Little Circle was formed from 1815 onwards by cotton merchant John Potter. The group was influenced by the ideas of Jeremy Bentham and Joseph Priestley, objecting to a political representation system that denied booming industrial cities such as Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester proportionate representation in the House of Commons.

Meetings were held at John Potter's home and its core membership were

anti corn law campaigner); and William Cowdroy Jnr (editor of the Manchester Gazette
).

After witnessing the

Peterloo massacre in 1819, and the closure of the liberal Manchester Observer in successive police prosecutions,[4]
the group decided that the time was right to advance its liberalist agenda.

In 1820 Brotherton, Shuttleworth and Thomas Potter founded the Manchester Chamber of Commerce. In the following year, the group supported John Edward Taylor in founding a liberal newspaper the

Manchester Guardian, to which they all contributed. Taylor continued to edit the newspaper which was published by law only once a week until his death.[5][6][7]

Second Little Circle

From 1830 a second Little Circle, comprising 11 Manchester businessmen, met at the Cannon Street warehouse of Potter's trading company.[8] Seven were Unitarians, including five from the Cross Street Chapel: Thomas and Richard Potter; Absalom Watkin; Mark Philips, John Shuttleworth, John Benjamin Smith, and brothers, Edward and William Baxter (all cotton merchants); Fenton Atkinson (Manchester attorney); William Harvey; John Edward Taylor.[9] The group supported social reform issues closely but discreetly: Taylor survived a trial for libel; Shuttleworth organised the defence of plebeian reformers accused of administering an illegal oath.[9]

The group initially proposed that the seats of

Charles Poulett Thomson.[9]

Legacy

By the time the Reform Act 1832 had become law, Manchester had become a borough and many social reforms had come to fruition. Members of the group had established themselves in society, with[9] Joseph Brotherton becoming MP for Salford, Richard Potter, MP for Wigan and John Benjamin Smith became MP for Stirling Burghs and later Stockport. Thomas Potter became the first Mayor of Manchester on its incorporation. Ten out of the first 28 mayors of Manchester were associated with Cross Street Chapel.[9]

References

  1. ^ "Currency converter". The National Archives. Retrieved 8 April 2008.
  2. ^ a b Reid (1989), p. 28.
  3. ^ "The Great reform Act". BBC News. 19 May 1998. Retrieved 26 March 2008.
  4. ^ 'Manchester Gazette,' 7 August 1819, quoted in David Ayerst, 'The Guardian,' 1971, p 20
  5. ^ Peter Shapely (2004). "Brotherton, Joseph (1783–1857)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 28 March 2009.
  6. ^ "Richard Potter". archiveshub.ac.uk. Archived from the original on 8 July 2012. Retrieved 13 February 2012.
  7. ISBN 0-85315-308-6
    .
  8. ISBN 1-85936-024-6
    .
  9. ^ a b c d e "Before the Welfare State". Cross Street Chapel. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
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