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May 13
30m 55s

The People's Charter

The National Archives
About this episode

In this episode of On the Record, we explore Chartism, Britain's first mass political movement, driven by the working classes. 

It emerged in response to the failure of the 1832 Reform Act to extend the right to vote beyond those who owned property. The Chartists published newspapers, organised mass rallies, and, in some cases, took up arms, becoming a driving force for reform.  

To guide us through this movement, we're joined by Joe Cozens, a historian at The National Archives whose work explores working-class politics.  

Up next
May 12
Trailer: The People's Charter
In our next episode of On the Record, we explore the rise of Chartism, the 19th-century working-class mass movement that shook Britain's political establishment. 
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Mar 26
The Putney Debates
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Mar 21
Trailer: The Putney Debates
Coming soon…In our next episode of On the Record, we step inside St Mary's Church, Putney in 1647, where soldiers, radicals, and reformers wrestled with bold, world‑shaping ideas about rights, representation, and how society should be governed. 
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