This detailed case-study offers a penetrating analysis of the changing political culture in Cornwall up to and after the introduction of the 1832 electoral system. It spans a century in which the county's parliamentary over-representation and notorious political corruption was replaced by a politicised electorate for whom issues and principles were usually paramount. Several models of electoral behaviour are tested; in particular, the continuous political activism of Cornwall's farmers stands out. Despite remnants of the unreformed electoral system lingering into the mid-Victorian era,...
This detailed case-study offers a penetrating analysis of the changing political culture in Cornwall up to and after the introduction of the 1832 elec...