The Reform Bill Receiving the King's Assent by Royal Commission, 7 June 1832

1 portrait of Henry Richard Fox (later Vassall), 3rd Baron Holland

© National Portrait Gallery, London

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The Reform Bill Receiving the King's Assent by Royal Commission, 7 June 1832

by William Walker, by Samuel William Reynolds Jr, after Samuel William Reynolds
mezzotint, published 1836
Reference Collection
NPG D10714

Artistsback to top

  • Samuel William Reynolds (1773-1835), Mezzotint engraver and painter. Artist or producer associated with 637 portraits, Sitter in 3 portraits.
  • Samuel William Reynolds Jr (1794-1872), Mezzotint engraver. Artist or producer associated with 71 portraits.
  • William Walker (1791-1867), Photographer, engraver and publisher. Artist or producer associated with 128 portraits.

Sittersback to top

This portraitback to top

The six commissioners, Grey, Durham, Holland, Brougham, Lansdowne, and Wellesley, are shown below the throne in the House of Lords. The passage of the Great Reform Bill was one of the major legislative landmarks of the nineteenth century.

Placesback to top

Events of 1836back to top

Current affairs

William Lovett founds the Working Men's Association, the precursor to Chartism, with the aim to achieving equal social and political rights between men of all classes.
A reduction in stamp duty from 4d to 1d helps to keep unstamped newspapers off the street, and leads to wider circulation of legal newspapers.
The first railway line is built in London, connecting to Greenwich and operated by the London Greenwich Railway (LGR).

Art and science

The American poet and writer Ralph Waldo Emerson outlines his theory of transcendentalism in Nature, in which he argues for individualism above traditional authority, stressing the infinitude of the private self and the possibility of achieving an original relation to the universe.
The German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer publishes On the Will in Nature, a precursor to his famous The World as Will and Representation.

International

Texas declares its independence from Mexico following a series of battles, including those at the Alamo and Goliad. Sam Houston is the first president of Texas, serving both in 1836-38 and 1841-44.
The city of Adelaide is founded in Australia, at the mouth of the Torrens river, named in honour of Queen Adelaide, consort of William IV.

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