Agricultural Hall, Islington Meeting of 1867
The Reform League's leaders were determined not to make the mistake of easing off that they had made at the time of the Reform Bill 1866, and so continued demonstrating. On 11 February 1867, the very day the Tory government had fixed for the announcement of its reforms, the League arranged an impressive demonstration that started from Trafalgar Square and ended at a meeting at the Agricultural Hall in Islington. The procession included every sort of Trade Union and Reform League branch from all around the country, all carrying banners and accompanied by bands.
That evening a number of "advanced Liberal" MPs arrived fresh from a sitting at the House of Commons with news of how "unsatisfactory" the Tory government's proposals for reform were. This made the working men at the packed and excited meeting all the more determined not to give up the "pressure from without" until the Tory cabinet made much more generous proposals for reform.
Read more about this topic: Reform League
Famous quotes containing the words islington and/or meeting:
“There was a youthe, and a well-loved youthe,
And he was a squires son:
He loved the bayliffes daughter deare,
That lived in Islington.”
—Unknown. The Bailiff’s Daughter of Islington (l. 1–4)
“When one drinks with a friend, a thousand cups are not enough, but when there is no meeting of minds, half a sentence can be too much.”
—Chinese proverb.