Author: Anon

Publication: Reform Song

Published: 1832

Publication type: Broadside

Featured individuals:
Henry Brougham (1778-1868)
John Wilson Croker (1780-1857)
Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey (1764-1845)
Joseph Hume (1777-1855)
Daniel O'Connell (1775-1847)
Robert Peel (1788-1850)
Dudley Ryder, 1st Earl of Harrowby (1762-1847)
Michael Thomas Sadler (1780-1835)
Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington (1769-1852)

No full copy of this poem is available.

Recording:

More information about this recording

Archive/Library: Paisley Central Library

This song reflects on the long fight for reform going back to the 1790s, from the vantage point of 1832. It points to the fate of earlier radicals - execution and exile - and the recent challenges in getting legislation through the 'grinding mill' of Westminster. In particular it alights on the blocking tactics of Tories, and - by contrast - celebrates the achievements of reformers such as Hume and Brougham and Earl Grey.