In 1842 when Dickens set out from Liverpool on his first American tour he took a new steam powered ocean liner. Schedules could now be published in the expectation that a steam powered vessel would run to time.
In 1851 the word “Victorian” entered the English language. In that year Queen Victoria was able to take the Royal train from London to visit Liverpool and Manchester, before continuing north to her beloved Scotland. It was the year Victorians celebrated their achievements with the Great Exhibition. Visitors came not just from Britain, but also from Europe, America and the British colonies, the Victorians basked in the glory of being world leaders.
Prince Albert tried to change the monarchy to make it appeal more to the new members of the Middle Class, who were to dominate the Victorian world. The aristocratic Tory Party re-invented itself as leaders such as Peel and Disraeli sought to widen its appeal, it emerged as the Conservative Party.
Not all members of society shared the spoils, Elizabeth Gaskell wrote novels about the harsh conditions in Northern mill towns, these were a call for change. Dickens continued to amuse and shock his audience, The Old Curiosity Shop was a tear jerker that also raised the issue of child prostitution. A new generation of journalists and religious leaders took to the streets of the big cities seeking to challenge the complacency of those in power and bring about social change.
In 1851 the word “Victorian” entered the English language. In that year Queen Victoria was able to take the Royal train from London to visit Liverpool and Manchester, before continuing north to her beloved Scotland. It was the year Victorians celebrated their achievements with the Great Exhibition. Visitors came not just from Britain, but also from Europe, America and the British colonies, the Victorians basked in the glory of being world leaders.
Prince Albert tried to change the monarchy to make it appeal more to the new members of the Middle Class, who were to dominate the Victorian world. The aristocratic Tory Party re-invented itself as leaders such as Peel and Disraeli sought to widen its appeal, it emerged as the Conservative Party.
Not all members of society shared the spoils, Elizabeth Gaskell wrote novels about the harsh conditions in Northern mill towns, these were a call for change. Dickens continued to amuse and shock his audience, The Old Curiosity Shop was a tear jerker that also raised the issue of child prostitution. A new generation of journalists and religious leaders took to the streets of the big cities seeking to challenge the complacency of those in power and bring about social change.
