The major demands for reforms in eighteenth-century Britain emerged from the growing tensions between traditional political institutions and the changing social and economic conditions of the country. The expansion of commerce, the growth of towns, the rise of a prosperous middle class and the spread of political ideas associated with the Enlightenment generated demands for a more representative and accountable system of government. One of the most important demands was parliamentary reform. The electoral system was highly unequal. Many “rotten boroughs” with very small populations returned members to Parliament, while rapidly growing industrial towns such as Manchester and Birmingham had little or no parliamentary representation. Reformers demanded redistribution of parliamentary seats, wider representation and the elimination of corrupt electoral practices. There were also demands for reducing the influence of aristocratic families over Parliament. Another major demand concerned extension of the franchise. Political participation was restricted largely to wealthy property-owning men. Radical reformers demanded a wider electorate and greater political equality. The ideas of the American Revolution and the writings of thinkers such as John Locke and later Thomas Paine encouraged criticism of arbitrary government and