# Political Register

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{{Short description|Weekly London-based newspaper}}
{{Italic title}}
thumb|Title page of the January 19, 1828 edition of ''Political Register''
The '''''Cobbett's Weekly Political Register''''', commonly known as the '''''Political Register''''', was a weekly [London](/source/London)-based<ref name=BNA/> [newspaper](/source/newspaper) founded by [William Cobbett](/source/William_Cobbett) in 1802. It published continuously until Cobbett's death in 1836.<ref>John Cannon. "Political Register." ''The Oxford Companion to British History''. Oxford University Press. 2002.</ref>

==History==
Originally propounding [Tory](/source/Tory) views, and costing a shilling, Cobbett changed his editorial line to embrace radicalism, such as advocating widening the suffrage. It had a large circulation for the time of 6,000 copies.<ref name="Hansard"/>

The government was alarmed by its [radicalism](/source/Radicalism_(historical)) and tried to prevent mass circulation by adding [stamp duty](/source/Stamp_duty_in_the_United_Kingdom) on all newspapers, putting them out of reach of all but the wealthiest. From November 1816, Cobbett also published the ''Register'' in a cheap 2d. pamphlet, which kept political comment but evaded stamp duty by excising news.<ref>[Altick, Richard D.](/source/Richard_Altick), ''The English Common Reader'', 2nd ed., 1998, p. 325</ref> The price of the paper gave it the nickname "Two-Penny Trash;"<ref>Stewart, R. ''Party & Politics 1830-1852.''</ref> nevertheless, it soon  gained a circulation of 40,000.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.georgianindex.net/publications/newspapers/news_sources.html|title=The Political Register|date=March 2003|publisher=The Georgian Index|accessdate=2009-05-27}}</ref>

Cobbett began publishing ''Parliamentary Debates'' as a supplement to his ''Political Register'' in 1802. At the time it was illegal to report the proceeding of Parliament, only its ultimate decisions. He eventually extended his reportage back in time with the ''Parliamentary History''. Cobbett's reports were printed by [Thomas Curson Hansard](/source/Thomas_Curson_Hansard) from 1809. In 1812, with his business suffering, Cobbett sold the ''Debates'' section to Hansard.<ref name="Hansard">{{cite web|url=http://www.hansard-westminster.co.uk/story.asp|title=The Story of Hansard.|date=2006|publisher=Palace of Westminster|accessdate=2009-05-27|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090817171411/http://www.hansard-westminster.co.uk/story.asp|archivedate=2009-08-17}}</ref>

Historical copies of ''Cobbett's Weekly Political Register'', dating back to 1802, are available to search and view in digitised form at The [British Newspaper Archive](/source/British_Newspaper_Archive).<ref name=BNA>[http://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/search/results?newspaperTitle=Cobbett%27s%20Weekly%20Political%20Register Digitised copies of the ''Cobbett's Weekly Political Register'']</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://www.spartacus-educational.com/PRregister.htm ''Political Register''{{'}}s entry on the Spartacus website]
*[https://www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/evolutionofparliament/parliamentwork/communicating/from-the-parliamentary-collections/collections/rural-rides/ William Cobbett & The Political Register - UK Parliament - Living Heritage]
*[http://www.bl.uk/reshelp/findhelprestype/news/newspdigproj/ndproject/large14108.html Sample image of Cobett's ''Political Register''] at The British Library website. Accessed May 2009

{{Authority control}}

Category:1802 establishments in the United Kingdom
Category:1836 disestablishments in the United Kingdom
Category:Defunct newspapers published in the United Kingdom
Category:Defunct weekly newspapers
Category:Publications disestablished in 1836
Category:Publications established in 1802

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Political Register](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_Register) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_Register?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.