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William, Duke of Clarence, became William IV (1830-37) following the death of his brother, George, in 1830. In 1832, he secured the passage of the first Reform Bill by agreeing to create new peers to overcome the hostile majority in the House of Lords.
Also known as the \'Representation of the People Act\', the Reform Act aimed to extend the voting rights and redistribute Parliamentary seats. \'Pocket\' and \'Rotten\' boroughs were abolished, as they had formed unrepresentative constituencies, and seats were redistributed on a more equitable basis in the counties.
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