Peel And social reform 1832-46 Flashcards
When was the Royal commission on the Poor Law?
1832
When was the royal commission on Factory reform?
1833
When was the first Factory act passed?
1833
When was the poor law amendment act passed?
1834
When was the royal commission into children working in mines?
1840
When was the Mines Act passed?
1842
When was Graham’s Factory act passed?
1844
When was the Maynooth grant put in place?
1845
When did the Irish potato famine begin?
1845
When was the Devon Commission report?
1845
When were the corn laws repealed?
1846
What was the health and morals of apprentices Act? When was it?
1802
Apprentices in cotton factories had to be adequately clothed and given some religious knowledge
They had to have clean and well ventilated working conditions.
This did not cover all children, only apprentices
What did the 1833 Factory Act do? What inspired it?
Employers must have an age certificate for all their child workers
Children 9-13 no more than 9 hours per day
Children 13-18 no more than 12 hours per day
Children not allowed to work at night
2 hours of schooling a day for children under 13
Four factory inspectors to enforce this and report to the Home Secretary. Given same power as justices of the peace
The act followed a royal commission on Factory reform and was framed by Edwin Chadwick. Introduced by lord Althorp and passed by Whig govt under Lord Grey.
What did the 1842 Mines and Collieries Act do?
Prohibited all underground work for women and girls and boys under 10
(Tits out)
What did the 1844 Factory Act do?
Factory Labour forbidden for children under 8
Children 8-13 maximum of 6.5 hours per day
Women and children 13-18 maximum of 12 hours
Safety rules (children not allowed to clean moving machinery and machinery fenced off)
Inspectors had right to enter factories and schools
Surgeons appointed to specify the age of children
Children had to have three hours of school per day
Inspectors had to ensure education was competent
This was passed by Home Secretary Sir James Graham and followed a parliamentary commission on the employment of children
Who was Edwin Chadwick?
Associate of the influential philosopher Jeremy Bentham
Helped to frame the Factory Act of 1833
Work on poor law reform and public health
Highly influential social reformer and administrator. Extended the range of government
Who pushed for the ‘ten hour day’? When was it actually passed
Lord Ashley (the Earl of Shaftesbury)
Peel would not pass it, waited until 1847 when it was passed Party in revenge with support from anti-peel Tories and Whigs
What were the issues with the legislation of the factory acts?
Many employers not complying with the acts
Certificates to confirm age were complicated
Requirement for children to attend classes was difficult to enforce
Difficult to guarantee that classes were of a good standard
Not many factory inspectors compared to the number of factories
HOWEVER, the acceptance of the principle of regulation - an achievement
What was Speenhamland?
This said that wages of agricultural workers could be supplemented rather than fixing wages and basing the supplement on three price of bread and size of family
Meant rate payers paying a lot of money
What were the issues with the old poor law?
Rate payers in industrial areas paying for a lot of poor people
Due to industrialisation people moved around for work and didn’t stay in the same place all their life so it was difficult to access relief
It was expensive to move people back to their places of birth
Rate payers were paying a lot
Seemed to reward the ‘undeserving poor’
Which Act allowed parishes to join together to set up workhouses for the first time?
1783
How much was poor relief in 1832?
£7 million
And this is at a time of economic good times
Which men influences the final report on the commission of enquiry into the poor law?
Edwin Chadwick
Nassau Senior (economist)
Bentham’s philosophy has impact too
Was things needed to change about the poor law?
Needed a ‘less eligibility’ principle
A national system for dealing with the poor
Needed to enhance moral attitudes in the working class
How many parishes did the Poor Law Commission look in to?
3,000
Who were the Poor Law Commissioners?
These people were a central body which let Central govt increase its power. They were in chance of the Poor Law Guardians of each Poor Law Union
Edwin Chadwick- leading administrator
Sir Thomas Frankland Lewis (former Tory MP)
Captain George Nicholls (businessman)
John Shaw-Lefevre
Where was the new Poor Law system accepted?
The rural south
Although still some variation
Which areas of the UK took longer to accept the new Poor Law? Where was its introduction met with violence?
The North and West took longer
Richard Oastler urged on a mob at Huddersfield which stopped the guardians using their powers.
Rebecca Riots in Wales in 1839-43
By 1839 what percentage of parishes had created unions under the Poor Law Amendment Act?
95%
What other jobs used children apart from factories and mines?
Domestic work
Fame work
No protection for children in these industries
What was the issue with the context in which child labour took place?
Not about disagreeing with child labour but disagree with having children away from the family unit as could be subject to harsher discipline in factories
What was said in defence of the conditions child labourers worked in?
At least indoors
Not as hard as farm work
Had food and shelter
Hours of work shorter than domestic service
Employment stopped idleness and helped the family. As no school, nothing to do otherwise
Many employment suited to child labour (mining galleries, machines that needed small fingers)
Children did not form trade unions
In 1833 what percentage of factories employement were under thirteen?
10-13 %
What percentage of the labour force was children?
15%
What reformers opposed the Factory system as it stood for children?
Richard Oastler
John Fielden
Anthony Ashley Cooper (Earl of Shaftesbury)
What concerns were there about child employment?
- unnatural and upsetting the social order
- ethical concerns and religious conviction (exploitation). Young had wrong principles when kept from family
- desire for the old healthier rural environment for children
- child labour kept wages low as cheap competition to adult work
- became a big human interest story in the press
- increasing desire for change and reform in society
- more concern for general education, wanted this for working children
Why did some view restriction of working hours as wrong?
Reduced industrial competitiveness
Raised costs
Deprived poor families of income
What were the reasons for change? (to the poor law)
Wanted lower cost poor relief
Wanted tighter social discipline (after rural unrest in 1830-31 and in Reform bill crisis)
Elevating moral condition of poorer classes
Bring unruly local government under power of central government
How would the new Poor law work?
Parishes group into poor law unions (cheaper and more efficient)
Central plan for workhouse design
Pauper children educated and found apprenticeships, stop being a burden on families and parish
Poor rates would fall as people wouldn’t want to enter the workhouse
Help provide shelter for those roaming looking for work (casual wards)
Prevent suffering in parishes that didn’t provide enough relief
End the Speenhamland system and therefor end the depression of wages
COST EFFECTIVE AND RATIONAL
What were workhouses like?
Called ‘the bastille’ to sum it up
The bad conditions contributed to Chartist agitation
Unemployment in a trade fluctuation society was not a moral failing…
Created a division between north and south as north more dependant on trade
Implementing the Poor law still rested with local people, this meant there was lack of consistency
Some year accommodation not adequate and had to return to outdoor relief or face riots
Scandals such as Andover
Prison like uniforms, poor rations, petty humiliations, little medical care
Families separated
What happened at the Andover workhouse?
Inmates had to gnaw at animal marrow to survive
Led to a select committee in the House of Commons
Led to a new Poor law board being set up in 1847
Was the new Poor law act successful?
Reduced poor rates but not as much as expected
At least bought some education to the poorest children
Did end some of the abuses of the old workhouses
However the new law permitted more independence in running workhouses than expected- this led to scandals such as Andover
What opposition was there to the new Poor law?
Workers who feared the new ‘bastilles’- rumours authorities would poison those in the new workhouse
Tory radicals opposed the new centralised government. Felt respect of Poor to landowners would be undermined as landowners charity would no longer happen
Distrust of utilitarian philosophy
Harsh stories of abuse in the Times
Oliver Twist in 1838 stirred opposition
An anti Poor law movement developed but had little success (Oastler, Fielden)- associated with 10 hours movement too. Chartists like O’Connor support this too
This movement tried to get supporters elected as guardians
Also delayed implementation of Act in north and sparked protest in places such as Huddersfield
Arrival of Irish Labourers after famine in 1845 led to less opposition to outdoor relief
What was the Maynooth Grant Crisis?
To try and get Catholic support for English rule Peel proposed increasing grant given to Catholic training college at Maynooth.
Better educated Priests would be less extreme and favour union
Lots of opposition, seen as undermining the Anglican Church of England
Seemed Inconsistent as Peel used to oppose Catholics
150 Tory MPs voted against the act
