Poverty And Pauperism

Question 1

What was the 1601 poor law act who was made responsible for the poor

Answer 1

• Elizabethan poor law was introduced to stop people becoming so desperate that they would riot. The queen believed in helping people
• the government beloved at that time people should help themselves and not rely on the rich
• parishes we’re made responsible for the poor born in the village or serving as apprentices
  *anyone who was seeking poor relief were sent back to the parish of birth
  -

Question 2

How did the poor law act 1601 work and how was it managed

Answer 2

• parishes of brith had to look after the poor
• compulsory poor rate to be levied on every parish
• the able bodied workers were given food, work or cash and the ones that couldn’t work were given shelter in poor houses, money, food
• local taxes paid for poor relief and overseers determined tax rates and who need the most help
• after 1785 the law was improved so that orphans and homeless people were taken care of
  -the able bodied poor were given food work and cash. And the deserving poor were given shelter in poor houses and money and food
  -1782 Gilbert’s act allowed parishes to group together and give legal support to relief
  -

Question 3

Why were the poor laws created in 1601

Answer 3

• population had grown from 3-4 million in the 1500s this meant parishes couldn’t help as much due to it being to expense on their own money so more people were left to defend for themselves
• •in 1517 the power of yeh Catholic Church to control society dissipated. This creates a disconnect in society where before the church had steeped in to help the poorest
• the number of poor harvests in the 1590s as well as change to agricultural system. More people were in poverty and begging and crime rose. The workforce was decreasing due to such bad living conditions
  -however by the end of 17th century this system was under pressure due to growth in population causing strains on parishes

Question 4

When was it made compulsory for all people to pay a national poor law tax

Answer 4

1570

Question 5

What were the 3 categories of poor
able bodied(could do work but couldn’t find any)

Answer 5

• deserving poor (orphans, sick, elderly)
• idle/ undeserving poor ( could work but chose not to, alcoholic, used drugs, prostitutes)

Question 6

Why were work houses built and how many were there by 1776

Answer 6

poor houses were institutes that were set up to stop idleness, they provided housing and food (although it was basic and awful) for people who worked for them in their factories
* by 1776 there were 2000 workhouses with 20-50 inmates in each.
* they were expensive by 1782 and only orphans were allowed to stay due to this parishes had to help more with outdoor relief

Question 7

What was outdoor and indoor relief

Answer 7

• outdoor: gave clothes, food, money, local jobs
• indoor: work houses

Question 8

What was the speenhamland system 1795

Answer 8

-this system South to determine the value of relief to be given to those in need
-Where magistrates subsidised low wages by paying agricultural labourers an allowance which increased with the number of children they had. 5 children= more money then 2
* it was widely used as employers would deliberately pay low wages as they knew the workers wages would be topped up anyway

Question 9

What years did the cost of poor relief rise, why? and by how much

Answer 9

-1815-1831 due to the end of the Napoleonic war
* 400,000 men returned with no jobs and women had lost their husbands due to the war
* rose form 5.7 million to 7 million

Question 10

What was the poor law amendment act 1834 and how was it supervised

Answer 10

• following the limitations of the old poor law the royal commissions recommendations were adopted by parliament and in 1834 an amendment act was passed to improve the system of poor relief. It included;
  *setting up a central authority, poor law authority to over see the new legislation
  *the new Poor Law ensured that the poor were housed in workhouses, clothed and fed but were not given outdoor relief.
• Children who entered the workhouse would receive some schooling.
• In return for this care, all workhouse paupers would have to work for several hours each day.
• work houses were in very poor conditions and provided harsh working conditions
• ratepayers in each parish selected a board of guardians to supervise the workhouse and to collect poor rate

Question 11

Poor law embedment act 1834 timeline

Answer 11

*

Question 12

What was the royal commission 1832-1834

Answer 12

-new government department, was set up in London employing inspectors to supervise the work of local officials. Instead of an administrative system based around parishes about 600 locally elected ‘boards of guardians’ were set up, each board having its own workhouse.
•set of board of guardians to try and improve and change the poor law amendments act and how to deal
With the poor better

Question 13

What was the positives of the royal commission

Answer 13

-went to 3000 parishes of which had never been monitored
* there was a wide spread review across the whole country
* helped 13% of the country go into work houses of which 50% of those were children and 20% were old or sick
* sent out a questionnaire to all 15000 work houses
* 9 commissioners in 1833, 26 assistant commissioners so they could travel separately quicker

Question 14

What were the negatives of the royal commission

Answer 14

-Only 1/5 of parishes had been visited 3000/15000
* 10% replied to questionnaire which was meant to try and improve poor relief, which didn’t give much of an idea to the government
* didn’t interview the poor so couldn’t understand properly what to do and only had workhouse masters views

Question 15

What were the 4 different classes the paupers were split into in the poor amendment act

Answer 15

*the aged and impotent
* the children
* the able bodied men
* the able bodied women

Question 16

What was the poor law commission

Answer 16

Was created in 1834 and consisted of 3 commissioners who were in charge of the new poor law
-included 3 men to oversee the poor law
-Edwin Chadwick was there commissions secretary

Question 17

Causes of the poor law amendment act 1834: social

Answer 17

*public health problems created disease which made poverty even worse
* newspaper and journals published the debate about the poor in society
* middle/upper classes believed the poor were lazy and morally deficient
* industrialisation created urbanisation and public health issues
* population from 1601-1801 doubled from 9 million to 18 without enough food
* there was no national system of poor relief as parishes dealt with the poor individually
* poor relief issues happened all over the country

Question 18

What were the economic cause of the poor law amendment act 1834

Answer 18

• new economic theories appealed to those in favour of reducing the cost of poor relief
• in 1830 the cost of poor relief was expensive at 7 million
• speenhamland system encouraged employers to pay low wages
• the middle/ upper class paid the poor relief and they had the vote about taxation
• the speenhamland system created big families who were a burden on the state
• end of Napoleonic wars left 1/2 million unemployed

Question 19

What were the political cause of the poor law amendment act 1834
(How did politics influence the idea of putting the poor into workhouses)

Answer 19

*fear of Revolution spread from France in 1830 and workhouses had more power of the ones that would more likely revolt
* fear of Revolution as the rural population got out of control eg/ swing riots
* Bentham utilitarianism was supported by Chadwick and influenced the Whig government
* 1832 reform act allowed the middle class to vote who didn’t have a good opinion on the poor as they and to pay the taxes
* 1815 corn laws raised the price or bread which the poor relied on
What did the royal commission recommend for workhouses
proposed what should be changed about the current poor law system
* the commission said decisions should be based on morals
* make a workhouse as bad as possible to deter the poor form it so they could cut costs as the poor wouldn’t want to go to them
* they wanted there to be a distinction between poverty (natural) and indulgence (inability to earn enough to support yourself maybe due to laziness)

Question 20

What did the poor law amendment act 1834 consists of: What were its policies/changes

Answer 20

*each class of pauper had to be treated in the same way across the country under a centrally controlled system
* there should be no outdoor relief for the able bodied poor and their families (no speenhamland system)
* each union of parishes should have a workhouse for the able bodied poor and should be run in the strictest manner
* people in workhouses should be in worse conditions than that of labourers so that people cannot abuse teh system and will only enter a workhouse as a last resort

Question 21

What were the royal commissions Recommendations for the poor law act

Answer 21

-the royal commission proposed what should be changed about the current poor law system
-the commission said decisions should be based on morals (eg/ don’t give relief to a women with illegitimate children)
-a deterrent workhouse would cause moral reform alon get the poor (they would go find work instead of going into the work house)
-there had to be a distinction between natural poverty and indulgence (inability to earn)

Question 22

Strengths of the poor law amendment act

Answer 22

*radical reform of the poor relief system
* poor law commission was set up as a central authority so every workhouse was meant to be the same
* 3 commissioners were from London which had mass amounts of the poor
* 9 commissioners worked at a local level
* had the power to monitor the poor
* was cheaper on the country
* only helped the deserving and able bodied so was economy helpful as they created products in industries

Question 23

Weaknesses of the poor law amendment act

Answer 23

*parliament did not set out how the act was to be implemented so there was much argument between parishes and commissioners over what parliament wanted
* Chadwick became sectary but he was expecting to be commissioner which accounts for why the royal commissions recommendations had been vague as he want to enforce them
* Chadwick often clashed with the 3 commissioners as he wanted to actually help the poor but they wanted to be economically more efficient
* the commission was separated from parliament so couldn’t defend itself form criticism
* the powers it had was negative and they had no real power to make parishes follow the new laws
* the parishes hated it

Question 24

The success of the royal commission

Answer 24

*set up union workhouse
* board of guardians was more professional then overseers
* eventually reduced outdoor relief
* the workhouse conditions made the poor not want to join them and was economically beneficial for the government
* 40,000 paupers removed form parishes and was cheaper

Question 25

What were the failures of the royal commission and the poor law amendment act

Answer 25

*many parishes refused to the new amendment act and unions so many parishes continued handing out outdoor relief, 20/50 refused
* the board of guardians was set up to replace the overseers but overseers were reappointed so the old ways continued (overseers have out money, food etc)
* building mass amounts of workhouses was expensive and during the building outdoor relief was still being given out
* over 80,000 paupers gained relief by claiming ‘non resident relief’
* the commissions ideas weren’t made compulsory so outdoor relief still continued
* in 1847 the poor law commission was replaced by the poor law board

Question 26

What was the workhouse regime

Answer 26

-workhouses had existed before 1834 but under the Gilbert act 1782 they were only for people who couldn’t look after themselves.
-under the poor law amendment act the workhouses were to provide relief but were intended to deter those seeking help
-outdoor relief was to be abandoned and replaced by the workhouse regime which was designed to put off all but the most needy
-it was done as people believed it was too easy to gain relief and so the only relief would be workhouses
-it aimed to conclude the only genuine desperate poor would accept the workhouse
-ig organised 15,000 parishes into 600 larger unions and large workhouses
-this policy was implemented by the poor law commission

Question 27

What were the settlement laws 1840

Answer 27

-people were moved back to tehir original settlements to help reduce the costs of some parishes that might have been more generous with their outdoor relief or didn’t follow the commission laws
* 1840 40,000 paupers were removed from parishes where they were claiming poor relief and were sent back to tehir birth parishes or marriage parishes
* many parishes were paying poor relief to paupers who weren’t part of their parish. After 1834 over 80,000 paupers continued to receive relief this way

Question 28

What were the attitudes towards the poor

Answer 28

• the royal commission changed attitudes towards the poor and people believed poverty was due the popes fault
• some pitied the poor but most were disgusted.
• by the end of the 18th century there was a divide in deserving and undeserving due to the attitudes of the government
• able bodied people who didn’t work were considered to have weak characters (the deserving poor got rooms in workhouses but the undeserving poor got outdoor relief)
• poverty was considered necessary in society to encourage people to work

Question 29

Individuals

Question 30

Robert Malthus

Answer 30

*He argued the population was growing more rapidly (exponentially) then food production (arithmetically)
* therefor the population would outstrip food production if the population wasn’t kept in check
* society needs to check its population and he was very influential in the 1834 poor law amendment act
* he wanted work houses to be harsher to reduce the amount of births and people entering it
* he didn’t believe in the speenhamland system
* published ‘Principle of population’ in 1798

Question 31

Jeremy Bentham

Answer 31

• founder of utilitarianism
• wanted a national charity to help with the poor
• wanted to get rid of cash payments (poor relief)
• supported the idea of work houses
• published ‘Pauper management’ in 1798

Question 32

Thomas Paine

Answer 32

• published ‘rights of man’ in 1792
• he was sympathetic to the poor
• he wanted to increase support for the poor and wanted the redistribution of wealth
• he wanted pension allowances, child support and education
• he suggested able bodied people should enter a workhouse to reduce the cost
• he believed that poverty was due to government oppression
• his ideas were widely ignored

Question 33

Robert Owen

Answer 33

-he was a socialist who blamed the economic system for creating poverty
-his new Lanark milk showed his utopian socialism
-unemployment could be relieved by settling labourers into cooperatives where they could dare the fruits of labour without exploitation of landowner and factory master
-he believed if he gave people good working conditions, wages ect. People would become better
-his ideas were widely ignored

Question 34

Edwin Chadwick

Answer 34

• he was assistant commissioner in the royal commission
• he wrote 1/3 of the final report ‘Report on the Sanitary Conditions of the Labouring Population of Great Britain’ in 1842
• he critiques the current poor law but the new poor law amendment act didn’t give as far as Chadwick wanted it to
• he believed you should train the workers to provide for themselves rather then handing out money
• believed poor law unions should be established

Question 35

David Ricardo

Answer 35

• 1809 he published pamphlet on currency
• 1817 published the principles of political and economy of taxation
• believed in free trade and free market and was against the corn laws
• he believed the government interference with the poor will cause idleness and dependence on the state
• wanted to raise wages

Question 36

Workhouses

Question 37

What was segregation like in workhouses

Answer 37

• the workhouses were divided into 7 categories: infirm men, able bodied men over 17, boys 7-15, infirm women, able bodied women over 15, girls 7-15, children under 7
• the 2 sexed were segregated which allowed each class to be provided for. It was also a deterrent as it split up families. Paupers began to loose their identity and were treated as units

Question 38

What were diets like in workhouses

Answer 38

• diets were designed to sustain life but were very boring
• before 1842 all meals were taken in silence
• paupers could have food weighed but this was often done on purpose to make food cold
• some houses didn’t allow cutlery and it was always poor quality food

Question 39

What was work like in workhouses

Answer 39

• inmates were given jobs to get them prepared for the outside world
• women maintained the workhouse and worked on machinery
• the work was often long hours and dangerous
• work was dull if there was no work to be done that would be economically beneficial they would do dull work eg/cleaning

Question 40

What was the discipline of workhouses like

Answer 40

• staff used a system of reward and punishment
• you could be punished for being in the wrong part of the building, cheek, slow work etc.
• women couldn’t be beaten but men could
• there were punishment cells for minor offences
• you could be rewarded with good jobs and money
• rations, beatings were the main punishment but many women were sexually exploited

Question 41

Was there any improvement of workhouses and were they efficient

Answer 41

• the workhouses did get better over time and eventually they were better than outdoor conditions later on
• many workers were sent to asylums
• children were taught skills which was useful later in when finding work
• much of the work only brought small amount of money due to them not being economically important

Question 42

Opposition

Answer 42

*

Question 43

What were the reasons for opposition to the poor law amendment act 1834

Answer 43

*it removed the right for the poor to receive basic levels of support
* the workhouse symbolised hard new authority
* the workhouses were more expensive then outdoor relief and in industrial areas they woudk often stand empty
* poverty itself was seen as a crime (inmates in workhouses)
* rumours that workhouses were death camps
* believed that workhouses would drive down employment
* workhouses broke up society

Question 44

What was the extent to opposition of the poor law amendment act 1834

Answer 44

• in the south riots took place as a lot of agricultural workers relied on outdoor relief and went into workhouses
• in may 1835 a mob took to streets to stop paupers being moved to a new work house in Chesham which failed as police were called
• some riots in the north had 10,000+ people
• violent protests in Bradford (1837), Dewsbury (1838), Kent (1835) and east anglia (1844). These led to the riot act of 1835

Question 45

What was the Andover workhouse scandal 1845

Answer 45

*Andover was a very strict workhouse. Master McDougal was a former sergeant major who was very fierce and strict and his wife was violent.
* Bone crushing was commen work and the men were so hungry that they were eating bone marrow
* the master and his son sexually exploited women
* this was reported to the local mp and a poor law commissioner was sent out to investigate which led to the master resigning
* in 1845 the commissioners had banned bone crushing
* in 1846 a parliamentary select committee was set up to inquire into the administration of the Andover union. It turned out there had been short rations, injuries and hard work.
* the master buried children with adults to save on burial money and if children died he declared them still born as non of the children were baptised
* this led to the commission being replaced by the poor law board in 1847 which was similar to the commission but accountable to parliament.
Changing attitudes to the poor: What was attitudes to the poor in the first half of the 19th century
poverty was thought to have been caused by personal failure of the individual
* laziness, drunk ness and extravagance were seen as causes of poverty
* idea that support of poor by the government would actually make things worse

Question 46

Changing attitudes to the poor: What was attitudes to the poor in the second half of the 19th century from parishes

Answer 46

-1834 Huddersfield board of guardians would not appoint a administrator to look over of the parishes we’re helping the poor or not
-parishes continued to provide outdoor and indoor relief even after 1834
-many northern parishes refused to put in place the amendment act
-attitudes towards the poor did not change in parishes they were paternal and compassionate

Question 47

How did economics change the attitudes towards the poor

Answer 47

-when the poor werent costing much like in 1785 of 2million they were compassionate but when they were costing more like in 1818 of 7m they were harsh as they had to pay the tax
-Britain’s economy supremacy was being challenged by 1851
* 10% of workers were unemployed after 1876 due to economic depression
* state sponsored welfare systems were hired as vital in protecting Britain’s world position
* the middle class had more money so have more to charity 1874 £3 million given to London charity for poor
* realisation that the poor we’re not responsible for their position and therefore deserved to be helped as they remained poor throughout many changes in Britain

Question 48

How did the role of the government change the attitudes towards the poor

Answer 48

• the electorate was continuingly growing and was including more and more middle class
  -1782 the government comittee to outdoor relief in supporting the incomes of poor through the Gilbert’s act whcih made it compulsory for only Ill, children or old to have help. This changed very quickly
  -after Napoleonic war the attitudes changed and took on David Ricardo idea that the poor were idle and lazy. Aimed to humiliate the poor into working
• in 1832 18% of the population could vote. They voted in favour of the 1834 poor law act as they didn’t want to pay for the poor. Only 50 opposed
• in1867 the electorate grew by 1 million
• 1867 metropolitan poor law act pass (provided for the establishment of asylums for the sick and other classes of the poor in London. Though restricted to London, the Act began to influence services nationally. The Act gave the Poor Law Board powers to bring unions or parishes together into districts)
• in 1884 6/10 people could vote

Question 49

How did self help ideas change the attitudes towards the poor

Answer 49

*Sam smiles published “self help” in 1859. This idea was convenient for the MC as they didn’t have to help the poor. This was the idea that the best way the poor could be helped was to help themselves.
* friendly societies were formed when neighbour’s and friends protected themselves in time of need. These greatly increased in number and were widely supported by the UC. You added small amounts of money weekly and if you were I’ll you would get paid. U/MC had more respect for them if they didn’t have to help eg/tolpuddle 1834
-development of charity work, it allowed women to participate in public affairs
-growth of private enterprises on behalf of the poor

Question 50

How did individuals change the attitudes towards the poor

Answer 50

*Henry Mathew set up punch magazine in 1841 and often write about the poor in London. He told of the story of the 1849 outbreak of cholera in London which killed 13,000 in London. He published articles of the poor in 1851 called “London labour and London poor” highlighting the effect disease, unemployment and starvation had on WC which gave them sympathy.
* Charles dickens wrote Oliver Twist which gave recognition to the poor on how hard their life was and it wasn’t created through their own wrong doings
* Edward smith conducted a food survey in 1863 in which he calculated the minimum amount of food a person needs a day and the poor rarely met this amount
-Thomas pain “rights of man” 1792 wanted pensions, children allowance and education to the poor as the poor were poor due to governmental oppression
-Owen showed the poor could be educated, have less hours, good working and living conditions and money and still have good economic output. Showed the poor needed help by the government to produce good outcomes

Question 51

How did cultural change change the attitudes towards the poor

Answer 51

*Charles dickens was once a pauper but became the greatest writer of his times. Oliver Twist outlined problems particularly in workhouses. He was massively against the poor law amendment act
* paintings began to depict the poor in a different light. Blanchard Jerrold and Gustavo adore joined together to draw areas of London which highlighted the poor and portrayed them in a different light. This illustrated record was called “shadows and sunlight”

Question 52

How did charity and philanthropy change the attitudes towards the poor

Answer 52

• the charity organisation 1869 regulated other charities so aid was only given out on strict conditions. It investigated all those seeking charity and only have aid to those it thought would morally benefit. Relief was often in the form of food and shoes etc.
• charities were often set up by middle class people whose economic status had greatly improved. In 1874/5 charities gave £3mil in London whereas poor law authorities gave £900,000 in 1893 in London
• women were getting more involved in charity work and therefore grew in social status

Question 53

How did religion change the attitudes towards the poor

Answer 53

*william booth founded the Salvation Army in 1865. This got people to change their views on the poor and they began to help them a lot more
* the Methodists church had a kinder view of the poor at this time then society did

Question 54

What was the impact of Andover

Answer 54

-public outcry: poor law commission attacked by public, press and parliament
-John waiter ensured scandal was published in detail in the Times
-1847 poor law commission dissolved, poor law board replaced
-marked shift in national opinion regarding how to deal with the issue of pauperism