Poverty And Pauperism Flashcards
How many poorhouses were there by 1776?
2,000 each with 20-50 inmates
What are Absolute and Relative Poverty?
Absolute - The lack of an income to provide even basic human needs
Relative - People who are poor but still have enough to survive
Between 1802-1803 what percentage of The North and The South received poor relief?
North - 10%
South - 23%
What did the 1832 Royal Commission do?
They had 9 commissioners (including Edwin Chadwick) and aimed to gather evidence on how to improve the poor law. They sent out questionnaires to 15,000 parishes, but only 10% returned
What did the 1832 Royal Commission recommend be changed with the poor law?
- The Removal Of Outdoor Relief
- The use of Workhouses as deterrents
- The creation of a central board to control these changes
- Grouping parishes to more effectively manage workhouses
What did the 1601 Elizabethan Poor Law do?
Poorhouses were made for the deserving poor. Outdoor relief was provided to the able bodied.
What did the 1782 Gilbert’s Act do?
Allowed parishes to group together to build workhouses
It aimed to make the workhouse a place of refuge not punishment
How long did the Speenhamland System last?
1795-1834
What did the Speenhamland System do?
Subsidised low wages. Allowance depended on the price of bread and number of children.
Wages were topped to the price of 3 loaves of bread (4 1/2 loaves if the worker had a family)
When was the French Revolution and Why did this cause fear in the government?
1789-99, As they feared the middle and working class would rise up together and revolt
When did the Napoleonic War end?
1815
Hoe many soldiers returned home from the Napoleonic war?
Over 400,000
Why did some people avoid Poor Relief?
To take poor relief was seen as social evil and indolent (lazy)
What was Individualism?
They believed that minimum legislations and government intervention was best.
- Thomas Malthus and Joseph Townsend
- Malthus wrote an essay on how population increase will eventually lead to drained resources
What was Collectivism?
Early socialism, the government should take responsible for the poor to offer a collective solution to the problem of poverty.
- Thomas Paine and Robert Owen
- Thomas Paine’s “The Rights Of Man” outlines his radical beliefs such as a pension
What was Utilitarianism?
The Government should provide “The Greatest Happiness for the Greatest Number”
- Edwin Chadwick and Jeremy Bentham
- Bentham invented this and believed humans were motivated by pain and pleasure
How much did poor relief cost the country from 1815-1833?
Over £5.7 Million per year
What were the main reasons for the Reform Of The Old Poor Law?
• Rising Cost of The Poor Rate
• Individualists, Utilitarianism and Collectivists
Questioned the government’s old beliefs
Edwin Chadwick was made secretary to the commission
• Failures of the Old Poor Law
Speenhamland - 1795
Elizabethan Poor Law - 1601
• Attitude to Poverty
Deserving vs Undeserving
Less Protecting of the Poor
When was the Poor Law Amendment Act?
1834
How much did the Banbury Workhouse cost?
£6,200
What did the Poor Law Amendment Act do?
- Commissioners now have assistants to aid
- No commissioners can become members of the House Of Commons
- Commissioners have the power to say which parishes join into unions
- Those dangerously deranged could not be detained in a workhouse for more than 14 days
- The Board of Guardians (Overseers) are elected by ratepayers and run the workhouses
What were the workhouses designed for (post Poor Law Amendment Act)?
Deterring workers
They were less appealing conditions than those of the poorest labourer
What did the Poor law Amendment Act (1834) do to the parishes?
The 15,000 parishes were amalgamated into groups of about 30.
Each with a board of Guardians
When was Oliver Twist Published?
1837
