The Luddites + Industrial Protest Flashcards
Where did the luddites start?
Nottingham, 1811
How long was the Luddite movement?
6 years
Who were ‘The Luddites’?
Handloom workers whose jobs were being lost due to steam powered loom machines
How did the luddites stop the increase of loom machines?
Broke them
What is an example of an early Luddite protest?
1812, broke 1000 loom machines costing between £6k - £10k
What act was the result of Luddite protests, passed in 1812?
Frame Breaking Act - made deliberate breaking of machines punishable by death
What is an example of the 1812 act being unsuccessful?
Didn’t stop protests - 1812 Rawford Mill saw protests, soldier had to come in, 2 Luddites were killed
What was the result of the death of Luddites in 1812?
Assassination of anti-Luddite mill owner William Horsefall, shot outside of Huddersfield
How many more Luddites were executed after 1812, and what was the result of this?
A further 14 Luddites were executed, quietened the movement
What can the Luddite protests be seen as an example of?
Skilled craftsmen attempts on to maintain their indenting against industrialisation - also an early example of violent protest
Where did the Swing riots occur?
South of England
What were the 3main reasons for the swing riots?
Poor harvests in 1828/29, the introduction of the threshing machine meant agricultural workers lost employment in winter, also increasing gap between rich and poor due to industrialisation
What is an argument that the threshing machine didn’t cause the swing riots?
The threshing machine had been in use since 1790
What did swing rioters threaten to do?
Burn hayricks
What were the demands of the swing rioters?
Rent reductions, wage increases, end of rural unemployment due to machinery
How many were arrested and executed due to the swing riots?
1976 arrested, 19 executed
Why was the response to swing riots more moderate than the Luddites?
The punishment for the swing riots was left to local JPs, they had more sympathy for the rioters as understood their motivations
What is the importance of the swing riots?
It can be recognised as the 1st major rural riots
Why did focus increase on reducing working days?
Failure of the Luddite and swing riots showed that a more moderate approach had to be taken, less demands to be successful
Why did the ten hour movement receive more widespread support?
Aims seemed viable, MPs also showed support for this as early as 1802
What did MP John Hobhouse do in 1825?
Sought to reduce working days for children from 16 to 11 hours, was undermined by the free trade ideology
Where and when can the ten hour movement seen to have began?
1830, in the Pennines, where workers wanted to collaborate with trade unions
Which 2 MPs were leaders of the ten hour movement?
Richard Oastler and George Bull
What did Richard Oastler do in 1830 to stir political interest in the ten hour movement?
Wrote a letter to Leeds Mercury, compared factories to slavery
What was created as a result of Oastler’s actions?
A committee to investigate factory conditions by Michael Sadler, although he then lost his seat in 1832
What was the significant of the 1833 Factory Act for the ten hour movement?
Did restrict working hours of child labour, increased effectiveness due to sympathy from parliament, paved the way for the passing of the 1847 Ten Hour Act
