The Making Of Modern Britain #4: Surveys Of Booth And Rowntree Flashcards
What was Charles Booth?
A Liverpool businessman who inherited his family’s shipping business
What did Booth believe prior to his surveys?
He was critical of the was of measuring poverty - he believed that many politicians were wrong about the problem of poverty in Britain
When and where did Booth organise research?
Between 1886 and 1903 on London, he hired investigators to carry out survey work
What were the results of Booth’s survey?
35% of London living on abject poverty - more than previously believed
What did Booth find about poor people and rich people?
The often lived closely together
What was the poverty line that Booth argued for?
- the belief that a family of 4-5 people needed a weekly income of between 10 and 20 shillings if they were to avoid poverty
- he said that many people worked but still did not earn enough
How did Booth’s work influence many other rich people?
- they listened to his warnings that failure to tackle poverty could lead to a violent revolution
- they were also outraged at the stories of underage prostitute girls
What did both the surveys do?
Make people aware of the extent of poverty, pressuring the government to act to fix it, as charity work was not enough
Who was Seebohm Rowntree?
Part of the Rowntree chocolate family
What was Joseph Rowntree like?
- he owned the Rowntree factory in York
- he was seem as a good employer, offering support to workers such as pensions and also schools for their children
Why did Rowntree carry out his research?
He was interested in Booth’s findings
Where and when did Rowntree carry out his survey?
York, 1899 - involving 46000 people
What did Rowntree find?
27.8% of York lived in abject poverty
Why was Rowntree’s study important?
- poverty was spread across Britain, not just London
_ - before this, many had claimed that London’s huge size meant it could not be compared to the rest of the country
What were Rowntree’s ideas of primary and secondary poverty?
- primary poverty was when people were poor through no fault of their own
- secondary poverty meant that people were partly responsible for, eg. Gambling
Who did Booth find were more likely to be poor?
- Stages of life during childhood and old age
- he argued the government should especially take actions to help these people at these times of their lives
Evidence that the surveys didn’t lead to immediate action
It took until1906 for the government to act
What did many claim about secondary poverty?
Showed that the government shouldn’t help
