Transcript How did the Industrial Revolution impact on crime and

How did the Industrial
Revolution impact on crime and
perceptions of crime in the early
C19?
What were the main social changes brought
about by the Industrial Revolution?
• Use the sources to build a spider diagram
of the main social changes which
happened in Britain as result of the
Industrial Revolution.
• For each change can you predict whether
you think it would have had led to a
change in the amount of crime or type of
crime committed/ changing attitudes
towards criminals and punishment
Source 1: Towns.
- In 1750 the population of England and Wales was 9.5 million.
- Most people lived in villages.
- By 1900 population had risen to 41.5 million.
- Most people lived in towns with poor housing and overcrowding.
The commentator Engels at the time described Manchester
as ‘ heaps of offal, refuse and sickening filth are
everywhere and dispersed with pools of stagnant
liquid. A horde of ragged women and children
swarm about the streets and they are just as dirty
as the pigs which wallow happily on the heaps of
garbage or the pools of filth. On average 20 people
live in each of these houses of two rooms, an attic
and a cellar. One privy is shared by 120 people’
Source 2: An image of a London Slum
in the 1800’s
Source 3: Towns
‘The terrible living poverty and living
conditions in the slums caused crime and
violence. There were parts of most cities
where strangers would not dare to go out.,
especially after dark. Robbery and murder
were committed even in the ‘better’
streets. The old village-type of policing was
not adequate for the towns’
(From a modern historian)
Source 4: Work
In 1750 80% of people worked in
the countryside. By 1900 80%
worked in factories in towns
and cities.
An account of one weaver from
Leicester who was accused of
stealing a watch in 1812
revealed how factories had
displaced workers by putting
people out of work as they
sold cloth much more cheaply
than those who had made it in
workshops at home:
‘I am a poor weaver in distress. I
was travelling to
Leicestershire, having been to
London myself as a poor
soldier but I was not tall
enough. My parents are poor,
my father out of work, and I
have 8 brothers and sisters’
Source 5: Politics and protest
In 1750 only one in eight men had the right to vote
in a general election. Demands for change grew
(inspired by French Revolution) and many riots
and protests occurred over things such as toll
roads, food prices, the introduction of new
machinery in the early C19. By 1885 nearly all
men were able to vote (But not women). As a
result governments began to make reforms such
as improving housing and health, which would
win them votes from ordinary people.
Source 6: politics and protest
‘In the Midlands, there was a big cottage industry in
knitting. In 1800, a hand knitter could earn up to
£1.35 a week. But Factory owners were installing
new machines that could make wider cloth. This
was then cut up to make stockings – the cottage
workers could just not compete; wages fell
sharply, while food costs were rising. So the
cottage workers fought back. In 1811 organised
gangs set about smashing new machines. In one
year alone, they destroyed about 1000 of them’
From a modern historian
Source 6: Acceptance of government
intervention
‘For centuries the British people had resisted the
government meddling in local affairs or telling
town or rural councils what to do. They had
resisted any attempts by the government to raise
money. In the early C19 governments were
increasingly involved in reforming and changing
Britain. Part of the reason was the long French
War which had forced the government to raise
money Governments were now raising more
money in taxes and also allowing local authorities
to raise local taxes to such as those paid for by
the police.’
Main social changes
brought about by
Industrial
Revolution
How did the Industrial Revolution impact on
the Crime rate in early C19 (up to 1850)?
How did the type of crime change?
• Minor crime still accounted for 75% of all
recorded crime.
• Only 10% involved violence
• Murderers were rare – victims knew
murderer normally.
• The significance was not so much the
increase in crime but rather the increased
fear and perception of crime and criminals
amongst the Victorian Middle classes and
ruling classes.
How and why did Victorian perceptions of
criminals change between 1830 and 1890?
• The impact of the Industrial Revolution on Victorian
Attitudes towards crime and criminals is even more
important to understand than the statistical increase in
crime that we know probably took place.
• It is the changing attitudes and perceptions of crime
and criminals that led to changes in punishments, the
introduction of the police force etc.
• One half of the class will investigate and feedback on
Victorian attitudes towards crime in the early C19. The
other half will the same for late C19
Early 1800’s
Attitudes
towards
criminals
Reasons for
these
attitudes
Late 1800’s