The Tory Government reponse to social unrest, 1815-1822. - page 1
Keywords: britain uk tory tories conservatives lord liverpool 1815 1822 industrialisation
By exploiit on 19/06/2010
Level: A Level (Year 12) / AS Level
Page Number: 1 of 3 pages: 1 2 3
Between 1815 and 1827, under the reign of Lord Liverpool, Britain experienced a period of dramatic change – it ended a 22 year war with France, endured an economic boom as a result of the war economy and was introduced to an industrial revolution. Although these changes brought with them benefits, the too brought discontent and opposition – particularly from the working class of Britain - and with discontent came reaction. After Lord Liverpool’s first hand experience of the extremities of social uprising through the French revolution, he was determined to lead his Tory government in such a way that any rebellion or threat to the State would be avoided. Though undoubtedly hopeful to avoid any large scale confrontations, Liverpool was prepared to deter the ‘lower orders’ from challenging the status quo at any cost, and often, acts of repression and unjust brutality were employed in order to crush the people of Britain.
The Luddite movement at this time was beginning to reach a climax, as workers throughout the North of England and the East Midlands smashed machines in protest to the increasing use of machinery and the unemployment of agricultural workers. The Tory government reacted to this as a serious threat, regarding it as a possible cause fro revolution. In order to try and stunt the movement, the Tories stationed over 12, 000 troops in areas largely affected by Luddism, and ultimately passed a bill which stated that those found damaging machines could be punished by death. Although a government reaction to Luddism can easily be considered reasonable, this extreme measure was greatly repressive; the Tories were so afraid of a revolution leading to change, that at the first sign of social unrest, they were prepared to impose the penalty of death on the public.
In a peaceful attempt to combat the injustice suffered by labourers, the March of the Blanketeers was organized. Its intent was to present a petition to Prince Regent concerning their rights as workers. Although very constitutional, and completely legal, the government ordered authorities en-route to heavy-handedly disrupt; this repressive action left many injured and one dead. Considering the non-violent nature of the protest, it is difficult to argue that the response from the Tories was rational – it was undoubtedly a harsh and bitter reaction to the attempts of the lower orders to call for reform. The petition was ignored upon delivery.
Through more radical means, the lower
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