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The Peterloo Massacre

Tuesday, 15 November 2011. The Peterloo Massacre. L.O. To know the events of the Peterloo Massacre and it’s impact. Keywords: Massacre Hussars Sabres. A Hard Life For Many. The Peterloo Massacre. 1.

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The Peterloo Massacre

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  1. Tuesday, 15 November 2011 The Peterloo Massacre L.O. To know the events of the Peterloo Massacre and it’s impact. Keywords: Massacre Hussars Sabres

  2. A Hard Life For Many The Peterloo Massacre 1 The situation in the early 19th century was not a good one for the poor. They were treated badly and had no real means of trying to help themselves, as they could not vote. When the French wars ended in 1815, things got even worse. Many people found themselves without a job, food prices rose and some people faced starvation.

  3. The Need for Change 2 In the early 19th Century groups of poor people who were fed up with being treated this way started to meet up for protests. The meetings gradually became larger and larger.

  4. Violent Protests 3 Some of the protests, such as the Swing riots and the Luddites, were violent. In these protests, farmers and workers smashed up new machines which they hated because it was putting them out of work. But a great number of the protests were peaceful.

  5. Peterloo Massacre (1819) 4 Peterloo was another one of these political protests about the treatment of the poor. It was held at St. Peter’s Fields in Manchester. However the event went horribly wrong.

  6. A Huge Meeting 5 The meeting was planned for Monday, 16th August 1819. It was a hot summer’s day and this encouraged more people to take part in the protest. It was thought that as many as 50,000 people met in the field. There was hardly a person left in Manchester – the streets were deserted. The people were unarmed. Many had come for a day out to hear speakers call for change.

  7. The meeting goes wrong 6 The authorities were frightened by the large crowd. Fearing that there would be a riot, they ordered the crowd to disperse. But few of the crowd could hear the command and did not move. The local Yeomanry was then ordered to arrest the speakers. These volunteer soldiers were on horseback and were armed with swords and clubs. Some were also said to be drunk. When the crowd joined arms to stop the troops from getting to the speakers, the troops attacked.

  8. The massacre 7 To the authorities, it looked as if the crowd were attacking the troops. So 600 Hussars (light cavalry) armed with sabres (curved sword) were ordered to attack the crowd. The protesters were unarmed and fled in panic from the attack. Fifteen people were killed, including a young baby. Many more were injured – between 400 and 700. We are not sure how many because many of the injured were too scared to say they had been at the protest in case they lost their job.

  9. The Impact of the Massacre 8 In the short term, it looked hopeless. The authorities and the Hussars received a letter of congratulation from the Prince Regent for crushing the meeting so quickly. In the longer term, the Peterloo Massacre was a major turning point. It convinced public opinion that things had to be changed – life had to be made fairer for everybody. According to Nick Mansfield, director of the People’s History Museum in Salford, "Peterloo is a critical event not only because of the number of people killed and injured, but because ultimately it changed public opinion to influence the extension of the right to vote and give us the democracy we enjoy today. It was critical to our freedoms."

  10. Letter from Mr W.R. Hay, a magistrate from Lancashire, to Lord Sidmouth, 16 August 1819 • Who is to blame for the massacre according to this source? • Why do you think that?

  11. Poster called Manchester Heroes • Who is to blame for the massacre according to this source? • Why do you think that?

  12. Task: • Write a news paper article stating the events of the Peterloo protest. Make sure you bring across to the people the events of what happened. • Include a picture of either the attack or the protest, a newspaper title and article title. Include lots of detail and colour. • 2 . Answer these two questions with about 3 or 4 sentences. • Why do you think the Government/Army responded so harshly to the Protestors? • What reaction would the general public have to the massacre?

  13. NAME OF PAPER HEADLINE HERE YOUR STORY HERE YOUR STORY HERE

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