Poverty and Pauperism - Britain 1785 - 1870

Poverty and Pauperism - Britain 1785-1870

16 pages of detailed notes on Poverty and Pauperism, suitable for AS / A2 History students. These notes were made for Edexcel’s Britain; Protest, Democracy and Reform module.

These can be used either as a revision tool or to further learning in lessons, and cover all of the key content needed for a top grade in an A2 exam.

These notes cover the following:

• timeline of key events
• the Old Poor Law; implementation and effectiveness
• the 1832 Royal Commission
• Attitudes towards Poverty; ideological pressure from Malthus, Townsend, Paine, Bentham and Owen
• Financial Pressure; the end of the Napoleonic Wars
• the 1834 Poor Law; implementation of poor relief and effectiveness
• the workhouse regime; growth of workhouses, conditions inside workhouses, and the continuation of outdoor relief
• opposition to the New Poor Law; Political opposition from Tories and popular discontent
• Andover Scandal
• Changing attitudes; Mayhew, the establishment of the Workhouse Visiting Society
• the growth of charity and self-help; middle class philanthropists, medical journals, establishment of the Charity Organisation Society
• evaluation of key individuals; Carlyle, Mayhew, Dickens, Gaskell and Smiles