Indsutrialism

As is evident from the maps of Manchester in 1750 and 1850, provided by W.H. Thomson and Ashley Baynton-Williams, respectively, the areas of development and the sheer volume of the city grew enormously—perhaps ten-fold—in a mere hundred years. With such phenomenal expansion, a mass exodus of some portion of the English population must ha

These unfortunate conditions tolerated by the new class of urban poor were felt with a much greater impact in such a compact environment—one where it was fully visible who were the “haves” and “have-nots,” and how the wealthy exploited the poor. During the industrial revolution, the gap between the uppermost and lowest classes became so much more overt, much to the dismay of the latter and the joy of the former. Frenchman Alexis de Toqueville portrays how the toil of one class brought riches to the other, expressing admiration for English commerce but dismay at the exploitation of some of her citizens: “From this foul drain the greatest stream of humanity flows out to fertilize the whole world. From this filthy sever pure gold flows.” Though businesses like Whellan & Co. turned a blind eye and called Manchester “a seat of commerce and manufacture” without mention of the source, actress and poet Frances Anne Kenble provides a worker’s slant on the same sight: “…the vast Manchester crowd was the lowest order of artisans and mechanics, among whom a dangerous spirit

Some topics in this essay:
Edwin Chadwick, , Southey Romantic, Liverpool Manchester, Ashley Baynton-Williams, Anne Kenble, Frenchman Alexis, Whellan Co, disease death, overcrowding severe, industrial revolution, late 30’s,