Between the middle of the 18th Century and the middle of the 19th Century, Manchester went from being a small town of eighteen thousand people to a large city of over three hundred thousand. The main reason that Manchester had this population boom is because of the Agricultural and Industrial Revolution. Wheelan and Co’s business directory in 1852 proclaimed that Manchester was “the Workshop of the World”(Doc 3). Although the city became one of the major cities of production in Britain, many issues came up with it. The issues that Manchester faced in the Industrial Age included pollution, the poor health of its working class, and long working hours, and the British Government was unhurried to pass laws to help the proletariat.
The …show more content…
The main complaints came from liberal reformers within Parliament who wanted to see changes. Thomas Macaulay, a liberal member of Parliament, claimed that ”People live longer because they are better fed, better lodged… and better attended in sickness(Doc 5). Liberals pressing for reform was one of the reasons that Parliament started passing a series of Factory Acts. The Act of 1833 banned hiring children under nine years of age, and required at least two hours of schooling for 9 through 18 year olds each day. The Act of 1847 (Ten Hours Act) limited the workday to ten hours. In the mid-to late-19th century, public health improved, and with it life expectancy rose. William Alexander Abram asserted that ”The condition of factory laborers has been vastly improved… far seldomer than before do we hear the murmur of discontent. Sickness and mortality have been reduced to an extent that is incredible”(Doc 4). By the beginning of the Second Industrial Revolution, the problems with Manchester about the first had disappeared.
Problems in Manchester that were discovered because of its growth were steadily dealt with by Parliament. The Factory Acts of 1833 and of 1847 helped with the conditions of the proletariat in factories. These laws were also, in part, why Britain avoided the revolutions in 1848 that France, Italy, and the German States had experienced. The reforms
The …show more content…
The main complaints came from liberal reformers within Parliament who wanted to see changes. Thomas Macaulay, a liberal member of Parliament, claimed that ”People live longer because they are better fed, better lodged… and better attended in sickness(Doc 5). Liberals pressing for reform was one of the reasons that Parliament started passing a series of Factory Acts. The Act of 1833 banned hiring children under nine years of age, and required at least two hours of schooling for 9 through 18 year olds each day. The Act of 1847 (Ten Hours Act) limited the workday to ten hours. In the mid-to late-19th century, public health improved, and with it life expectancy rose. William Alexander Abram asserted that ”The condition of factory laborers has been vastly improved… far seldomer than before do we hear the murmur of discontent. Sickness and mortality have been reduced to an extent that is incredible”(Doc 4). By the beginning of the Second Industrial Revolution, the problems with Manchester about the first had disappeared.
Problems in Manchester that were discovered because of its growth were steadily dealt with by Parliament. The Factory Acts of 1833 and of 1847 helped with the conditions of the proletariat in factories. These laws were also, in part, why Britain avoided the revolutions in 1848 that France, Italy, and the German States had experienced. The reforms