Meeting Report - April 2013
In April 52 members and guests attended to hear Alan Brooke
from the Huddersfield Local History Society deliver a lecture on the Yorkshire
Luddites. Alan, who began his working life as a miner, changed tack and
studied to become an archaeologist. He is well known in the local history
scene and is co-author of two books 'Liberty or Death - Radicals, Republicans
and Luddites in the Huddersfield Area 1793-1823' and 'Huddersfield a History
and a Celebration'. In 2012 Alan won one of the most significant history
prizes, the Beresford Award , for an essay on the origins of Huddersfield
Naturalist Society.
Alan
began his talk by saying that the rise of the Luddite movement in the
late 18th early 19th century began with a social background similar to
that we are experiencing now - a Tory government and an unpopular war
abroad. There were many English supporters of the French Revolution, although
this support waned when the terror and executions of noblemen began. The
government of the day was afraid of the rise of the working classes and
responded by suspending Habeus Corpus and passing legislation, the anti
combination laws, outlawing any form of trade unions. The Luddites have
often been portrayed as vandals, but they were just men trying to maintain
their livelihoods and feed their families. Alan explained that as unrest
spread the first act of violence against the machines was an attack in
1786 on the scribbling machines in a Leeds factory. Many attempts to prevent
the introduction of the machines by legal means such as legislation and
petitions were made. But when these failed the protesters turned to direct
action. Initially attacks were only made against machinery but when the
mills became better protected and often manned by militia the violence
turned to the mill owners themselves. The authorities responded with a
show of force and at one point there were more troops involved in putting
down the protesters than were employed by Wellington during the Peninsular
War. Describing the events of the time, we were impressed by Alan's depth
of knowledge and his obvious enthusiasm and passion for his subject.
A lively question and answer session followed with members of the audience contributing some of their own and their parents experiences of the working class fight against oppression and exploitation.
The evening ended with our annual pea and pies supper, which was a lovely opportunity for members to get together and chat and was well received by all.
The next meeting on Monday 24th June 2013 will be an illustrated talk by Mike Betteridge entitled 'Gledhow Valley Woods and Friends' describing the history of the buildings and how the woods are maintained today.