Page 53 - All About History - Issue 180-19

Remembering Peterloo

T HE VIEW FROM WESTMINST The Six Acts, passed in 1819, were a
©ParliamentaryArchives

direct response to the growing activism
that had been showcased at Peterloo

What can visitors expect to find at the
Parliament & Peterloo exhibition?
The Parliament & Peterloo exhibition, which opens
on 4 July at Westminster Hall really tells the story
of how Parliament and Peterloo are connected.
We look at the background of Peterloo and the
state of the country immediately after the Battle
of Waterloo. We also reference the beginnings of
DAVID PRIOR
people campaigning for the right to vote.
One of the features we’re having in the Head of Public
exhibition is an audiovisual presentation. We’ve Services and
been working in partnership with Royal Holloway Outreach,
University of London and they supplied us Parliamentary
with some videos that bring to life some of the
testimony of people who were around at the time. Archives
For instance we have a video of someone who
y
speaks the words of a woman called Mary Fildes state of the country’,
who was actually one of the people on the platform have possibly been
with Henry Hunt at Peterloo. overlooked by
historians in the pa ast,
What do we know about Westminster’s simply because of
understanding of what was happening the way they’ve
in Manchester? been catalogued
Because it was August, parliament wouldn’t have here. There’s a lot
been sitting at the time. Parliament as a body of personal testimony that I think sheds
d
&
i
l
P
The Parliament &
e
me
Th
nt
wasn’t immediately aware of what was happening, light on the way peoople were treated at the event.
Peterloo exhibition at at
Peterloo exhibition
but what happened subsequently was a series of Westminster Hall is
reports and copies of letters from people who were Are there any examples of testimony that running from 4 July
there at the time. spring to mind?
to 26 September, from
Between 1819 and at least 1832 there were several Mary’s is the testimony that I’m most aware of and
9am to 6pm, Monday
hundred petitions sent into parliament from people hers is that she was struck by someone, treated
to Saturday (except 26
who were there demanding an inquiry. very badly by a member of the Yeomanry and
August with closing
they were the ones who charged into the meeting.
Has the process of digitising your archive She describes how that happened and how other at 5.30pm). Limited
shed any new light on the response of people around her were basically hit and injured by free entry is available.
parliament to Peterloo? the action of the Yeomanry and the cavalry. And it Go to parliament.
uk/visiting/ for more
I think the papers we’ve found that are in the took her several days, if not weeks, to recover from
information
bundle marked ‘papers relating to the internal the experience.
“BETWEEN 1819 AND AT LEAST 1832 THERE

WERE SEVERAL HUNDRED PETITIONS SENT

INTO PARLIAMENT FROM PEOPLE WHO

WERE THERE DEMANDING AN INQUIRY”

Record-keeping at Westminster dates
back as far as 1497 and includes bills,
motions and more from both the House © Getty Images
of Commons and House of Lords

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