1 1839 South Wales Chartist Rising A Key Stage 2 & 3 Educational Resource Pack
Mar 29, 2016
1
1839 South Wales Chartist Rising
A Key Stage 2 & 3
Educational Resource Pack
2
Contents Introduction
How do we choose the Government in the United Kingdom nowadays?
How was the Government in the United Kingdom chosen in the past?
Who were the Chartists and what did they believe?
Views for and against the People’s Charter
What happened at first between supporters and opponents of the People’s
Charter?
Had there been any violent protests in South Wales before 1839?
What work did people do in the valleys of South Wales during the 1830s?
What was the ‘truck system’ and why was it so unpopular amongst workers?
What were homes like in the valleys of South Wales during the 1830s?
Preparations for the march to Newport
The march to Newport
After the march—the Empire strikes back!
Was this the end of Chartism?
Did Chartism end in complete failure?
Were the 6 points of the People’s Charter ever achieved?
What happened to John Frost, Zephaniah Williams and William Jones?
Teachers’ Notes & Sources
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14
17
21
27
40
46
53
61
64
72
78
86
90
92
93
95
96
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Introduction
Just after 9 o’clock in the morning on 4th November 1839 about 5,000
people with weapons from the valleys of South Wales marched towards
the Westgate Hotel in the town of Newport.
Look carefully at the images on the next 4 pages.
4
5
6
7
8
After looking carefully at the last 4 pages, describe what you think may
have happened that morning in Newport.
What might have been the cause of this?
On the next page, is part of a poster that was printed after
the events of 4th November 1839.
Read it carefully and use a dictionary to help you understand
any difficult words.
9
10
After reading the poster, answer the questions below:
1) What name was given to the people that marched to Newport on 4th
November 1839?
2) What happened? How did the march end?
3) In your own words, describe what you think happened on the 4th
November 1839 at Newport.
11
Very few of the men killed at the
Westgate Hotel could be identified
at first.
Over the next few days, relatives
of men who had still not returned
home came to Newport to find out
what had happened to them.
The parents of 19 year-old George
Shell brought a letter with them to
Newport that had been written by
their son just before the march
started.
Sadly, George was one of the men
killed at the Westgate Hotel.
Here is a copy opposite:
12
Read the letter on the previous page carefully and use a dictionary to
help you understand any difficult words.
1) What clues does this letter tell you about the purpose of the march?
2) What did George Shell think may happen to him at Newport?
A report on the death of George Shell was published in the local
newspaper. There is a copy of the report on the next page.
The report mistakenly names him as John instead of George Shell!
Read the report on the next page carefully and use a dictionary to help
you understand any difficult words.
3) What was the cause of George Shell’s death?
4) According to the newspaper report, who was to blame for
his death?
5) Why wasn’t his death thought of as a murder?
13
14
How do we choose the Government in the
United Kingdom nowadays?
15
Today all adults can have a say in how the country is run.
All people aged 18 or over are able to vote in elections to
chose the person or party that will best represent or
support their own views or interests.
In elections, voters make their choice on a
ballot paper and then place their paper
inside a ballot box— the choice made is
known only to the voter.
The votes are then counted and the person receiving the
most votes is able to represent a town or area as a
member of Parliament (or MP for short).
Each town or area—known as a constituency– has
roughly the same number of voters living within it.
Each member of Parliament also receives a wage during
the time that they are elected as an MP.
16
MPs are often members of
a group or party with
similar views and ideas.
The group or party with
the largest number of MPs
in Parliament usually
forms the Government of
the country.
The Government makes important decisions
that affect all of our lives. It makes new laws or
changes existing laws to please the group or
party in Government and their supporters.
17
How was the Government in the United
Kingdom chosen in the past?
18
The way that members of Parliament and
the Government of the United Kingdom
was chosen during much of the 19th
century (or 1800s) and before then, was
very different to that we have today.
During the time of the march of the
Chartists to Newport in 1839, most
adults were not able to vote in elections.
Poor, working people felt that their views and interests were being
ignored by Parliament, which was controlled by rich and powerful men.
During much of the 19th century or 1800s, only men who either owned
or rented property of a certain value were allowed to vote.
Members of Parliament didn’t receive any wages either so only rich
people could afford to become an MP. Besides, an MP had to be the
owner of a lot of property anyway to be allowed to become a member
of Parliament in the first place!
19
The number of voters in constituencies or different
voting areas also varied a great deal.
Some rich men could buy their place or ‘seat’ in
Parliament because many of the smaller
constituencies contained so few voters that enough
of them could be persuaded or promised favours in
return for their support in elections.
Votes were not made in secret as they are today.
They were published for everyone to see!
A rich and powerful man could check who
had voted for him or not!
This put voters under pressure in an election
contest because they would be worried what
might happen to them if they voted against,
say, a rich and powerful landlord.
20
Many people felt that the great wealth being
created by new industries, which grew rapidly
during the 19th century (1800s) in Britain, was
not being shared out fairly.
It appeared to many that a few people were
becoming very wealthy but life for most people
was very hard and improving very slowly, if at all.
Many ordinary people felt that the only way to
make things fairer was to give everyone a say in
how the country was being run.
Many people believed that it was only fair that
everyone had a right to vote in secret in elections
for Parliament.
They also wanted changes to rules that prevented
ordinary people from becoming members of
Parliament.
21
Who were the Chartists and what did they
believe?
“Here’s a health to the Radical boys,
May tyranny fail, and freedom prevail”
A Popular Chartist slogan from the 1830s
22
In 1837, a small group of MPs
and members of the ‘London
Working Men’s Association’
drew up a list of demands for
changes to the voting system.
This was called the ‘People’s
Charter’.
Millions of poor, working
people were inspired by these
ideas. Supporters of the
‘People’s Charter’ were known
as ‘Chartists’.
Read the ‘Six Points of the
People’s Charter’ carefully and
use a dictionary to help you
understand any difficult words.
23
Where support for the People’s
Charter was strong, local societies
or ‘lodges’ were formed. Chartists
usually held their meetings in
rooms at public houses that were
run by supporters of the Charter.
At lodge meetings, supporters of
the Charter gave talks and held
discussions to encourage and help
spread Chartist ideas.
Although Chartists did not
campaign for votes for women,
many women’s groups are known
to have existed. Women supporters
of the People’s Charter are known
to have met at the Royal Oak public
house at Coalbrookvale, Blaina.
24
Members of Chartist lodges were encouraged to carry membership
cards to show their support for Chartism. Here is an example below:
25
Between 1837 and 1839, Chartist lodges met all over South Wales.
Popular Chartist speakers such as Henry Vincent and William Edwards
spoke to crowds of thousands of people gathered at open-air meetings
in South Wales.
26
Many ordinary, working people became involved in
Chartism; so many that this became a cause of
alarm to people who were the owners and masters
of mines, works and the land.
They feared that Chartism was a threat to their
property and businesses. Soon, the masters and
owners began to organise against the Chartists.
Above:
Henry Vincent
Threats of violence and tensions increased on
both sides —those in favour of the People’s
Charter and those against it.
Left: Chartist MP,
Feargus O’Connor
27
Views for and against the People’s Charter
28
View in favour of every man having the right to vote
As a young girl, I kept a door underground and then, a bit older, I pushed drams in
Mr Bailey’s collieries. We work 14 to 16 hours a day, 6 days a week only to receive a
miserable wage in return. Many of us have no choice but to take our children to work
in dangerous conditions so that we may earn just enough to survive.
We, the workers, have had enough of being ruled by the rich. We demand the right to
have a say in choosing the Government. We demand a say in how decisions and laws
of this country are made. We say that our problems can only be heard and dealt with if
every man over 21 years of age has the right to vote regardless of his wealth or the
value of his property.
29
View against every man having the right to vote
I am Reverend Jenkins, Minister at Dowlais. Chartism teaches the idea
that all men are equal. There is nothing in nature or in the Bible that
supports this idea. The Bible tells us of kings, princes, judges, carpenters
and workmen. Equality is a thing opposed to all else on earth, in heaven
and in hell.
What would the poor gain by every man having the right to vote?
They will gain nothing but setting workmen against each other. They
would neglect their work and waste their time in election squabbles.
Poverty is not the result of unfair and cruel laws, or the oppression of the
rich. It is the design of God. Poverty has existed at all times and in every
country of the world.
30
View in favour of a secret ballot at elections
I am a puddler at Nantyglo Ironworks, the son of a farm labourer, who came
here to find work. What would be the point of voting for the workers’ candi-
date in elections if we had to do so in public, in full view of our employers and
our landlords? If we did not support their candidate they would dismiss us
from work, evict us from home and discredit our name so we would never
find work again. It is not enough to simply vote. The vote must be recorded in
private so we cannot be bullied or threatened in any way.
31
View against a secret ballot at elections
What do workmen expect from voting by ballot? In other words, secret voting or
voting for or against a person without the possibility of that person finding out
which side I voted and no-one being able to find out the truth!
It would enable someone to vote for Mr A. and then to say to Mr B. that it was
for him he voted! It is nothing but a law for rogues, nothing but a cloak for lies,
dishonesty and hypocrisy!
32
View in favour of ending property qualification for MPs
Who amongst us is rich enough to become an MP?
In order to stand for election to Parliament, we must be owners of property.
Ordinary men like ourselves are excluded.
How can rich landowners understand our problems and concerns?
How can a rich man know what it is like to work a 15-hour day in dangerous
conditions for a pathetic wage that ends the moment a man is ill or unfit to
work?
The rich have no understanding, so cannot represent our views.
33
View against ending property qualification for MPs
You may have been in the habit of looking at the rich Ironmasters with envy
– but what anxiety, mental labour and toil must they experience.
They experience banks collapsing and their debtors failing to repay debts
owing to them. They suffer from the carelessness of those they employ.
The assumption that the rich are idle drones is a mistaken one; it is to them
that workers owe most of their comforts.
If the ‘People’s Charter’ became law in this country, it would be worse and
more miserable to live as a slave in one of the slave states of America.
34
View in favour of members of Parliament being paid
We need working men in Parliament to fight for us. What's more, these men need to
be paid a decent salary so that their families do not starve whilst they look after the
interests of their fellow workers in Parliament.
35
View against members of Parliament being paid
With respect to having Members of Parliament paid - this is too absurd an idea
for an idiot to be the author of it. We have some inefficient MPs now but if they
were paid wages they would be 10 times more so.
How to increase their own wages would occupy the whole of their thoughts!
Besides, do you not complain that taxes are too many already? And yet you
would establish a new tax, towards which all working men would have to pay.
36
View in favour of equally sized voting areas
We know of places where one Member of Parliament represents over 20,000
voters but elsewhere just 700 people. We insist that there must be the same
number of people in each voting area.
37
View against equally sized voting areas
The population of the manufacturing and mining districts is more condensed
than the farming districts.
The weight of numbers of MPs who would be sent from the manufacturing and
mining districts would act with such force in Parliament that the country MPs
would be unable to withstand it and would be overwhelmed!
The field of coal would beat the field of barley!
This would create a division in Parliament between rural and industrial
interests and may upset the balance of members.
This could threaten the stability of the Government and might upset trade,
which would cause the working man to suffer.
38
View in favour of annual elections to Parliament
To make sure that we are not betrayed we must be certain to elect Parliament each
and every year. With 7 years between elections now, it is all too easy for an elected
member to forget the promises made to the people that voted for him. It is too easy
for those who join the ranks of Parliament to be seduced by life in London.
To stay in touch with the people's needs and concerns, each MP must face his
electors every year and be judged at the ballot box on his efforts. There will be no
dragging of heels or forgetting of his roots if annual parliaments are the rule.
39
View against annual elections to Parliament
What possible benefits could be gained from annual elections?
Annual squabbles and upsetting of the peace and trade of the country?
I have heard hundreds of workmen complain that election times were poor for
them because they were forced to lose many days’ work and wages, of course.
Would any workman wish to have these annual losses?
No one would benefit except the public houses!
40
What happened at first between supporters
and opponents of the People’s Charter?
41
The authorities tried to stop
Chartist meetings by declaring
their gatherings as illegal.
In May 1839 two popular speakers,
Henry Vincent and William
Edwards were arrested and sent
to prison in Monmouth jail.
Read the poster opposite and use
a dictionary to help you under-
stand any difficult words.
1) What might Henry Vincent mean
by ‘the jails of our tyrants’?
2) Who are the people that Henry
Vincent calls ‘our enemies’?
3) Why did Vincent believe that
Chartists should keep the peace?
42
Following the arrest of Henry
Vincent, a protest by Chartist
supporters in Newport was
broken up by the police.
Read the poster opposite and
use a dictionary to help you
understand any difficult
words.
John Frost calls the Chartists,
the ‘working men of
Monmouthshire.’
What is he asking them to do
in his message?
43
In summer of 1839, a petition of over 1 million signatures demanding
the ‘People’s Charter’ was presented to Parliament. However the
Chartists’ demands were refused and the Charter was rejected by MPs.
44
The news that Parliament had rejected the Chartist petition did not go
down well with Chartists in South Wales. They held meetings throughout
the summer and autumn of 1839 to discuss their next step.
A Chartist meeting held on 12th August 1839 near Tredegar is thought
to have been the largest gathering of people anywhere in Wales during
the 19th century. Read the notice above carefully and use a dictionary
to help you understand any difficult words.
What was the purpose of the meeting at Duke’s Town?
45
In secret, Chartist leaders in the
valleys began to make plans for
an armed uprising of workers to
achieve their aims by force. They
believed there was no hope that
peaceful action would ever gain
the ‘People’s Charter’.
So what caused protests in South
Wales to become violent, leading
to the attack on Newport on 4th
November 1839?
For us to make any sense of why
this happened, we need to study
the background to what life was
like in South Wales in the years
leading up to 1839.
46
Had there been any violent protests in
South Wales before 1839?
47
In 1816, the price of iron fell. To reduce the cost of making iron, the
people who ran the many ironworks in South Wales decided to reduce
the wages of their workers to save money. This decision caused rioting
across a wide area and the army was called upon to restore order. How-
ever workers were both angry and determined and, ironworkers and
colliers battled with soldiers for many weeks until peace was restored.
48
After 1816, the ironmaster at Nantyglo called Joseph Bailey was so wor-
ried about his workers taking violent action against him that he decided
to build 2 defended towers, similar to a castle from the Middle Ages!
Known as the ‘round houses’, the towers are circular in shape and built
of stone. They were designed to be a refuge for the ironmaster’s family
and supporters in times of trouble.
Right: One of the two towers
built at Nantyglo by Joseph
Bailey.
49
The Times newspaper of 15 May 1822
In 1822, after
another fall in
the price of iron,
ironmasters
again tried to
reduce workers’
wages.
Violent protests
broke out once
more across
South Wales.
Again, the army
was called upon
to restore order.
50
The Times newspaper of 1 May 1822
By 1822, it was clear that the workers’ protests were well organised.
Large groups, in disguise, would attack their enemies or property
belonging to them during the night. Usually warnings were given to
their intended target beforehand; as the reputation of these night-time
raids grew, a threat was often sufficient to have the desired effect.
51
The groups that carried out these secret and violent night-time raids
were known as the ‘Scotch Cattle.’
Here are 2 examples of their warnings.
52
Source 20— Leaders of
the ‘Scotch Cattle’ groups
or ‘herds’ were known as
‘bulls’ and on this warning
notice, the hearts of 2
traitors are “fixed upon the
horns of the bull!”
In 1831, ironmasters again reduced wages and violent protests by
workers occurred again. In Merthyr Tydfil, workers took control of the
town and fought off the army for a week.
By 1839, in times of trouble, workers in South Wales were well-
practised and capable of organising violent protests to achieve their
aims.
53
What work did people do in the valleys of
South Wales during the 1830s?
54
Children’s Employment Commission report 1842—Nantyglo
Let’s look at evidence collected around
the time of the 1839 armed rising by a
Government inspector whose job it
was to find out what work children and
young people were doing in the iron-
works and mines in South Wales.
55
Children’s Employment Commission report 1842—Nantyglo
56
Children’s
Employment
Commission
Report 1842
In your own words,
describe a week in
the life of an ‘air-
door boy’ or a
‘carter’.
How would you
feel if you had to
do any of these
jobs instead of
going to school?
57
Children’s Employment Commission report 1842
58
Children’s Employment Commission report 1842
How many hours did David Jones work
each day or night?
How old was he when he started work?
What do you think a free school was?
3s. means 3 shillings in old money.
There were 12 old pennies in a shilling.
How many pence did David Jones earn
in one week?
How many hours did he have to work
each week to earn this amount?
59
Children’s Employment Commission report 1842
How long was a
working day for
people in the mines
and ironworks?
Were the hours of
work the same for
children as adults?
How would you feel if
you had to work
these hours for six
days every week
without holidays?
Why might owners
and managers claim
that children worked
fewer hours than was
actually the truth?
60
Children’s Employment Commission report 1842
Why was it unusual for colliers (coal miners) to live beyond 50 years?
What diseases did they suffer from by working underground?
61
What was the ‘truck system’ and why was it
so unpopular amongst workers?
62
Nantyglo Ironworks
‘truck’ shop tokens
People who worked for most ironworks and coal mines in South Wales in
the early 19th century or 1800s weren’t paid in money!
Instead they were paid in goods supplied by the company through their
own shop! The problem with this was that the goods in the company’s
shop were more expensive than similar items sold in independent shops
(around 25% dearer). Workers also complained that the goods in the
company shop were of poor quality. To many people this system of pay-
ment to workers called ‘truck’ seemed very unfair.
63
It was made illegal in 1831 for workers to be paid in ‘truck’. However,
owners of ironworks and collieries in South Wales used a loophole in
the law to continue using the ‘truck’ system of paying their workers by
keeping the pay offices and company shop accounts separate. This
caused much resentment on the part of workers who often never saw
any money come out of their wages!
Evidence of John Evans, Schoolmaster, Children’s Employment
Commission Report 1842
64
What were homes like in the valleys of
South Wales during the 1830s?
65
Nantyglo by Henri Gastineau about 1830
66
View in Coldbrookvale by Henri Gastineau about 1830
67
Look carefully at the drawings made by Henri Gastineau about 1830.
Think about what it may have been like to live and work in
these places during the 1830s.
Report by Seymour Tremenheere 1839
68
Report by Seymour Tremenheere 1839
What were houses like?
Let’s look at some more
evidence collected by
inspectors at the time.
Left: An example of
workers’ housing in the
1830s at Long Row,
Nantyglo
69
Report by J.C.Symons 1847
70
Artist’s reconstruction of Nantyglo House, farm and roundhouses —
home of the Bailey’s, ironmasters at Nantyglo.
71
Make a list of the things that would have made many ironworkers and
colliers in South Wales feel angry in the time leading up to 1839.
Think carefully about what it may have been like to live and
work in these places during the 1830s after studying the
pictures and written evidence on pages 39 to 56.
72
Preparations for the
march to Newport
Chartist song—printed
in January 1840
73
Throughout the autumn of 1839, in complete secrecy, the leaders of
Chartist lodges drew up plans to take control of all the mines and iron-
works and a number of towns in South Wales. With the help of their
allies in England, they believed that the Chartists would take control of
Britain and form a new Government based on the ‘People’s Charter’.
The planned date of the rising is thought to have been decided upon at a
meeting of 500 Chartists at Zephaniah Williams’ beer-house at
Coalbrookvale, Blaina on 3 October 1839.
Leading Chartist, John Frost from Newport,
had tried to persuade the Chartist leaders in
the valleys to delay their uprising, telling
them that Chartists in other areas of Britain
weren’t yet ready to join them but feelings
ran so strongly that he failed to postpone
their plans.
Right: Pikes used by the Chartists
74
It is thought that the Chartist leaders’ most ambitious plan was to seize
control of the towns of Brecon, Newport, Pontypool, Monmouth, Usk,
Cardiff and Abergavenny on 5 November. The attacks would coincide
with Guy Fawkes’ Day, which would add to the sense of confusion.
From his base at Blackwood during the
week before the rising, John Frost appears
to have persuaded the other leaders to
make several changes to their strategy.
Possibly having doubts about the Chartists’
strength, Frost persuaded the leaders to
combine most of their forces for an attack
on Newport a day earlier, on 4 November,
and then to attack the other towns on the
next day as originally planned.
Right: Chartist leader, John Frost, 1840
75
Frost believed that the soldiers in Newport drank heavily on Sunday
night so it would be easier for the Chartists to take control of the town
if they marched into Newport during the early hours of Monday
morning, 4 November 1839, whilst everyone in the town was asleep.
Frost was confident that the soldiers were sympathetic with Chartists’
aims and would lay down their weapons without a shot being fired.
For the assault on Newport, John Frost was
chosen to lead the Chartist groups from the
Blackwood area; Zephaniah Williams of
Coldbrookvale near Blaina was to take charge
of the Chartists from the heads of the valleys
towns; William Jones was to lead the Chartists
from the Pontypool and Abersychan areas.
Right: Chartist leader, Zephaniah Williams, 1840
76
The Chartists in Merthyr and Pontypridd were to be held back in
reserve and used to attack Brecon and Cardiff on Tuesday 5 November.
The Chartists who attacked Newport on Monday were to march on Usk
and then Abergavenny on the same Tuesday.
News of the Chartists’ successes in South Wales would be a signal for
Chartists across Britain to rise up at once; the Government would be
overwhelmed and unable to contain all the outbreaks.
After the assault on Newport, however, any
advantage of surprise that the Chartists would
have had, would be quickly lost. Seizing control
of the other towns would therefore be a much
more difficult task since the authorities would
have time to prepare defences against them.
Right: Chartist leader, William Jones, 1840
77
For the revised plan to
work, everything would
now depend on achieving
success at Newport.
In the days leading up to 4
November, guns were
collected and weapons
such as pikes were made
by Chartists across the
valleys.
Right: Map showing routes
taken by Chartist marchers
on 3 & 4 November 1839
78
The march to Newport
79
On Sunday 3 November 1839, members of Chartist lodges were finally
told that they were to march on Newport that evening and ordered to
gather their weapons, food and to meet up in readiness for action.
In many places, Chartists searched their areas and forced men to join
them on the march.
Hundreds of families must
have anxiously watched their
fathers, husbands, sons and
brothers leave home and
wondered if they would ever
see them alive again.
Downpours of torrential rain
fell throughout Sunday and
Monday morning.
80
In the early hours of Monday morning, a few miles outside Newport,
thousands of men huddled inside shelters wherever they could find
them, trying to dry their clothes and gunpowder whilst waiting for the
final order to march on Newport.
Many hours late and in broad daylight, the
wet and weary Chartists resumed their
march on Newport.
John Rees (Jack the fifer) led the assault
on the Westgate Hotel. Here, Thomas
Phillips, was directing the defence of the
town and was keeping prisoner some
Chartists arrested that night.
Thomas Phillips, Mayor
of Newport in 1839.
81
The Chartists may not have known that soldiers were at the Westgate
hotel too. After marching all night and soaked to the skin, ‘the men who
entered Newport were fitter at the time for a hospital than for a battle.’
What happened just after at 9am at the Westgate Hotel is described on
pages 4 to 9.
After 15 minutes of fierce fighting, the initial assault force abandoned
the attack on the hotel. The soldiers drove away anyone who tried to
help wounded Chartists in front of the hotel and many that were
‘mortally wounded, continued to writhe in tortures, crying for water’.
At 11am, the Chartists occupied most
of the town and gunfire was still to be
heard. At 2pm, most of the town was
still in the hands of the Chartists.
Westgate Hotel about 10am on
4 November 1839
82
It wasn’t until the approach of nightfall that
the Chartists withdrew completely. A fresh
attack after dark was expected by the
town’s defenders but this never came.
Mayor Thomas Phillips sent for more troops
who arrived from Bristol on Tuesday.
At once, troops set up defensive positions
north of Newport as thousands of armed
Chartists made their way towards Abercarn
on Tuesday evening, only 9 miles away.
Around Blackwood, Chartists gathered for a
new assault. Panic gripped Newport and
some people fled from the town.
But no new attacks came.
British army uniforms of
the early 19th century
83
In Newport, George Shell and 9 other Chartists killed at the Westgate
were buried on 7th November at St.Woolas’ Church.
Burial register for St.Woolas’ Church, Newport
The handwriting reads: Buried at once in 4 graves. Ten men, names
unknown, shot by a party of the 45th Regiment of Foot in a Chartist
insurrection before the Westgate Inn, November 4th 1839
84
Some of the injured men were treated by surgeons for gunshot wounds
at the workhouse in Newport. The leg of Morgan Jones of Tredegar was
so badly injured that it had to be removed by doctors! This was at a time
when doctors had no anaesthetics to knock out the patient whilst the
operation was being carried out. Ouch!
Admissions register for Newport Workhouse for November 1839.
Other injured men made it back to their home areas where they could
perhaps receive treatment for their wounds without being linked to the
Chartist rising and the events at Newport.
85
We will probably never
know the exact
number of people
killed or injured during
the Chartist rising.
Only those men who
died in and around the
Westgate hotel have
been identified.
Their names are listed
on the right:
86
After the march—the Empire strikes back!
87
British soldiers poured into the valleys to prevent a new ‘Chartist rising’
and arrest Chartist leaders. Although John Frost was captured quickly,
others avoided capture for weeks and some even escaped altogether.
The authorities wanted the 3 main ring-leaders quickly brought to trial
and sentenced for their part in the rising as an example to others.
The trials began
on 31 December
at Monmouth.
14 men were
charged with the
offence of high
treason, which
carried the death
penalty!
88
John Frost was the first leader put on trial. On 8 January 1840, the jury
found him guilty of the crime of treason. The same verdict was passed
in the cases of Zephaniah Williams and William Jones. All 3 prisoners
were sentenced on 15 January. Here is the judge’s sentence:
89
The executions of the 3 ring-leaders was
set for 6 February 1840. From their cell,
they could hear the scaffold being built
ready for their execution.
Despite campaigns by supporters, the
Government was only persuaded at the
last minute by a legal argument to
change the sentences on the prisoners
from death to transportation for life.
The 3 men arrived in Van Diemen’s Land
(now Tasmania) by ship on 30 June 1840
to begin their sentences.
Right: A guide to Van Diemen’s Land from
the 19th century. What clues does the
cover give you as to what went on there?
90
Was this the end of
Chartism?
No. Chartism was the first mass protest
movement that involved millions of
ordinary, working people.
Supporters of the ‘People’s Charter’
continued to campaign for the right to
change the voting system.
Chartist protests and meetings still
continued but these were largely
peaceful in nature.
Right: Notice for a Chartist
meeting at Merthyr Tydfil in 1848
91
In all, 5 national petitions were sent to Parliament demanding changes
to the way that MPs and Governments were elected. The largest petition
of 1842 collected over 3 million signatures.
There was also a petition that demanded the pardon of Frost, Williams
and Jones a year after their trial. All 6 petitions were rejected.
After the failure of the
3rd national petition in
1848, many Chartists
lost hope as every
avenue of protest had
been tried but all had
ended in failure.
Chartist meeting at
Kennington Common
on 10 April 1848
92
Did Chartism end in complete failure?
In the 1850s, many Chartists switched their support from Chartism to
the new Liberal Party. Chartists did not win the right for all men to vote
during the lifetime of the Chartist movement.
However, today, all but one of the 6 points of the ‘People’s Charter’ has
become reality – the one exception being the Chartists’ demands for
annual Parliaments. Today elections have to be held at least every 5
years, rather than every 7 years in the early 19th century.
Chartism helped to change people’s ideas about politics and their own
individual rights. In this sense, the Chartists did not fail, but success
took rather longer than they might have hoped.
On the next page is a list of all the changes to the voting system that
have taken place in the United Kingdom from the Chartist period up to
the present time.
93
Were the 6 points of the People’s Charter
ever achieved?
In 1858 the property qualification for MPs was abolished.
In 1867 the right to vote was given to male house-holders in towns,
doubling the number of people allowed to vote.
In 1872 voting by secret ballot was introduced.
In 1884 the right to vote was given to all male house-holders.
In 1885 the model of equally populated voting areas was introduced.
In 1911 Members of Parliament first received a regular salary.
In 1918 women over 30 were given the right to vote for the first time; all
men aged over 21 were also given the right to vote.
In 1928 women over 21 were given equal voting rights as men.
In 1969 the minimum voting age was reduced from 21 to 18 for all.
94
The right of all citizens to have a vote and a say in how their country is
run and governed is one that we take for granted today in the United
Kingdom.
However, as we have seen, these rights did not come about without the
personal sacrifices of many men and women.
We owe a great debt to those people who suffered and gave their lives
in the cause of Chartism and democracy.
In the words of an important Chartist leader, Dr William Price of
Pontypridd, who wrote in 1839:
“Today, we are fighting for something more than our own freedom—
for that of our children and the children of our children.”
95
What happened to John Frost, Zephaniah
Williams and William Jones?
In 1856, after many campaigns from
supporters for their reprieve, all received
free pardons. John Frost returned to
Britain but Tasmania became the home of
Zephaniah Williams and William Jones for
the rest of their lives where they both
became successful businessmen.
John Frost was buried at Horfield Church
in Bristol in 1877. His gravestone carries
a verse which says, ‘The outward mark
of respect paid to men merely because
they are rich and powerful hath no
communication with the heart.’
96
Teachers’ Notes & Sources Use of the materials included in this pack as a learning resource or case study will be relevant to the following programmes of study: Wales KS2 / History Changes to people’s daily lives in the locality in the nineteenth century Wales KS3 / History Changes that happened in Wales, Britain and the wider world between 1760 and 1914 and people’s reactions to them It looks at the story of the South Wales Chartist rising through evidence relating to the nature of the movement, the experience of some of those involved and the reaction of the authorities. A con-sequence of industrialisation was the creation of new industrial communities in hitherto rural backwaters. Chartism was a movement which was a catalyst for the workers’ rising of 1839 rather than being the direct cause of it. The brutal working and living conditions that existed in the new in-dustrial settlements created a working class hungry for social and political reform as a means of addressing the gross inequalities of early Victorian society. The South Wales rising of 1839 is one response to the social, economic and technological transformation of Wales during this period. QCA Schemes of Work: Key Stage 3 Unit 11: Industrial changes - Action and reaction Key Stage 3 Unit 16 Section 3: Who was struggling for political change between 1815 and 1848? Links could also be made to: Key stage 4 GCSE WJEC Specification A & B, which requires an in-depth study of ‘Popular Move-ments in Wales and England, 1815-1845’.
97
Why did conditions in South Wales before 1839 give rise to an organised,
armed attack in the name of the ‘People’s Charter’?
Many working people in the iron and coal-producing towns and villages in South Wales lived in poor quality and
overcrowded houses, which were often owned by the works providing them with work.
There were few clean water supplies and sewerage systems. Outbreaks of diseases such as cholera were
caused by polluted drinking water. Poor living conditions made it more likely that people fell victim to disease.
People worked very long hours in dangerous conditions. They had no compensation in the event of serious injury
or death. Desperation forced entire families to work, even children as young as 5. Whenever demand for iron fell,
ironmasters reduced wages to cut their costs forcing families into near starvation with no other real support.
Workers were often permanently in debt to the companies for which they worked due to the ‘truck system’. This
forced workers to accept payment in over-priced goods instead of proper wages that could be spent anywhere.
There was little trust between the owners and managers who were mainly church-going, English people and the
majority of workers who were Welsh-speaking, chapel-goers.
Since 1816, there had been a history of violent and organised attacks by groups of workers against those who
they felt threatened their livelihoods. The ‘Scotch Cattle’ had been active since at least 1822.
Working people resented the fact that fortunes were being made by the few who owned the ironworks and mines
whilst the majority who worked for them lived no better than slaves.
Many people felt that the People’s Charter offered hope of a better future by giving poor, working people a say in
how the Government was constituted. These hopes were dashed by the rejection of the petition by Parliament
and those advocates of ‘physical force’ within the Chartist movement in South Wales gained the upper hand.
The People’s Charter and its rejection in 1839 was a catalyst for the rising and not the underlying cause.
Preparations for the rising were made, which through a combination of poor leadership and confused strategy,
notwithstanding the horrendous weather of 3 & 4 November 1839, ended in failure.
98
Sources: Pages 4 & 5: ‘The attack of the Chartists on the Westgate Hotel, Newport. Nov 4th 1839’ by J.F. Mullock. National Library of Wales collection. (WlAbNL)003381769
Page 6: The Chartist attack at Newport. Nov 4th 1839’ by John Wyart. Newport City Library collection
Pages 7 & 81: Scene outside Westgate Hotel after riots on 4 November 1839. Tredegar Museum
Page 9: ‘Dreadful Riot and Loss of Life at Newport!’ November 1839. Gwent Archives collection. D.361 J.E.W.Rolls Scrapbook
Page 11: Handwritten mock-up of letter by George Shell published on part of Handbill—see page 9
Page 13: Coroner’s Inquests, Monmouthshire Merlin, 7 December 1839. Gwent Archives collection.D124.881-896
Pages 23 & 24: ‘Chartist’ membership cards, National Charter Association of Great Britain, 1840s
Page 26: Portraits of Henry Vincent and Feargus O’Connor, 1840s. National Portrait Gallery
Pages 29, 31, 33, 35, 39: (text abridged) from ‘Chartism Unmasked’ by Rev. Evan Jenkins, 1840 & Glamorgan, Monmouth & Brecon Gazette & Merthyr Guardian, 28 December 1839. Gwent Archives Collection. D124.881-896
Page 41: ‘To the Men & Women of Newport’ by Henry Vincent , 25 April 1839. Newport City Library collection
Page 42: ‘To the Working Men of Monmouthshire’ by John Frost, 1839. Newport City Library collection
Page 43: Carrying the Chartist Petition to Parliament, 1842
Page 44: Handbill entitled ‘Council of the General Convention, August 1839. Newport City Library collection
Page 45: Chartists meeting at night, 1840s
Page 47: ‘Merthyr Riots 1816’ by Penry Williams. Cyfarthfa Castle Museum collection
Page 49: ‘Riots in Monmouthshire’, The Times (newspaper), 15 May 1822
Page 50: The Times (newspaper), 1 May 1822
Pages 54 to 60 & 63: (Extracts from) Inquiry into the Employment and Condition of Children in Mines & Manufac-tories, 1842
99
Sources: Pages 65 & 66: ‘Nantyglo’ and ‘View in Coldbrookvale’ by H.Gastineau, 1830. Science & Society Picture Library
Pages 67 & 68: (Extracts from) Report on the Mining Districts of South Wales, H.S.Tremenheere, 1839-40
Page 69: (Extracts from) Report of Commission of Enquiry into the State of Education in Wales,1847
Page 70: Reconstruction of Nantyglo house, farm and round houses by Michael Blackmore
Page 71: Nantyglo by Henri Gastineau, 1830. National Museum of Wales.
Page 72: Popular Chartist song, from Glamorgan, Monmouth & Brecon Gazette & Merthyr Guardian, 30 Novem-ber 1839. Gwent Archives Collection. D124.881-896
Page 74: ‘Chartist Chiefs, No.1, John Frost’, ‘Chartist Chiefs, No.2, Zephaniah Williams’, ‘Chartist Chiefs, No.3, William Jones’, 10 January 1840. Gwent Archives Collection. D.361 J.E.W.Rolls Scrapbook
Page 80: Mayor of Newport, Thomas Phillips, 1840 from ‘The Monmouthshire Chartists’, Newport Museum, n.d.
Page 83: St. Woolas’ Church, Newport. Burial Register, 7th November 1839. Gwent Archives Collection
Page 84: Newport Union Workhouse. Admissions Register, November 1839. Gwent Archives Collection
Page 85: List of the Rebel Dead from ‘South Wales and the Rising of 1839’, Ivor Wilks, 1984
Page 87: ‘Trial of the Chartist Chief, Zephaniah Williams at Monmouth for High Treason’ 1840. Gwent Archives Collection. D.361 J.E.W.Rolls Scrapbook
Page 88: Monmouthshire Merlin (newspaper), 18 January 1840. Gwent Archives Collection. D124.881-896
Page 89: Early book about Tasmania, showing instruments of punishment
Page 90: Handbill advertising Chartist meeting at Merthyr Tydfil, 20 March 1848
Page 91: Photograph of the Chartist meeting at Kennington Common, London, 10 April 1848
A note on copyright: Copyright is reserved for all sources contained in this resource. Permission to reproduce,
copy or publish any of the enclosed images and text in any form including digital copying and electronic formats
is strictly forbidden. Application for reproduction must be made to the appropriate repository cited above.
Please send any enquiries to the Access to Heritage Project at Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council.