England: The City of Today

Essay submitted by Unknown

Glorious, glorious England. As the Empire spreads some say "so does its glory"; others

mumble of the price which we pay for our greatness. Many of us Londoners have read,

if not discussed, the intriguing debate transpiring between Sir Andrew Ure and Sir

James Phillips Kay. Are the cities of great England truly representative of the jewels in

Her Majesty's Crown? Or are they the stain of exploitation and abuse that some have

proclaimed?

Sir James Phillips Kay, an M.D. at Edinburgh and the Secretary to the Manchester Board

of Health, has recently published a work titled, "The Moral And Physical Conditions of

the Working-Class Employed in Cotton Manufacturing in Manchester." (Kay/Ure Debate,

Handout) He argues quite persuasively about those poor wretches living in the most

hideous of conditions. Half the blame he attributes to the Irish and the other half to the

environment of an industrialised city. The Irish immigrants have brought to Manchester

a system called "cottier farming". Sir James argues that this system is responsible for

the "demoralisation and barbarism" of the working-class. If that is not bad enough, the

potato has been introduced as a main article of food. Influenced by the Irish

subsistence living, the working-class are abandoning those values which promote

increasing comfort. They seemingly have given up the hope of betterment and adopted

hopelessness.

Sir James does well in his description of the living conditions of the working class is

living in. The mere thought of such suffering and misery is shocking to the soul.

The problem Kay argues, is caused by combinations of poor living and working

conditions, lack of education, influence by a lesser culture and the presence of great

immorality. This recently published work is a plea to the Capitalist, to convince him to

concern himself with his workers.

Andrew Mearns, another prominent fellow on these matters goes into even greater

detail in his work, "The Bitter Cry of Outcast London". Making a study of our city, he

has reported, with astonishing detail, that the filth present in Manchester can be found

in this city!

Mr. Mearns makes his argument to the church in his call to unite and fight this growing

misery together. He cites examples of immorality, poverty and heart-breaking misery.

His call also addresses the need for the state to intervene on the behalf of the

organisations trying to elevate the working-classes' misery.

What can be done for the motherless children, diseased and ailing siblings and the poor

forced into thievery for filthy lucre?

Nothing! Yes, that is correct. We are to do nothing. Sir Andrew Ure, an M.D., who

teaches in the university at Glasgow is a proponent of this controversial mind set.

Traveling to these various "terrible" places, Sir Andrew came to a completely different

conclusion.

First, the workers suffering is being greatly exaggerated. Upon visiting these "horror

zones" (factories), both on announced and unannounced visits, no such extremes were

found. Instead of the finding the bleak picture Sir James and Mr. Mearns painted, Ure

found something quite the opposite. Children play outside in playgrounds during their

breaks, and factories provide a safe haven for the children from the ill-use of their bad

parents.

Second, the terrible food situation is an exaggeration as well. The amount of food given

to the factory workers is sufficient. It is comparable, if not surpassing to that food

consumed in the rural communities from where the working class came from.

What is to be the conclusion of this bitter argument? one thing is certain, the Kay/Ure

debate will continue with us as long as we have factories with a working class. This

much can be assured.

19th Century Evangelical Christianity In England

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father

and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Matthew 28:19

Religion was an important facet of the British Victorian society. It molded public opinion,

dictated morals and values, and created social divisions. The dominant religion of the

middle-class during this time was Evangelical Christianity. This essay will discuss the

relationship between Evangelicalism and the middle-class. It will also argue how

Evangelicalism affected the attitudes towards different races and the role of the British

empire in the world.

Evangelicalism was the strongest ideological influence present in the Victorian Age. This

religious movement , a product of the Church of England, was mainly comprised of the

middle-class bourgeoisie. In addition, the leadership of the Evangelical movement was

greatly influential in politics. As high-ranking members of the Whig party, they played a

crucial part in both policy making in the government and establishing the party's power

base.1

The most important leaders of the Evangelicals were the Clapham Sect. They had two

basic issues which acted as both a political platform and a social order. The first issue

concerned the abolition of slavery and the slave trade in England. Many political battles

were fought over the issue of slavery and its trade, but its abolition in the early 1800s

was a great political and social victory for the Evangelicals.2

The second issue was its was the Evangelical transformation of national morality.

Catharine Hall argued that in the Clapham sect the "concern was to redefine the

available cultural norms and to encourage a new seriousness and respectability in life."3

This issue was supported and propagated as if it were a political campaign. Pamphlets,

the media and church sermons in church were used to spread this word.

The greatest influence of Evangelicalism was on the British society itself. It set

standards for defining family and home-life. A crucial aspect of Evangelicalism was its

definition of a woman's role in society. They defined a women as a homemaker, a wife

and a mother.

Detailed instructions on how to become a good "mistress" were easily accessible. An

excellent example of this was the writings of Isabella Beeton. She went into detail

about what attitudes and habits a mistress should have. Mrs. Beeton argued that

"there is no more fruitful source of family discontent than a housewife's badly-cooked

dinners and untidy ways."4

The Evangelicals rejected the notion of equality between the sexes. This Evangelical

belief stemmed from a fundamental difference in the position of men and women. They

were "naturally distinct".5 Evangelical doctrine also argued that, although a woman

should be educated, it is for the sole purpose of making her a better wife and mother.6

This idea of sexual equity and other radical ideas emerged from France even before the

infamous Revolution took place. The ideology coming from France both before and after

the revolution was never accepted in England. The English bourgeoisie used the

evangelical ideas to combat the foreign influence of the French

Another important sphere of influence to Evangelicalism was the home. This arena was

viewed as the building block of British society and culture. If national morality was to

be changed, and in some cases created, then morality must be taught at home. The

home "was one place where attempts could be made to curb sin."7

Evangelicalism was not merely a national fad. As the Clapham Sect and other influential

politicians began their campaign for the abolition of slavery, the slave trade was also

targeted. This created the need for international intervention. It was not enough that

slavery was to cease being a legal commodity of labor, or to be viewed as immoral. The

entire industry of the slave trade was immoral. It was seen as a infringement on the

individuals natural rights. In the book, White Dreams In Black Africa, the British empire

began to target the African tradesmen who sold the slaves for Christianization. The

plan was to export the greatest gift the English could give, thus creating a moral

society, educated, and most importantly, the elimination of the slave trade. This gift

was Evangelical Christianity.

Africa was not the only target for evangelism. The Irish, who were predominantly

catholic, united with England January 1, 1801. This unification caused Irish culture to

be spread abroad in the working class of England. This spread of Irish influence was

described by James Phillips Kay as, "debased alike by ignorance and pauperism".8 He

blamed the penetration of British culture by Irish values as the cause for the

debauchery and immorality in the working class. This posed as a proverbial splinter in

the lion's paw for the evangelicals. This was brought to the attention of the

middle-class moralists, which tried even harder to "persuade" their moral standards on

the Irish.

This persuasion came about by the merging of the Church of England with the Catholic

Church of Ireland. The national church was Anglican by denomination and protestant.

Needless to say, the Irish were not happy with the arrangements nor with the tithe

that they were required to pay.9

In conclusion, England during its Victorian Age was tremendously influenced by religion.

This influence dominated the society and culture of Britain. Its effect can be traced

from the home and family life to the heirachy of the Parliament. The relationship

between Evangelicalism and the English middle-class was strong. It also affected the

Empire's attitudes towards other races of people and defined some of its foreign policy

concerning the slave trade.

Ireland and England in the Active Union 1801-1920

January 1, 1801 Ireland joined with Britain in what is called the Active Union. The

Active Union was an attempt of both states to integrate themselves on a political level.

This union lasted approximately 120 years and was wrought with constant turmoil. A

common term used by British Members of Parliament was the "Irish question", or what

to do with the Irish. The real question, however, concerned the identity of Ireland. Was

Ireland a Integral part of Britain or another British colony? An analysis of this union

revealed three basic areas of contention that shed light on this topic: politics, religion

and economics. These areas show that parity between the two states was never

achieved. This essay will address the question of identity in the special case of Ireland

and its engagement with Britain during the Active Union.

The political problem of the Active Union was the unequal nature of the agreement.

Both parliaments passed the amendment which stipulated a dissolving of the Irish

parliament. Upon this elimination of the Irish parliament, 100 elected M.P.s were sent to

England for Irish representation. Parliament consisted of 615 members and required

majority voting for bills to be passed. The Irish were proclaimed to be equal partners,

but, in reality, were grossly out-numbered. However, no other colony possessed direct

representation of its people in Parliament.

The British law stated that only protestants were allowed to sit for government.

Ireland's population was 80 percent catholic and 20 percent protestant. This restriction

of representation of the religious majority in Ireland furthered the inequality of the

union. Ireland's true political desires were neither voiced nor given much attention.

In the Empire the head of government and most of the local government administrations

were British and protestant. The English never attempted to make the Irish, English

citizens, which would have given them equality in the Empire. In fact, the common

British interpretation of their relationship with Ireland was understood in terms of

occupation.

These facts identified a severe disparity between the two states. The political aspects

clearly pointed to a unique form of colonization of Ireland which was established with

Ireland's consent. Thus, Ireland as a political entity was, by all means and purposes, a

colony of England.

The area of Religion related directly to society . Religion helped form national identity,

social order and morals/ethics. As previously stated Ireland's population was

predominantly catholic. Upon merging, parliament voted that the "national" church of

the two states was to be the Church of England. This specific church was of the

Anglican Denomination and protestant. As a result, the Irish population was subjected

to mass conversion by the English. Further, the Church of England imposed a tithe on

the Irish peasantry. This behavior was categorized as belligerent and was not

congruent with the concept of equal partnership. To force religion or any other ideal on

a society does not promote peace nor does it exemplify equality.

The economic relationship between Ireland and England was severely unbalanced.

Ireland's economy is 80 percent agrarian. The Active Union caused no growth in the

Irish Industrial sector. In fact, Irish industrial production, per capita, receded. Creating

a free trade zone, which had been done by the Active Union agreement, put the ailing

Irish industry into direct competition with England's enormous industrial sector.

Ireland joined the English empire voluntarily, assuming there would be an equitable

relationship between the two states. The relationship was to provide political parity,

religious cooperation and a mutual economic boom. Consequently, Ireland was reduced

to colonial status by superior British power. Ireland was consider to be a colony of

England politically, religiously and economically. The result of this union was 120 years

of constant political strife and the eventual separation of the two states.