Industries
Sir Thomas Lipton
Sir Thomas Lipton, the very embodiment of the cliche, ‘Poor boy makes good’, was born in 1850 of working class Northern Irish parents in Glasgow. Lipton started work as n errand boy and became a millionaire through the vast chain of grocers shops that he had created and by 1908 he was one of the…
Read MoreThe Framework Knitters Declaration 1812
The issuing of this declaration by the framework knitters was in response to the machines that as the workers saw it was bringing down wages and producing inferior quality goods. The framework knitters (also called stockingers), launched the Luddite protests in Nottingham in 1811, justifying their actions by referring to the 1663 Charter of the…
Read MoreThe Framework Knitters 1821
Almost ten years on from the 1812 ‘Declaration of the Framework knitters’, conditions for the framework knitters of the counties of Nottingham, Derby and Leicester has not seen any sign of improving. The pay for these workers, of whom there were estimated to be about 15,000 in these three counties, was insufficient to keep them…
Read MoreLeadenhall Market
A trip to the City of London is not complete without a visit to Leadenhall Market. Walking amongst the high rise office buildings in the City of London it is easy to miss the ancient market of Leadenhall. It can be found in the triangle made up of Gracechurch Street, Fenchurch Street and Leadenhall Street…
Read MoreMedieval Markets and Fairs Gazetteer.
Medieval markets and fairs. Medieval markets and fairs made up the economy of Britain both before and after the Black Death. The world of the market then and now would be strikingly similar to today. The archives have revealed tax records that give some insight into how the market economy of Medieval Britain was directed…
Read MoreIron Bridge Coalbrook Dale
The iron bridge near Coalbrook Dale is a humbling testament to the skill of ironworkers over two hundred years ago. The spectacular Severn gorge that carves its way through layers of limestone, coal and iron ore is a striking natural feature that gave rise to the most important industrialised landscape of the C18th. The River…
Read MoreMatthew Boulton
Matthew Boulton could be described as the father of the Industrial Revolution but his name is less well known than that of his partner James Watt. Matthew Boulton was born in Birmingham in 1728, the same year as Captain James Cook and into an age of enlightenment, reason and industrial revolution. His early years were…
Read MoreWynkyn de Worde Printer
Wynkyn de Worde the printer and publisher of Shoe Lane Fleet Street who became a great typographist in addition to the 800 books he produced during the early part of the 16th century.
Read MoreBritain After Waterloo the British Disillusion Post 1815
What happened to Britain after Waterloo? What did the victory mean to the population and why was there a British disillusion for the following 20 years? Britain seemed to implode as an economic bomb went off under her feet.
Read MoreJames Watt Industrial Revolution
James Watt the inventor of the steam engine and the industrial revolution was driven by steam but he was a man with a ferociously keen scientific mind that dabbled in many areas. This is an introduction to one of Britain’s finest engineers, we salute James Watt and his steam engines.
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