Poor Laws: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 15:46, 19 November 2013

System of poor relief, passed in sixteenth-century England.

The gap between rich and poor increased throughout the century. The rich profited from redistribution of the monastic lands and a growth in population which ensured that the grain prices were going up. Living costs increased fivefold as a result of the inflation that took place; gold and silver were flowing from the colonies to Europe and increased the amount of money in circulation. The number of the poor grew who could not afford these living costs. Furthermore there was a series of poor harvests in the sixteenth century that led to shortage of food and starvation.

There was a growth of wage labour and changes in agriculture in the Elizabethan period which led to people leaving the countryside to search for employment in the towns. The wool trade became increasingly popular during the Elizabethan age, which meant that land which had been farmed by peasants before was then dedicated to rearing sheep and as a result, the traditional English peasants (who used to be moderately prosperous) disappeared.

The old system of individual (religiously motivated) philanthropy could no longer help to alleviate poverty and neither felt people responsible for the poor anymore. Before the Reformation, people had to pay one-tenth of their income to the Church (this was required by Church law) and the Church spent one-third of this amount on poor relief. People were willing to give a part of their income because apart from reading the Bible, they were convinced that good deeds paved the way for going to heaven. This system ceased to function, also because the upcoming Protestantism included a certain hard-working discipline and self-reliance. Poor people were looked down at because they could not make it on their own.

The state had to step in and several acts were passed (in 1531, 1536, 1572 and 1597), culminating in The Act for the Relief of the Poor in 1601 (also known as "Elizabethan Poor Law", "43rd Elizabeth" [because it was passed in the 43rd year of the reign of Elizabeth I] or "Old Poor Law"), making each parish responsible for its own poor and a contribution to the parish collection a legal requirement for the people. Local rates (who had to pay how much and who received how much) were set up by Justices of the Peace. Poorhouses were established for those who were not able to work, orphaned and pauper children would be provided with work or apprenticeships.

Sources:

Boyer, George. "English Poor Laws". EH.Net Encyclopedia, edited by Robert Whaples. 2002. <http://eh.net/encyclopedia/article/boyer.poor.laws.england>

Briscoe, Alexandra. "Poverty in Elizabethan England". 2011. <http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/tudors/poverty_01.shtml>

Kramer, Jürgen. Britain and Ireland. A Concise History. Abingdon: Routledge, 2007.

Microsoft Encarta Enzyklopädie. Poor Laws. 2004.

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-The '''English Poor Laws''' were a system of poor relief, passed in sixteenth century England.  They signalled a progression from private charity to a [[welfare state]], where the care and supervision of the poor was embodied in law and integral to the management of each town and village.
+System of poor relief, passed in sixteenth-century England.
 The gap between rich and poor increased throughout the century. The rich profited from redistribution of the monastic lands and a growth in population which ensured that the grain prices were going up. Living costs increased fivefold as a result of the inflation that took place; gold and silver were flowing from the colonies to Europe and increased the amount of money in circulation. The number of the poor grew who could not afford these living costs. Furthermore there was a series of poor harvests in the sixteenth century that led to shortage of food and starvation.
@@ Line 6: / Line 5: @@
 There was a growth of wage labour and changes in agriculture in the Elizabethan period which led to people leaving the countryside to search for employment in the towns. The wool trade became increasingly popular during the Elizabethan age, which meant that land which had been farmed by peasants before was then dedicated to rearing sheep and as a result, the traditional English peasants (who used to be moderately prosperous) disappeared.
-The old system of individual philanthropy could no longer help to alleviate poverty and neither felt people responsible for the poor anymore. Before the [[Reformation]], people had felt obliged to pay one-tenth of their income to the Church (this was required by Church law) and the Church spent one-third of this amount on poor relief. People were willing to give a part of their income because apart from reading the Bible, they were convinced that good deeds paved the way for going to heaven. This systems ceased to function, also because the upcoming [[Protestantism]] included a certain hard-working discipline and self-reliance. Poor people were looked down on because they couldn’t make it on their own.
+The old system of individual (religiously motivated) philanthropy could no longer help to alleviate poverty and neither felt people responsible for the poor anymore. Before the [[Reformation]], people had to pay one-tenth of their income to the Church (this was required by Church law) and the Church spent one-third of this amount on poor relief. People were willing to give a part of their income because apart from reading the Bible, they were convinced that good deeds paved the way for going to heaven. This system ceased to function, also because the upcoming [[Protestantism]] included a certain hard-working discipline and self-reliance. Poor people were looked down at because they could not make it on their own.
-The state had to step in and  several acts were passed (in 1531, 1536, 1572 and 1598), culminating in '''The Act for the Relief of the Poor in 1601''' (also known as "Elizabethan Poor Law", "43rd Elizabeth" [because it was passed in the 43rd year of the reign of [[Elizabeth I]]] or "Old Poor Law"), making each parish responsible for its own poor and a contribution to the parish collection a legal requirement for the people. Local rates (who had to pay how much and who received how much) were set up by justices of the peace. Poorhouses were established for those who were not able to work, orphaned and pauper children would be provided with work or apprenticeships.
+The state had to step in and  several acts were passed (in 1531, 1536, 1572 and 1597), culminating in The Act for the Relief of the Poor in 1601 (also known as "Elizabethan Poor Law", "43rd Elizabeth" [because it was passed in the 43rd year of the reign of [[Elizabeth I]]] or "Old Poor Law"), making each parish responsible for its own poor and a contribution to the parish collection a legal requirement for the people. Local rates (who had to pay how much and who received how much) were set up by Justices of the Peace. Poorhouses were established for those who were not able to work, orphaned and pauper children would be provided with work or apprenticeships.