1819

Events edit

August 16 - The Peterloo Massacre takes place. 60,000 people had gathered in St. Peter's Field, Manchester, to peacefully demand voting rights and an end to poverty. The meeting was headed by radical orator Henry Hunt. Local magistrates panicked and ordered the Manchester and Salford Yeomanry to charge the meeting and arrest Hunt. The Yeomanry, many of whom were drunk, used their sabres to hack a path through the crowd and ran several people down with their horses before managing to arrest Hunt, and the 15th Hussars were then ordered to disperse the crowd, with similar results. Overall, 18 people were killed by the cavalry during the meeting and 700 were injured.