The Poor Law: overview of information

[Victorian Web Home —> Political History —> Social History —> Economics —> Race and Class —> Workhouses and the Poor law]

• Introduction
• The Elizabethan Poor Law (1601)
• The Settlement Acts (1662)
• Knatchbull's Act (1723) — the Workhouse Test Act
• Gilbert's Act (1782)
• The Speenhamland System (1795)
• Changing attitudes towards poverty after 1815
• The Sturges-Bourne Acts (1818-9)
• The Royal Commission into the operation of the Poor Laws (1832)
• The Poor Law Commission
• The Royal Commission: members
• The implementation of the 1834 Poor Law Amendment Act
• Workhouse officers
• The Anti-Poor Law Movement
• The workhouse
  • Rotherham
  • Southwell

Last modified 12 November 2002