The poor in England, 1700-1850 : an economy of makeshifts / edited by Steven King and Alannah Tomkins.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

King, Steven, 1966-

Tomkins, Alannah.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Poor--England--History.

Poor.

Income--England--History.

Income.

Social networks--England--History.

Social networks.

Charity--England--History.

Charity.

Public welfare--England--History.

Public welfare.

History.

England.

Physical Description:

x, 285 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm

Other Title:

Economy of makeshifts

Place of Publication:

Manchester, UK ; New York, NY : Manchester University Press : Distributed exclusively in the USA by Palgrave, 2003.

Summary:

This fascinating collection of studies investigates English poverty between 1700 and 1850 and the ways in which the poor made ends meet. The phrase 'economy of makeshifts' has often been used to summarise the patchy, disparate and sometimes failing strategies of the poor for material survival. Incomes or benefits derived through the 'economy' ranged from wages yielded by under-employment via petty crime through to charity; however, until now, discussions of this array of makeshifts have usually fallen short of answering vital questions about how and when the poor secured access to them. This book represents the single most significant attempt in print to supply the English 'economy of makeshifts' with a solid, empirical basis and to advance the concept of makeshifts from a vague but convenient label to a more precise yet inclusive definition.

Individual chapters written by some of the leading, young historians of welfare examine how advantages gained from access to common land, mobilisation of kinship support, crime, and other marginal resources could prop up struggling households. They consider how the balance of these strategies might change over time or be modified by gender, life-cycle and geography. A comprehensive introduction summarises the state of research on English poverty, and a thought-provoking conclusion makes valuable suggestions for the direction of future research.

This book will be crucial for historians of social life and welfare, of interest to researchers working on eighteenth- and nineteenth-century England and will be useful to undergraduates seeking guidance on the historiography of poverty.

Contents:

2 'Not by bread only'? Common right, parish relief and endowed charity in a forest economy, c. 1600-1800 / Steve Hindle 39

3 The economy of makeshifts and the poor law: a game of chance? / Margaret Hanly 76

4 'Agents in their own concerns'? Charity and the economy of makeshifts in eighteenth-century Britain / Sarah Lloyd 100

5 Crime, criminal networks and the survival strategies of the poor in early eighteenth-century London / Heather Shore 137

6 Pawnbroking and the survival strategies of the urban poor in 1770s York / Alannah Tomkins 166

7 Kinship, poor relief and the welfare process in early modern England / Sam Barrett 199

8 Making the most of opportunity: the economy of makeshifts in the early modern north / Steven King 228.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

0719061598

OCLC:

52478620