The Urban Working Class In Britain 1830 1914

In 1830, with the Industrial Revolution in full-swing, working-class life in Britain’s cities was in a state of flux. In all the major urban areas across Britain working-class men, women and children experienced both radical and conservative influences affecting every aspect of their lives. This four volume primary resource collection is the most comprehensive of its kind and includes a multitude of sources that allows the user to chart the squalor, the noise, the conflict, the aspiration and the diversity of the working-class experience up to the outbreak of the First World War.The thematically arranged volumes are dedicated to key aspects of working class life such as family and neighbourhood, the workplace, leisure and politics. In all cases the selections made are sensitive to showing the experience of the whole of the working class rather than just that of the working-class male. The voices chosen include both critical observers from outside as well as the working class themselves.All of the documents selected are rare in print form and come from a wide variety of sources including periodicals, articles in magazines, pamphlets and excerpts from books. The collection will be of value to scholars of social and political history, economics, Victorian studies and urban history.