Peterloo Massacre

The Peterloo Massacre of August 16, 1819 was the result of a cavalry charge into the crowd at a public meeting at St. Peter's Field, Manchester, England. Eleven people were killed and over 400 injured.

The meeting had been organised by the Manchester Patriotic Union Society, a group of radicals agitating for parliamentary reform. They had invited a number of speakers, including Richard Carlile, John Cartwright and Henry Hunt, to a public meeting. Local magistrates were concerned that the meeting would end in a riot and arranged for substantial numbers of regular soldiers to be on hand. The troops included 600 Hussars, 400 cavalry of the Manchester and Salford Yeomanry, two artillery pieces and several hundred special constables.

A considerble crowd had gathered for the meeting, estimates vary from 30,000 up to 150,000. The main speakers did not arrive until after 1.00 p.m., and Hunt was invited to speak first. At around 1.30 p.m. the magistrates observing the meeting decided to order the arrest of the leaders, the police requested and were granted military assistance. Captain Hugh Birley and sixty cavalrymen of the Manchester and Salford Yeomanry then entered the field and moved towards the speakers stand. When the cavalry reached the stand a number of those present were arrested as well as some newspapermen. The Yeomanry then appeared to exceed their remit, striking down the banners of the crowd. Outside the field the senior magistrate, William Hulton, perceived the crowd's actions as an assault and order the Hussars into the field at 1.50 p.m. to save the Yeomanry. Within ten minutes the Hussars had cleared the field, killing and injuring in their zeal.

The events immediately found their way into the press, James Wroe of the Manchester Observer coining the phrase "Peterloo Massacre" to describe the event (after Waterloo). The government firmly supported the action of the army and magistrates, later introducing what were known as the Six Acts to suppress radical meetings and publications.