07 The Processions

The Peterloo Massacre 1819: A bicentenary collection

Presented by Voices of Today.

This is the story of the Peterloo Massacre, told in the words of Francis A. Bruton, Harriett Martineau, Mrs. Isabella Banks and several observers who were present on the day, including Samuel Bamford, Archibald Prentice, John Benjamin Smith and Bishop Edward Stanley.

On 16 August 1819, 60,000 workers and their families marched to St Peter’s Field, Manchester, to join a public meeting in support of parliamentary reform to be addressed by ‘Orator’ Henry Hunt. No sooner had the meeting begun than it was disrupted by soldiers of the Manchester Yeomanry, who used sabres to force a way through the crowd to the speakers’ platform. The King's Hussars joined the fray to disperse the crowd. When the dust settled, 18 protestors were dead and 700 injured, cut by the sabres of the Yeomanry or trampled by the horses of the Hussars.

Featuring the voices of Phil Benson, Linda Barrans, Tony Foster, Steve Gough, Erin Louttit, Jason Mills and Noel Badrian.

Texts prepared and audio edited by Phil Benson.

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