Charlie Chaplin's Modern Times
Technology Overwhelming The Individual, Making Him A Cog In The Machine
Or Worse - Obsolete
The Luddites were men who took the name of a (perhaps) mythical individual, Ned Ludd who was reputed to live in Sherwood Forest. They attacked the textile industries of the West Riding of Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire and Derbyshire. Some Luddites were active in Lancashire also. They smashed stocking-frames and cropping frames, among others.
During the Industrial Revolution, the laws and customs, which had been installed to protect the working class of England, were ignored and eventually abandoned. For example, the Minimum Wage Bill of 1808 decreased minimum wage and the Combination Acts, banned trade unions, as well. These were just some of the many sparks which drove the Luddites to rebellion.
They formed mobs, which roamed the Industrial towns of northern England, smashing looms and frames and burning factories. This band of nineteenth century English handicraftsmen, were rioting in protest to the textile machinery that had taken them out of business. In the early eighteen hundreds, in the well known counties of Yorkshire, Lancashire, Cheshire, Derbyshire, and Nottinghamshire, Luddites destroyed thousands of pieces of machinery.
The authorities were incapable of stopping the attacks so the government felt obliged to put in place special legislation, which was known as the Frame-Breaking Act. Machine-breaking had been made a capital offence in 1721; in 1811 a special Act was passed to secure the peace of Nottingham. The authorities were incapable of stopping the attacks so the government felt obliged to put in place special legislation.
In April 1812, the Luddites attacked William Cartwright's mill at Rawfolds near Huddersfield. The event was described by Charlotte Brönte in her novel Shirley. Cartwright and a few soldiers held the mill against about 150 attackers, two of whom were killed. The following week an attempt was made on Cartwright's life and on 28 April William Horsfall, another manufacturer, was killed.
In January 1813 three men were charged at York for the murder of Horsfall, were found guilty and were hanged. Fourteen others involved in the attack on Cartwright's mill or related activities were hanged a week later. Sidmouth and Lord Ellenborough expected the executions to have the 'happiest effects in various parts of the kingdom'.
The government eventually defeated the Luddites. As many as forty Luddites were killed in action, twenty-four were executed, thirty-four were transported to Australia and twenty-four were imprisoned. Although the rise of the Luddites was short lived, they impacted society a great deal and even today Luddism is still around.
Many historians would deem the Luddite riots as unsuccessful, while many others would say that they had a huge impact on society. The Luddites changed the views of people during the Industrial Revolution. They brought the rights of the workers to the attention of England. A turning point in history is often thought of as a well-known and dramatic event that took place and completely changed the world. The riots of the Luddites are not very well-known. However, their actions led to many significant changes in the world.
Smashing A Loom
Politically, the actions of the Luddites brought the idea of having a society based on industrialization into the eyes of the public and open to debate. People were forced to look more closely at the positive and negative effects of having an industrial society. The "machine question" continues tobe unanswered today. The riots became a turning point because the flaws of the Industrial Revolution were brought to the surface and the government could no longer ignore the opinions of the working class.
The Luddites stories circulated England, showing the strong resistance and bravery of the English men. People realized that if one is disciplinedand organized, he will be successful in his battles. The Luddites als brought about the ideas that technology is never neutral and some are even hurtful. For example, while the while the Spinning Jenny was beneficial to the textile industry, it also put several spinners out of business. The Luddite rebels uncovered the dark side to the Industrial Revolution.