Battle of Cinderloo (1821)
Fri Feb 02, 1821
Image: An unknown artist's impression of the uprising [shropshirestar.com]
On this day in 1821, 3,000 striking workers in present-day Telford, England clashed with Yeomanry, who fired into the crowd after workers refused an order to disperse. Two workers were killed, two were sentenced to death, and nine were arrested.
Colliers across the Coalbrookdale Coalfields had gone on strike the previous day in response to the lowering of their wages, and production across the area came to a halt. A large body of men marched to ironworks at Madeley Wood and Dawley, blowing out all the furnaces, damaging machinery, and inciting non-striking workers to join in.
By mid-afternoon the next day, a crowd of 3,000 had gathered at Old Park, near two industrial spoil heaps known as the 'Cinders Hills'. Yeomanry were sent out to disperse the crowd, and they were read the Riot Act and ordered go home. When Yeomanry moved forward to arrest the ringleaders of the strike, they were assaulted by the crowd. After further attempts to control the protesters were frustrated, the Yeomanry fired onto the crowd, killing two.
Nine strikers were arrested - two were sentenced to death and the other seven served nine months of hard labor. The initial dispute which had caused the riot was resolved soon after, with some ironmasters agreeing to reduce the daily pay of the workers by 4d instead of 6d.
- Date: 1821-02-02
- Learn More: en.wikipedia.org, www.dawleyheritage.co.uk.
- Tags: #Labor, #Riots.
- Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org