Passages in the Life of a Radical, And, Early Days by Samuel BamfordMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
SAMUEL BAMFORD was an English weaver and poet, who was also known as a radical reformer. He was born in 1788 in Middleton, Manchester and lived to the age of 84. In this book he tells the reader about his compassion and support for the working classes of England at that time. He explains in some detail the reasons behind his organisation of a large group of working men into files of marchers to St Peters Fields for the meeting there about the reform of Parliament and the abolition of the Corn Laws. Before they set off for Manchester, Bamford makes it clear to the hundreds of marching workers that they are to maintain a dignified passiveness and not bear arms, or to react to taunts and provocative acts by the authorities. This is a clear illustration of his opposition to any activism involving physical violence, but despite this he was arrested, charged with treason and jailed by the British government in 1819. The evidence clearly showed he was not involved in the violence during the Peterloo Massacre, notwithstanding this, the judgement of the court was overruled by Lord Sidmouth, the Home Secretary, and so Samuel Bamford was found guilty of inciting a riot and sentenced to a year in Lincoln Prison.
Bamford’s poetry and prose was in support of working men, and it was passionately followed amongst the mill workers of Britain. While his poetry was mostly in ‘uniform’ English there are some in the local dialect, which showed understanding of working class conditions, and became much admired. His book also goes on to record his journeys to and from jail or to London for sentencing hearings. Several of these treks, often on foot, show the range of attitudes amongst people when he is hungry, without money or footsore – kindness and harshness are heaped upon him in equal measure at times. The support and courage of his wife when charged and later in prison are well described and touching. His relationship with Orator Henry Hunt and his one-time companion, ‘Doctor’ Healey, seemed to oscillate between loyalty and disappointment, unfortunately even hinting at betrayal at times.
This book is a major political work, documenting the various phases of radical social reform from an educated and eloquent worker’s point of view, during the early nineteenth century, when government was most oppressive and obdurate. Highly recommended to anyone interested in history and the struggle for universal suffrage told from the ‘horse’s mouth!’
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