strong waves of agitations began. The struggle went through different phases: machine breaking, mass demonstrations and formation of collectives (trade unions). Peterloo Massacre: In , a year of industrial depression and high food prices, a great demonstration was organised by the radical leader Henry Hunt. About , persons attended, including a large number of women and children.
None was armed, and their demonstration was peaceful. The magistrates, who were alarmed by the size and mood of the crowd, ordered the Manchester yeomanry (a voluntary cavalry corps) to attack the crowd. More than people were injured and killed. Hunt and the other radical leaders were arrested, tried, and convicted.
Tolpuddle Prosecution: The Whig government in Britain, alarmed at the growing discontent of the working-class, arrested six Tolpuddle labourers ( ) for organising the labourers against the proposed wage cuts. All the six were convicted and sentenced to seven years’ transportation to a penal colony in Australia. The six became martyrs for the cause of labour. Great Railroad Strike of in the USA The bad working conditions in the factories, long hours of work, low wages, exploitation of women and children contributed to the growth of labour unions in the USA.
After the Civil War, workers organised strikes and one major strike was the Great Railroad Strike of . Wage cuts in the railroad industry, in the context of a prolonged economic depression, led to the strike. The strike was crushed by a combination of vigilantes, National Guardsmen, and the Federal Army. The Age of Revolutions Haymarket Massacre A labour protest took place on May , at Haymarket Square in Chicago.
It began as a peaceful rally in support of workers striking for an eight-hour day and in reaction to the killing of several workers the previous day by the police. An unknown person threw a bomb at the police as they began to disperse the crowd. The bomb blast and ensuing gunfire resulted in the deaths of seven police officers and at least four civilians; scores of