DID LIFE IMPROVE FOR LONDON´S CHILDREN?
Victorian children witnessed the coming of the
railways, and important changes in education and the
way they spent their leisure time. But were they better
off?
The invention of 'the child'
A child living in London at the end of the 19th century
would have experienced a very different childhood to
that of their grandparents born in the early years of the
century.
By 1899 London was an extremely crowded city, as
more people came to live and find work in the capital.
Many urban developments altered the lives of all
children, but the experience of changing childhood in
the 19th century was closely linked to family and social
background. The life of a wealthy child was very
different from that of a poor child. Wealthier children
throughout the Victorian period were made aware of
the suffering of the poor through the moral and
religious education they received at Church Sunday
schools. Those more comfortably off were encouraged
to help those less fortunate than themselves by
donating their money and time to charity.
By the end of the 19th century, not only families but
the government too had changed the way it treated
children. At the time, more than a third of those living
in England were under 15 years old. In an attempt to
control the growing numbers of young people whilst, at
the same time, protecting them from violence and
poverty, the government introduced laws relating to
the specific needs of children. This new attitude
helped children to develop their own identity. They
were no longer officially seen as 'miniature adults' but
treated as a distinct social group with their own needs
and interests which deserved special laws and
treatment.
Death and disease
Victorian children were very close to death and
suffering. In the 1830s almost half the funerals in
London were for children under ten years old. Many
people died from infections and diseases that we
would rarely die of today, such as measles and scarlet
fever. Children often experienced the death of a
parent, brother or sister. If one of their parents died,
wealthy children were expected to go into mourning
and wear black clothing for up to a year. They may
also have worn mourning jewellery such as a bracelet
of plaited hair removed from the head of a dead
relative.
Poor children were more likely to suffer from death
and disease. Many lived in dirty, crowded conditions
and shared living accommodation with other families.
They often lived in homes without heat where the only
furniture was a heap of rags and straw. The lack of
nutritious food, toilet facilities and the poor quality of
drinking water resulted in serious cases of diarrhoea,
typhoid and other infections. Raw sewage in the
drinking water and the stench of the River Thames
also made people feel almost constantly sick. Many
people could not afford to visit a doctor or pay for
medicines. Although the Great Ormond Street Hospital
for sick children was founded in 1852, most sick
children continued to be cared for at home in dirty and
crowded conditions. Babies were especially likely to
become ill and up to half of all poor children born in
London died in their first year.
Crime and punishment
Children often experienced violence at home, school
and work. Many poor children and orphans survived
by joining street gangs and turning to crime and
prostitution. In the novel Oliver Twist, Charles Dickens
describes how children could become organised into
pick pocketing gangs controlled by adult criminals.
At the beginning of the 19th century, child criminals
were punished in the same way as adults. They were
sent to adult prisons, sometimes transported abroad
for theft, whipped or even sentenced to death. In 1814
five child criminals under the age of fourteen were
hung at the Old Bailey, the youngest being only eight
years old.
By the end of the 19th century, children who
committed a crime were more likely to be sent to
special youth prisons called Reformatory schools. By
this time it was realised that adult prisons were bad for
children and likely to encourage them to commit
crimes when they became adults.
Orphans
London had many orphanages but places were usually
given to orphans who had come from wealthy or
respectable families. Many poor children whose
parents had died were forced to live on the streets or
in workhouses where conditions were extremely hard.
By the end of the 19th century, poor orphans were
beginning to enjoy an improved lifestyle. By this time
many were living in special children's homes such as
those established by Dr Barnardo. Children who
suffered violence at home could also get help from the
National Society of the Prevention for Cruelty to
Children (NSPCC) set up in 1889.
Work
Poor children were forced to work from a very young
age. Many earned a few pennies by becoming
chimney-sweeps or working on the streets running
errands, calling cabs, sweeping roads, selling toys or
flowers and helping the market porters. Other children
worked alongside their parents at home or in small,
dark and dirty workshops sewing clothes, sacks or
shoes.
The industrial revolution had resulted in many children
being employed in large factories. They were often
responsible for operating dangerous machinery.
Children who worked in factories suffered a hard life.
The young girls who worked in the match factories run
by Bryant and May endured long hours and poor pay.
They worked worked with dangerous materials such
as phosphorous that could cause a disease known as
'phossy jaw' that rotted their lower jaw.
Many children worked as servants in the homes of
richer families. In the 1850s one in nine of all female
children over the age of ten years worked in domestic
service.
From the middle of the 19th century, charities tried to
help poor street children by providing organised work
for them. In 1866 John Groom set up the 'Watercress
and Flower Girls' Christian Mission to provide a home
and work for young and disabled flower sellers.
From 1851 the London Shoe-Black Brigade,
established by John MacGregor and Lord Shaftesbury,
offered regular, better-paid, employment for children
who made their living cleaning boots and shoes.
Members of the London Shoe-Black societies wore a
uniform with a coloured jacket indicating the area in
which they worked. Those working in the City of
London area wore red. In the evenings these children
could attend lessons at the Ragged Schools.
Education
At the beginning of the 19th century, children were not
required to go to school but, by 1899, all children up to
the age of twelve officially had the opportunity of going
to school.
The sort of education they received depended very
much on how wealthy their families were. Rich
children could be educated at home by a private tutor
or governess; boys were sent to boarding schools
such as Eton or Harrow. The sons of middle-class
families attended grammar schools or private
academies.
When Queen Victoria came to the throne in 1837, the
only schools available for poor children were charity
and church schools or 'dame' schools set up by
unqualified teachers in their own homes. Ragged
schools were introduced in the 1840s. They were
established as charities and relied on people donating
money and volunteering to become teachers. The
President of the London Ragged School Union,
founded in 1844, was Lord Shaftesbury. There were
eventually 200 Ragged Schools in Great Britain
providing an education for over 300,000 children who,
as Charles Dickens noted, were 'too ragged, wretched,
filthy, and forlorn, to enter any other place'.
From 1870 the government introduced a system of
education that enabled local authorities to set up
schools paid for out of the rates or taxes. This meant
that all children between the ages of five and thirteen
could go to school if they paid about 2d (2 pence) a
week. Many people could still not afford to send their
children to school. The teaching in these schools was
often poor and undertaken by monitors who were only
about 12 years old. Classes were large and often had
over 60 pupils.
In 1891 the government introduced free education for
all children up to the age of eleven. In 1899 the
school-leaving age was raised to twelve. But many
children still failed to attend school regularly, and
continued to work during the day to help support their
families.
Leisure time
London was an exciting city for children. Many spent
much of their day on the streets where there was
always some form of music and entertainment to
enjoy, including organ grinders, acrobats and jugglers.
Until 1868 children could even join the crowds
watching the public hanging of criminals outside
Newgate prison.
Wealthier children with more leisure time could visit
the zoo, museums, exhibitions and art galleries and
from 1894 enjoy a ride on the revolving Great Wheel
at Earls Court. At Christmas time they may have been
taken to the theatre to watch a pantomime. At home
they played with a range of toys from wax dolls to toy
soldiers and train sets. There were many toy shops in
London including Hamley's 'Noah's Ark' Toy
Warehouse. In the Strand there was even a specialist
toy arcade called Lowther's lined with many small toy
shops selling a range of both expensive and cheap,
mass-produced toys.
From: Internet: www.museumoflondon.org.uk