Political Prisoners
Political prisoners made up a small proportion of convicts. They arrived in waves corresponding to political unrest in the British Isles. They included the First Scottish Martyrs in 1794; British Naval Mutineers (from the Nore Mutiny) in 1797 and 1801; Irish rebels in 1798, 1803, 1848 and 1868; Scots Rebels (1820); Yorkshire Rebels (1820 and 1822); leaders of the Merthyr Tydfil rising of 1831; The Tolpuddle Martyrs (1834); Swing Rioters and Machine Breakers (1828–1833); Upper Canada rebellion/Lower Canada Rebellion (1839) and Chartists (1842).
Read more about this topic: Convictism In Australia
Famous quotes containing the words political and/or prisoners:
“A human being is a naturally political [animal].”
—Aristotle (384–322 B.C.)
“Two prisoners whose cells adjoin communicate with each other by knocking on the wall. The wall is the thing which separates them but is also their means of communication. It is the same with us and God. Every separation is a link.”
—Simone Weil (1909–1943)