Lord George Gordon - The "Gordon Riots"

The "Gordon Riots"

Main articles: Gordon Riots and Trial of Lord George Gordon.

In 1779 he organised, and made himself head of, the Protestant associations, formed to secure the repeal of the Catholic Relief Act of 1778.

On 2 June 1780 he headed a crowd of around 50,000 people that marched in procession from St George's Fields to the Houses of Parliament in order to present a huge petition against (partial) Catholic Emancipation. After the mob reached Westminster the "Gordon Riots" began. Initially, the mob dispersed after threatening to force their way into the House of Commons, but reassembled soon afterwards and, over several days, destroyed several Roman Catholic chapels, pillaged the private dwellings of Catholics, set fire to Newgate Prison, broke open all the other prisons, and attacked the Bank of England and several other public buildings. The army was finally brought in to quell the unrest and killed or wounded around 450 people before they finally restored order.

For his role in instigating the riots, Lord George was charged with high treason. He was comfortably imprisoned in the Tower of London and permitted to receive visitors, including the Methodist leader Rev. John Wesley on Tuesday 19 December 1780.

Thanks to a strong defence by his cousin, Thomas, Lord Erskine, he was acquitted on the grounds that he had no treasonable intent.