Victims
The exact number of those killed and injured at Peterloo has never been established with certainty. Sources claim 11–15 killed and 400–700 injured. The Manchester Relief Committee, a body set up to provide relief for the victims of Peterloo, gave the number of injured as 420, while Radical sources listed 500. The true number is difficult to estimate, as many of the wounded hid their injuries for fear of retribution by the authorities. Three of William Marsh's six children worked in the factory belonging to Captain Hugh Birley of the Manchester Yeomanry, and lost their jobs because their father had attended the meeting. James Lees was admitted to Manchester Infirmary with two severe sabre wounds to the head, but was refused treatment and sent home after refusing to agree with the surgeon's insistence that "he had had enough of Manchester meetings".
A particular feature of the meeting at Peterloo was the number of women present. Female reform societies had been formed in North West England during June and July 1819, the first in Britain. Many of them were dressed distinctively in white, and some formed all-female contingents, carrying their own flags. Of the 654 recorded casualties, at least 168 were women, four of whom died either at St Peter's Field or later as a result of their wounds. It has been estimated that less than 12% of the crowd was made up of females, suggesting that women were at significantly greater risk of injury than men by a factor of almost 3:1. Richard Carlile claimed that the women were especially targeted, a view apparently supported by the large number who suffered from wounds caused by weapons.
Eleven of the fatalities listed occurred on St Peter's Field. Others, such as John Lees of Oldham, died later of their wounds, and some like Joshua Whitworth were killed in the rioting that followed the crowd's dispersal from the field.
| Name | Abode | Date of death | Cause | Notes | Ref(s). |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Ashton | Cowhill, Oldham | 16 August | Sabred and trampled on by crowd | Carried the black flag of the Saddleworth, Lees and Mossley Union, inscribed "Taxation without representation is unjust and tyrannical. NO CORN LAWS". The inquest jury returned a verdict of accidental death. His son, Samuel, received 20 shillings in relief. | |
| John Ashworth | Bulls Head, Manchester | Sabred and trampled | Ashworth was a Special Constable, presumably attacked unintentionally by the cavalry. | ||
| William Bradshaw | Lily-hill, Bury | Shot by musket | |||
| Thomas Buckley | Baretrees, Chadderton | Sabred and stabbed by bayonet | |||
| Robert Campbell | Miller Street, Salford | 18 August | Killed by a mob in Newton Lane | Campbell was a Special Constable | |
| James Crompton | Barton-upon-Irwell | Trampled on by the cavalry | Buried 1 September | ||
| Edmund Dawson | Saddleworth | Died of sabre wounds at the Manchester Royal Infirmary. | |||
| William Dawson | Saddleworth | Sabred, crushed and killed on the spot. | |||
| Margaret Downes | Manchester | Sabred | |||
| William Evans | Hulme | Trampled by cavalry | Evans was a Special Constable | ||
| William Fildes | Kennedy St, Manchester | 16 August | Ridden over by cavalry | Two years old, he was first victim of the massacre. His mother was carrying him across the road when she was struck by a trooper of the Manchester Yeomanry, galloping towards St Peters Field. | |
| Mary Heys | Oxford Rd, Manchester | 17 December | Ridden over by cavalry | Mother of six children, and pregnant at the time of the meeting. Disabled and suffering from almost daily fits following her injuries, the premature birth of her seven-month-old child resulted in her death. | |
| Sarah Jones | 96 Silk St, Salford | No cause given by Marlow but listed as "bruised in the head" by Frow. | Mother of seven children. Beaten on the head by a Special Constable's truncheon. | ||
| John Lees | Oldham | 9 September | Sabred | Lees was an ex-soldier who had fought in the Battle of Waterloo. | |
| Arthur Neil | Pidgeon St, Manchester | Inwardly crushed | |||
| Martha Partington | Eccles | Thrown into a cellar and killed on the spot. | |||
| John Rhodes | Pits, Hopwood | 18 or 19 November | Sabre wound to the head | Rhodes's body was dissected by order of magistrates wishing to prove his death was not a result of Peterloo. The coroner's inquest found that he had died from natural causes. | |
| Joshua Whitworth | 20 August | Shot at New Cross. |
Read more about this topic: Peterloo Massacre
Famous quotes containing the word victims:
“... tyrants deserve to be the victims of tyrants.”
—Jeanne De Hericourt (1809–1875)
“We’re the victims of a disease called social prejudice, my child. These dear ladies of the law and order league are scouring out the dregs of the town. C’mon be a glorified wreck like me.”
—Dudley Nichols (1895–1960)
“In all sincerity, we offer to the loved ones of all innocent victims over the past 25 years, abject and true remorse. No words of ours will compensate for the intolerable suffering they have undergone during the conflict.”
—Combined Loyalist Military Command. New York Times, p. A12 (October 14, l994)