Tolpuddle Martyrs

The Tolpuddle Martyrs were a group of 19th century Dorset agricultural labourers who were arrested for and convicted of swearing a secret oath as members of the Friendly Society of Agricultural Labourers. The rules of the society show it was clearly structured as a friendly society and operated as a trade-specific benefit society. At the time, friendly societies had strong elements of what are now considered to be the predominant role of trade unions. The Tolpuddle Martyrs were subsequently sentenced to penal transportation to Australia.

Historical events

Before 1824/25 the Combination Acts had outlawed "combining" or organising to gain better working conditions. In 1824/25 these Acts were repealed, so trade unions were no longer illegal. In 1832, the year of a Reform Act which extended the vote in England but did not grant universal suffrage, six men from Tolpuddle in Dorset founded the Friendly Society of Agricultural Labourers to protest against the gradual lowering of agricultural wages in the 1830s caused by the surplus supply of labour in an era when mechanisation was beginning to have an impact on agricultural working practices for the first time. This was a particular problem in remote parts of southern England, such as Dorset, where farmers did not have to compete with the higher wages paid to workers in London and in the northern towns experiencing the Industrial Revolution. They refused to work for less than 10 shillings a week, although by this time wages had been reduced to seven shillings a week and were due to be further reduced to six shillings. The society, led by George Loveless, a Methodist local preacher, met in the house of Thomas Standfield.

Tolpuddle

Coordinates: 50°44′58″N 2°17′46″W / 50.7495°N 2.2962°W / 50.7495; -2.2962

Tolpuddle /ˈtɒlpʌdəl/ is a village and civil parish in the county of Dorset in southern England. It is situated in the Piddle valley 8 miles (13 km) east of Dorchester, the county town, and 12 miles (19 km) west of Poole. Dorset County Council's 2013 estimate of the population of the parish is 420.

The village is famous as the home of the Tolpuddle Martyrs who were sentenced to be transported to Australia after they formed a trade union in 1833. A row of cottages, housing agricultural workers and a museum, and a row of seated statues commemorate the martyrs. The annual Tolpuddle Martyrs festival is held in the village in the third weekend of July. An ancient sycamore tree on the village green, known as the Martyrs' Tree, is said to be the place where the Martyrs swore their oath. It is cared for by the National Trust.

Tolpuddle used to have a petrol station, village shop and post office, but these have closed. It has a public house, The Martyrs Inn, which is owned by nearby Athelhampton House, a Tudor house open to the public approximately 1 mile (1.6 km) to the west.