Calculation and Compassion: Caring for the Poor in Eighteenth Century Battersea

Most studies of poor relief in the South-East of England under the old poor law have concentrated on either rural agrarian areas or on London. This dissertation focuses on the experience of Battersea, a semi-rural parish in the London hinterland. Battersea’s predominantly rural economy and its Thames-side location, only a few miles from the centre of the metropolis, gave it certain distinctive features. Throughout the late 1770s and 1780s the vestry provided both indoor and outdoor relief to the poor of the parish, but the workhouse remained the central feature of the relief on offer. In Battersea, as elsewhere, the period saw an increased demand for poor relief, which was reflected in the rising number of inmates in the workhouse. This dissertation examines the nature and extent of poverty in the parish, the response to it of the parish authorities and the generosity of the relief which they offered. At the heart of the parish’s provision lay the workhouse; and its operation, day-to-day regime and material culture are examined in some detail. Above all, the dissertation seeks to demonstrate that Battersea’s geographical position determined both the type of poverty found in the parish and the response of the vestry to it. The biographies of active vestry members are examined and it is demonstrated that their interests and networks of contacts were instrumental in shaping their attitude to poor relief. These networks extended far beyond the parish boundaries and were formed through their business, professional and charitable interests, and through their involvement in other aspects of local government