The 1831 reform riots in the southwest – display

In early October 1831, the defeat of the Second Reform Bill in the House of Lords led to a huge wave of pro-reform protests and disturbances across Britain and Ireland. Major disorders in the east Midlands, Dorset and Somerset were followed in Bristol by the most serious riot in nineteenth century England.

This 11 panel display outlines the political context to the reform protests, both nationally and locally in the southwest, investigates the nature of the riots in Dorset, Somerset, Bristol, Newport, Bath and Worcester and examines who the rioters were.

This travelling display has been exhibited in numerous locations in the southwest of England as part of the ESRC funded project Intergroup Dynamics within the 1831 reform riot led by the Regional History Centre at the University of the West of England.