The attack on Joseph Priestley's home, Fairhill (lithograph by Charles Joseph Hullmandel)

The Priestley Riots (also known as the Birmingham Riots of 1791) took place from 14 July to 17 July 1791 in Birmingham, Kingdom of Great Britain; the rioters' main targets were religious Dissenters, most notably the politically and theologically controversial Joseph Priestley. Both local and national issues stirred the passions of the rioters, from disagreements over public library book purchases, to controversies over Dissenters' attempts to gain full civil rights and their support of the French Revolution. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Priestley by Ellen Sharples (1794)[1] Joseph Priestley (March 13, 1733 (old style) – February 8, 1804) was an eighteenth-century British natural philosopher, Dissenting clergyman, political theorist, theologian, and educator. ... is the 195th day of the year (196th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 198th day of the year (199th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1791 (MDCCXCI) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 11-day-slower Julian calendar). ... This article is about the British city. ... For an explanation of terms such as Scotland, Wales, England, (Great) Britain and United Kingdom, see British Isles (terminology). ... English Dissenters were dissenters from England who opposed State interference in religious matters and founded their own communities over the 16th to 18th century period. ... Priestley by Ellen Sharples (1794)[1] Joseph Priestley (March 13, 1733 (old style) – February 8, 1804) was an eighteenth-century British natural philosopher, Dissenting clergyman, political theorist, theologian, and educator. ... The French Revolution (1789–1815) was a period of political and social upheaval in the political history of France and Europe as a whole, during which the French governmental structure, previously an absolute monarchy with feudal privileges for the aristocracy and Catholic clergy, underwent radical change to forms based on...

The riots started with an attack on a hotel that was the site of a banquet organized in sympathy with the French Revolution. Then, beginning with Priestley's church and home, the rioters attacked or burned four Dissenting chapels, twenty-seven houses, and several businesses. Many of them became intoxicated by liquor that they found while looting, or with which they were bribed to stop burning homes. A small core could not be bribed, however, and remained sober. The rioters burned not only the homes and chapels of Dissenters, but also the homes of people they associated with Dissenters, such as members of the scientific Lunar Society. The Lunar Society was a discussion club of prominent industrialists, natural philosophers and intellectuals who met regularly between 1765 and 1813 in Birmingham, England. ...

While the riots were not initiated by Prime Minister William Pitt's administration, the national government was slow to respond to the Dissenters' pleas for help. Local Birmingham officials seem to have been involved in the planning of the riots, and they were later reluctant to prosecute any ringleaders. Industrialist James Watt wrote that the riots "divided [Birmingham] into two parties who hate one another mortally".^[1] Those who had been attacked gradually left, leaving Birmingham a more conservative city than it had been throughout the eighteenth century. William Pitt the Younger (28 May 1759 – 23 January 1806) was a British politician of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. ... For other persons named James Watt, see James Watt (disambiguation). ...

Historical context

Caricaturist James Sayers's "Repeal of the Test Act: A Vision" shows Priestley spewing the smoke of heresy from the pulpit.

James Sayers (or Sayer) (1748 - April 20, 1823) was an English caricaturist. ... Priestley by Ellen Sharples (1794)[1] Joseph Priestley (March 13, 1733 (old style) – February 8, 1804) was an eighteenth-century British natural philosopher, Dissenting clergyman, political theorist, theologian, and educator. ... For other uses, see Heresy (disambiguation). ...

Birmingham

Over the course of the eighteenth century, Birmingham became notorious for its riots. In 1714 and 1715, the townspeople, as part of a "Church-and-King" mob, attacked Dissenters (Protestants who did not conform to the Church of England) in the Sacheverell riots during the London trial of Henry Sacheverell, and in 1751 and 1759 Quakers and Methodists were assaulted. During the anti-Catholic Gordon Riots in 1780, large crowds assembled in Birmingham. In 1766, 1782, 1795, and 1800 mobs protested high food prices.^[2] One contemporary described Birmingham rioters as the "bunting, beggarly, brass-making, brazen-faced, brazen-hearted, blackguard, bustling, booby Birmingham mob".^[3] Protestantism is a general grouping of denominations within Christianity. ... The Church of England is the officially established Christian church[3] in England, the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the oldest among the communions thirty-eight independent national churches. ... Henry Sacheverell (1674 - June 15, 1724) was an English churchman and politician. ... The Methodist Church of Great Britain or British Methodist Church is the largest Wesleyan / Methodist body in the United Kingdom, with congregations across Great Britain (although more limited in Scotland). ... The Gordon Riots is a term used to refer to a number of events in a predominantly Protestant religious uprising in London aimed against the Roman Catholic Relief Act, 1778, relieving his Majestys subjects, of the Catholic Religion, from certain penalties and disabilities imposed upon them during the reign...

Up until the late 1780s, religious divisions did not affect Birmingham's elite. Dissenter and Anglican lived side by side harmoniously: they were on the same town promotional committees; they pursued joint scientific interests in the Lunar Society; and they worked together in local government. They stood united against what they viewed as the threat posed by unruly plebeians.^[4] After the riots, however, scientist and clergyman Joseph Priestley argued in his An Appeal to the Public on the Subject of the Birmingham Riots (1791) that this cooperation had not in fact been as amicable as generally believed. Priestly revealed that disputes over the local library, Sunday Schools, and church attendance had divided Dissenters from Anglicans.^[5] In his "Narrative of the Riots in Birmingham" (1816), stationer and Birmingham historian William Hutton agreed, arguing that five events stoked the fires of religious friction: disagreements over inclusion of Priestley's books in the local public library; concerns over Dissenters' attempts to repeal the Test and Corporation Acts; religious controversy (particularly involving Priestley); an "inflammatory hand-bill"; and a dinner celebrating the outbreak of the French Revolution.^[6] This box:      Anglicanism most commonly refers to the beliefs and practices of the Anglican Communion, a world-wide affiliation of Christian Churches, most of which have historical connections with the Church of England. ... In Ancient Rome, the plebs was the general body of Roman citizens, distinct from the privileged class of the patricians. ... Priestley by Ellen Sharples (1794)[1] Joseph Priestley (March 13, 1733 (old style) – February 8, 1804) was an eighteenth-century British natural philosopher, Dissenting clergyman, political theorist, theologian, and educator. ... Sunday school, Indians and whites. ... Blue plaque to William Hutton William Hutton (30 September 1723-1815) was a poet and the first significant historian of Birmingham, England. ... The several Test Acts were a series of English penal laws that imposed various civil disabilities on Roman Catholics and Nonconformists. ... The Corporation Act of 1661 belongs to the general category of test acts, designed for the express purpose of restricting public offices in England to members of the Church of England. ... The French Revolution (1789–1815) was a period of political and social upheaval in the political history of France and Europe as a whole, during which the French governmental structure, previously an absolute monarchy with feudal privileges for the aristocracy and Catholic clergy, underwent radical change to forms based on...

Once Birmingham Dissenters started to agitate for the repeal of the Test and Corporation Acts, which restricted Dissenters' civil rights (preventing them, for instance, from attending the Universities of Oxford or Cambridge, or from holding public office), the semblance of unity among the town's elite disappeared. Unitarians such as Priestley were at the forefront of the repeal campaign, and orthodox Anglicans grew nervous and angry. After 1787, the emergence of Dissenting groups formed for the sole purpose of overturning these laws began to divide the community; however, the repeal efforts failed in 1787, 1789, and 1790.^[7] Priestley's support of the repeal and his heterodox religious views, which were widely published, inflamed the populace.^[8] In February 1790, a group of activists came together not only to oppose the interests of the Dissenters but also to counteract what they saw as the undesirable importation of French Revolutionary ideals. Dissenters by and large supported the French Revolution and its efforts to question the role monarchy should play in government.^[9] One month before the riots, Priestley attempted to found a reform society, the Warwickshire Constitutional Society, which would have supported universal suffrage and short Parliaments. Although this effort failed, the efforts to establish such a society increased tensions in Birmingham.^[10] The University of Oxford (informally Oxford University), located in the city of Oxford, England, is the oldest university in the English-speaking world. ... The University of Cambridge (often Cambridge University), located in Cambridge, England, is the second-oldest university in the English-speaking world and has a reputation as one of the most prestigious universities in the world. ... Historic Unitarianism believed in the oneness of God as opposed to traditional Christian belief in the Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit). ... “Orthodox” redirects here. ... Heterodox literally means pertaining to other doctrines or other worship. ... For the documentary series, see Monarchy (TV series). ... Elections Part of the Politics series Politics Portal This box:      Universal suffrage (also general suffrage or common suffrage) consists of the extension of the right to vote to all adults, without distinction as to race, sex, belief, intelligence, or economic or social status. ...

In addition to these religious and political differences, both the lower-class rioters and their upper-class Anglican leaders had economic complaints against the middle-class Dissenters. They envied the ever-increasing prosperity of these industrialists as well as the power that came with that economic success.^[11] Historian R. B. Rose refers to these industrialists as belonging to "an inner elite of magnates".^[12] Priestley himself had written a pamphlet, An Account of a Society for Encouraging the Industrious Poor (1787), on how best to extract the most work for the smallest amount of money from the poor. Its emphasis on debt collection did not endear him to the poverty-stricken.^[13] It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Business magnate. ...

British reaction to the French Revolution

"The Treacherous Rebel and Birmingham Rioter" (c.1791), with Joseph Priestley as the rebel being chased by Satan (at right)

The British public debate over the French Revolution, or the Revolution Controversy, lasted from 1789 through 1795.^[14] Initially many on both sides of the Channel thought the French would follow the pattern of the English Glorious Revolution of a century before, and the Revolution was viewed positively by a large portion of the British public. Most Britons celebrated the storming of the Bastille in 1789, believing that France's absolute monarchy should be replaced by a more democratic form of government. In these early, heady days, supporters of the Revolution also believed that Britain's own system would be reformed as well: voting rights would be broadened and redistribution of Parliamentary constituency boundaries would eliminate so-called "rotten boroughs".^[15] Title page from the first edition of Thomas Paines Rights of Man The Revolution Controversy, a British pamphlet war over the French Revolution, lasted from 1789 through 1795. ... The Glorious Revolution, also called the Revolution of 1688, was the overthrow of King James II of England (VII of Scotland) in 1688 by a union of Parliamentarians and the Dutch stadtholder William III of Orange-Nassau (William of Orange), who as a result ascended the English throne as William... Belligerents French government Parisian militia (predecessor of Frances National Guard) Commanders Bernard-René de Launay â€  Prince de Lambesc Camille Desmoulins Strength 114 soldiers, 30 artillery pieces 600 - 1,000 insurgents Casualties and losses 1 (6 or possibly 8 killed after surrender. ... Forms of government Part of the Politics series Politics Portal This box:      Absolute monarchy is a monarchical form of government where the monarch has the power to rule his or her land or country and its citizens freely, with no laws or legally-organized direct opposition in force. ... A constituency is any cohesive corporate unit or body bound by shared structures, goals or loyalty. ... The term rotten borough (or pocket borough, as they were seen as being in the pocket of a patron) refers to a parliamentary borough or constituency in the Kingdom of England (pre-1707), the Kingdom of Great Britain (1707-1801), the Kingdom of Ireland (1536-1801) and the United Kingdom...

After the publication of statesman and philosopher Edmund Burke's Reflections on the Revolution in France (1790), in which he surprisingly broke ranks with his liberal Whig colleagues to support the French aristocracy, a pamphlet war discussing the Revolution began in earnest. Because Burke had supported the American colonists in their rebellion against Great Britain, his views sent a shockwave through the country.^[16] While Burke supported aristocracy, monarchy, and the Established Church, liberals such as Charles James Fox supported the Revolution, and a programme of individual liberties, civic virtue and religious toleration, while radicals such as Priestley, William Godwin, Thomas Paine, and Mary Wollstonecraft, argued for a further programme of republicanism, agrarian socialism, and abolition of the "landed interest".^[17] Alfred Cobban calls the debate that erupted "perhaps the last real discussion of the fundamentals of politics in [Britain]".^[18] However, by December 1795, after the Reign of Terror and war with France, there were few who still supported the French cause or believed that reform would extend to Britain, and those suspected of remaining radicals became the subject of official and popular suspicion. Edmund Burke (January 12, 1729[1] – July 9, 1797) was an Anglo-Irish statesman, author, orator, political theorist, and philosopher, who served for many years in the British House of Commons as a member of the Whig party. ... Title page from Reflections Reflections on the Revolution in France is a work of political commentary written by statesman and philosopher Edmund Burke, first published on 1 November 1790. ... The Whigs (with the Tories) are often described as one of two political parties in England and later the United Kingdom from the late 17th to the mid 19th centuries. ... John Trumbulls Declaration of Independence, showing the five-man committee in charge of drafting the Declaration in 1776 as it presents its work to the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia The American Revolution refers to the period during the last half of the 18th century in which the Thirteen... Aristocrat redirects here. ... Statue of Charles James Fox in Bloomsbury Square, erected 1816. ... For the Wikipedia policy regarding civility, see Wikipedia:Civility Civic virtue is the cultivation of habits of personal living that are claimed to be important for the success of the community. ... William Godwin William Godwin (3 March 1756 – 7 April 1836) was an English political and miscellaneous writer, considered one of the important precursors of both utilitarian and liberal anarchist thought. ... For other persons of the same name, see Thomas Paine (disambiguation). ... Mary Wollstonecraft (circa 1797) by John Opie Mary Wollstonecraft (27 April 1759 – 10 September 1797) was a British writer, philosopher and feminist. ... Republicanism is the ideology of governing a nation as a republic, with an emphasis on liberty, rule of law, popular sovereignty and the civic virtue practiced by citizens. ... Socialism refers to the goal of a socio-economic system in which property and the distribution of wealth are subject to control by the community. ... For other uses of terror, see Terror; Great Fear . ...

The events which precipitated the Priestley Riots came less than a month after the attempted flight and arrest of the French Royal family, and at a point when much of the early promise of the Revolution had already dissipated. However the spiralling violence of the later Revolution was still to begin. The Flight to Varennes (June 20-21, 1791) was a significant episode in the French Revolution during which King Louis XVI of France and his immediate family were unsuccessful in their attempt to escape from the radical agitation of the Jacobins in Paris disguised as Russian aristocrats. ...

Hints of trouble

Ticket for the dinner celebrating the second anniversary of the storming of the Bastille on 14 July 1791

On 11 July 1791, a Birmingham newspaper announced that on 14 July, the second anniversary of the storming of the Bastille, there would be a dinner at a local hotel to commemorate the outbreak of the French Revolution; the invitation encouraged "any Friend to Freedom" to attend: Belligerents French government Parisian militia (predecessor of Frances National Guard) Commanders Bernard-René de Launay â€  Prince de Lambesc Camille Desmoulins Strength 114 soldiers, 30 artillery pieces 600 - 1,000 insurgents Casualties and losses 1 (6 or possibly 8 killed after surrender. ... is the 195th day of the year (196th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1791 (MDCCXCI) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 11-day-slower Julian calendar). ... is the 192nd day of the year (193rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1791 (MDCCXCI) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 11-day-slower Julian calendar). ... is the 195th day of the year (196th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Belligerents French government Parisian militia (predecessor of Frances National Guard) Commanders Bernard-René de Launay â€  Prince de Lambesc Camille Desmoulins Strength 114 soldiers, 30 artillery pieces 600 - 1,000 insurgents Casualties and losses 1 (6 or possibly 8 killed after surrender. ...

A number of gentlemen intend dining together on the 14th instant, to commemorate the auspicious day which witnessed the emancipation of twenty-six millions of people from the yoke of despotism, and restored the blessings of equal government to a truly great and enlightened nation; with whom it is our interest, as a commercial people, and our duty, as friends to the general rights of mankind, to promote a free intercourse, as subservient to a permanent friendship.

Any Friend to Freedom, disposed to join the intended temperate festivity, is desired to leave his name at the bar of the Hotel, where tickets may be had at Five Shillings each, including a bottle of wine; but no person will be admitted without one.

Dinner will be on table at three o'clock precisely.^[19]

Alongside this notice was a threat: "an authentic list" of the participants would be published after the dinner.^[20] On the same day, "an ultra-revolutionary" handbill, written by James Hobson (although his authorship was not known at the time), entered circulation. Town officials offered 100 guineas for information regarding the publication of the handbill and its author, to no avail. The Dissenters found themselves forced to plead ignorance and decry the "radical" ideas promoted by the handbill.^[21] It was becoming clear by 12 July that there would be trouble at the dinner. On the morning of 14 July graffiti such as "destruction to the Presbyterians" and "Church and King for ever" was scrawled across the town.^[22] At this point, Priestley's friends, fearing for his safety, dissuaded him from attending the dinner.^[23] A 1990 hand-drawn flyer advertising a Goa trance party from Israel. ... is the 193rd day of the year (194th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 195th day of the year (196th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

July 14

Destruction of Old Meeting chapel (from an 1879 engraving by Robert Dent)

About 90 resolute sympathizers of the French Revolution came to celebrate on the 14th; the banquet was led by James Keir, an Anglican industrialist who was a member of the Lunar Society. When the guests arrived at the hotel at 2 or 3 p.m., they were greeted by 60 or 70 protesters who temporarily dispersed while yelling, rather bizarrely and confusingly, "no popery".^[24] By the time the celebrants ended their dinner, around 7 or 8 p.m., a crowd of hundreds had gathered. The rioters, who "were recruited predominantly from the industrial artisans and labourers of Birmingham",^[25] threw stones at the departing guests and sacked the hotel.^[22] The crowd then moved on to the Quaker meeting-house, until someone yelled that the Quakers "never trouble themselves with anything, neither on one side nor the other" and convinced them instead to attack the New Meeting chapel, where Priestley presided as minister.^[26] The New Meeting chapel was burned to the ground, quickly followed by the Old Meeting, another Dissenting chapel. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Joseph Priestley's home, Fairhill, after its destruction (etching by William Ellis after a drawing by P. H. Witton)

The rioters proceeded to Priestley's home, Fairhill. Priestley barely had time to evacuate and he and his wife fled from Dissenting friend to friend during the riots. Writing shortly after the event, Priestley described the first part of the attack, which he witnessed from a distance: Priestley by Ellen Sharples (1794)[1] Joseph Priestley (March 13, 1733 (old style) – February 8, 1804) was an eighteenth-century British natural philosopher, Dissenting clergyman, political theorist, theologian, and educator. ...

It being remarkably calm, and clear moon-light, we could see to a considerable distance, and being upon a rising ground, we distinctly heard all that passed at the house, every shout of the mob, and almost every stroke of the instruments they had provided for breaking the doors and the furniture. For they could not get any fire, though one of them was heard to offer two guineas for a lighted candle; my son, whom we left behind us, having taken the precaution to put out all the fires in the house, and others of my friends got all the neighbours to do the same. I afterwards heard that much pains was taken, but without effect, to get fire from my large electrical machine, which stood in the library.^[27]

His son, William, stayed behind with others to protect the family home, but they were overcome and the property was eventually looted and razed to the ground. Priestley's valuable library, scientific laboratory, and manuscripts were all lost in the flames.^[28]

July 15, 16, and 17

William Russell's home, Showell Green, after its destruction (Etching by William Ellis after a drawing by P. H. Witton)

The Earl of Aylesford attempted to stem the mounting violence on the night of the 14th, but despite having the help of other magistrates, he was unable to control the crowd. On the 15th, the mob liberated prisoners from the local gaol.^[22] Thomas Woodbridge, the Keeper of the Prison, deputized several hundred people to help him quell the mob, but many of these joined in with the rioters themselves.^[29] The crowd destroyed John Ryland's home, Bakerville House, and drank the supplies of liquor which they found in the cellar. When the newly appointed constables arrived on the scene, the mob attacked and disarmed them. One man was killed.^[30] The local magistrates and law enforcement, such as it was, did nothing further to restrain the mob and did not read the Riot Act until the military arrived on 17 July.^[31] For the album by Pearl Jam see Riot Act (album). ... is the 198th day of the year (199th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

On the 16th, the homes of Joseph Jukes, John Coates, John Hobson, Thomas Hawkes, and John Harwood (the latter a blind Baptist minister) were all ransacked or burned.^[30] The Baptist Meeting at Kings Heath, another Dissenting chapel, was also destroyed. William Russell and William Hutton, tried to defend their homes, but to no avail—the men they hired refused to fight the mob.^[30] Hutton later wrote a narrative of the events: Topics in Christianity Movements · Denominations · Other religions Ecumenism · Preaching · Prayer Music · Liturgy · Calendar Symbols · Art · Criticism Important figures Apostle Paul · Church Fathers Constantine · Athanasius · Augustine Anselm · Aquinas · Palamas · Luther Calvin · Wesley Arius · Marcion of Sinope Archbishop of Canterbury · Catholic Pope Coptic Pope · Ecumenical Patriarch Christianity Portal This box:      Baptist is... Kings Heath is a suburb of Birmingham, England, three miles south of the city centre. ... Blue plaque to William Hutton William Hutton (30 September 1723-1815) was a poet and the first significant historian of Birmingham, England. ...

I was avoided as a pestilence; the waves of sorrow rolled over me, and beat me down with multiplied force; every one came heavier than the last. My children were distressed. My wife, through long affliction, ready to quit my own arms for those of death; and I myself reduced to the sad necessity of humbly begging a draught of water at a cottage!...In the morning of the 15th I was a rich man; in the evening I was ruined.^[32]

When the rioters arrived at John Taylor's home, they carefully moved all of the furniture and belongings of its current occupant, the Dowager Lady Carhampton, a relative of George III, out of the house before they burned it: they were specifically targeting those whose disagreed with the king's policies and who, in not conforming to the Church of England, resisted state control.^[33] The homes of George Russell, a Justice of the Peace, Samuel Blyth, one of the ministers of New Meeting, Thomas Lee, and a Mr. Westley all came under attack on the 15th and 16th. The manufacturer, Quaker, and member of the Lunar Society Samuel Galton only saved his own home by bribing the rioters with ale and money.^[34] George III (George William Frederick) (4 June 1738–29 January 1820) was King of Great Britain, and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until 1 January 1801, and thereafter King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death. ... A justice of the peace (JP) is a puisne judicial officer appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. ... For other uses, see Ale (disambiguation). ...

New Meeting, after its destruction (Etching by William Ellis after a drawing by P. H. Witton)

By 2 p.m. on 16 July, the rioters had left Birmingham and were heading towards Kings Norton and the Kingswood Chapel; it was estimated that one group of the rioters totalled 250 to 300 people. They burned Cox's farm at Warstock and looted and attacked the home of a Mr. Taverner. When they reached Kingswood, Warwickshire, they burned the Dissenting chapel and its manse. By this time, Birmingham had shut down—no business was being conducted.^[34] is the 197th day of the year (198th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... See also: Kings Norton, Leicestershire , Kings Norton is an area of Birmingham, England. ... The rectory is the title usually given to the building inhabited, or formerly inhabited, by the vicar of a parish. ...

Contemporary accounts record that the mob's last sustained assault was around 8 p.m. on the 17th. About 30 "hard core" rioters attacked the home of William Withering, an Anglican who attended the Lunar Society with Priestley and Keir. But Withering, aided by a group of hired men, managed to fend them off.^[35] When the military finally arrived to restore order on the 17th and 18th, most of the rioters had disbanded, although there were rumours that mobs were destroying property in Alcester and Bromsgrove.^[36] William Withering William Withering (March 17, 1741, Wellington, Shropshire - October 6, 1799) was an English botanist, geologist, chemist, physician and the discoverer of digitalis. ... For other places named Alcester see Alcester (disambiguation). ... , Bromsgrove is a town in Worcestershire, West Midlands, England. ...

All in all, four Dissenting churches had been severely damaged or burned down and twenty-seven homes had been attacked, many looted and burned. Having begun by attacking those who attended the Bastille celebration on the 14th, the "Church-and-King" mob had finished up by extending their targets to include Dissenters of all kinds as well as members of the Lunar Society.^[37]

Aftermath and trials

James Gillray's cartoon mocking the July 14th dinner

Priestley and other Dissenters blamed the government for the riots, believing that William Pitt and his supporters had instigated them; however, it seems from the evidence that the riots were actually organized by local Birmingham officials. Some of the rioters acted in a co-ordinated fashion and seemed to be led by local officials during the attacks, prompting accusations of premeditation. Some Dissenters discovered that their homes were to be attacked several days before the rioters arrived, leading them to believe that there was a prepared list of victims.^[38] The "disciplined nucleus of rioters", which numbered only thirty or so, directed the mob and stayed sober throughout the three to four days of rioting. Unlike the hundreds of others who joined in, they could not be bribed to stop their destructions.^[39] James Gillray James Gillray, sometimes spelled Gilray (born August 13, 1757 in Chelsea; died June 1, 1815), was a British caricaturist and printmaker famous for his etched political and social satires, mainly published between 1792 and 1810. ...

If a concerted effort had been made by Birmingham's Anglican elite to attack the Dissenters, it was more than likely the work of Benjamin Spencer, a local minister, Joseph Carles, a Justice of the Peace and landowner, and John Brooke, an attorney, coroner, and under-sheriff.^[40] Although present at the riot's outbreak, Carles and Spencer made no attempt to stop the rioters, and Brooke seems to have led them to the New Meeting chapel. Witnesses agreed "that the magistrates promised the rioters protection so long as they restricted their attacks to the meeting-houses and left persons and property alone".^[41] The magistrates also refused to arrest any of the rioters and released those that had been arrested.^[42] Instructed by the national government to prosecute the riot's instigators, these local officials dragged their heels. When finally forced to try the ringleaders, they intimidated witnesses and made a mockery of the trial proceedings.^[43] Only seventeen of the fifty rioters who had been charged were ever brought to trial; four were convicted, of whom one was pardoned, two were hanged, and the fourth was transported to Botany Bay. But Priestley and others believed that these men were found guilty not because they were rioters but because "they were infamous characters in other respects".^[44] A justice of the peace (JP) is a puisne judicial officer appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. ... For other Botany Bays see Botany Bay (disambiguation) Bicentennial Monument at Botany Bay Botany Bay is a bay in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, a few kilometers south of the central business district. ...

Title page from Priestley's Appeal (1791), which also contains reprints of contemporary news reports and letters concerning the riots

Although he had been forced to send troops to Birmingham to quell the disturbances, the King, George III, commented, "I cannot but feel better pleased that Priestley is the sufferer for the doctrines he and his party have instilled, and that the people see them in their true light."^[45] The national government forced the local residents to pay restitution to those whose property had been damaged: the total eventually amounted to £23,000. However, the process took many years, and most residents received much less than the value of their property.^[46] George III (George William Frederick) (4 June 1738–29 January 1820) was King of Great Britain, and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until 1 January 1801, and thereafter King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death. ... GBP redirects here. ...

After the riots, Birmingham was, according to industrialist James Watt, "divided into two parties who hate one another mortally".^[47] Initially Priestley wanted to return and deliver a sermon on the Bible verse "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do," but he was dissuaded by friends convinced that it was too dangerous.^[48] Instead, he wrote his Appeal: For other persons named James Watt, see James Watt (disambiguation). ...

The riots revealed that the Anglican gentry of Birmingham were not averse to using violence against Dissenters whom they viewed as potential revolutionaries. They had no qualms, either, about raising a potentially uncontrollable mob.^[50] Many of those attacked left Birmingham; as a result, the town became noticeably more conservative after the riots.^[50] The remaining supporters of the French Revolution decided not to hold a dinner celebrating the storming of the Bastille the next year.^[50] Belligerents French government Parisian militia (predecessor of Frances National Guard) Commanders Bernard-René de Launay â€  Prince de Lambesc Camille Desmoulins Strength 114 soldiers, 30 artillery pieces 600 - 1,000 insurgents Casualties and losses 1 (6 or possibly 8 killed after surrender. ...

See also

• Joseph Priestley and Dissent
• Joseph Priestley and education
• List of works by Joseph Priestley

Photograph by Keith Edkins File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Priestley by Ellen Sharples (1794)[1] Joseph Priestley (March 13, 1733 (old style) – February 8, 1804) was a British natural philosopher, political theorist, clergyman, theologian, and educator. ... Priestley by Ellen Sharples (1794)[1] Joseph Priestley (March 24 [O.S. March 13] 1733 – February 8, 1804) was a British natural philosopher, Dissenting clergyman, political theorist, and theologian. ... Priestley, painted late in life by Rembrandt Peale (c. ...

Notes

Bibliography

• —. An Authentic Account of the Riots in Birmingham, also . . . the trials of the Rioters. Birmingham, n.p.: 1791. Eighteenth Century Collections Online. Retrieved on 28 February 2008.
• —. Views of the Ruins of the Principal Houses Destroyed during the Riots at Birmingham. London: J. Johnson, 1791.
• Butler, Marilyn, ed. Burke, Paine, Godwin, and the Revolution Controversy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002. ISBN 0521286565.
• Hutton, William. "A Narrative of the Riots in Birmingham, July 1791". The Life of William Hutton. London: Printed for Baldwin, Cradock, and Joy, Paternoster Row; and Beilby and Knotts, Birmingham, 1816. Google Books. Retrieved on 28 February 2008.
• Maddison, R. E. S. and Francis R. Maddison. "Joseph Priestley and the Birmingham Riots." Notes and Records of the Royal Society of London 12.1 (August, 1956): 98–113.
• Martineau, Dennis. "Playing Detective: The Priestley Riots of 1791." Birmingham Historian 12–13 (1997): 11–18.
• Priestley, Joseph. An Appeal to the Public on the Subject of the Riots in Birmingham. Birmingham: Printed by J. Thompson, 1791.
• Rose, R. B. "The Priestley Riots of 1791." Past and Present 18 (1960): 68–88.
• Schofield, Robert E. The Enlightened Joseph Priestley: A Study of His Life and Work from 1773 to 1804. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 2004. ISBN 0271024593.
• Sheps, Arthur. "Public Perception of Joseph Priestley, the Birmingham Dissenters, and the Church-and-King Riots of 1791." Eighteenth-Century Life 13.2 (1989): 46–64.

is the 59th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Anno Domini (or common era), in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. ... Marilyn Butler is a literary critic and was Rector of Exeter College, Oxford from 1993 to 2004. ... // Google offers a variety of services and tools besides its basic web search. ... is the 59th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Anno Domini (or common era), in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

• The Priestley Riots at "Explore the Birmingham Jewellery Quarter"
• A Sorry End: The Priestley Riots at revolutionaryplayers.org.uk
• www.josephpriestley.com – Comprehensive site which includes a bibliography, links to related sites, images, information on manuscript collections, and other helpful information.
• To Dr. Priestley. Dec. 29, 1792 by Anna Laetitia Barbauld