Protest and Disorder in British Political History

Visiting Edge Hill as part of a series of discussions relating to protest, guest lecturer Dr Vallance, published author and Reader of Early Modern History at Roehampton University, was welcomed by staff and students in the Department of English and History as he explained the long civil history of popular protest here in Britain.

In his discussion Dr Vallance reflected on a number of revolutionary British protest movements and related them to those of recent events, exploring how through their historical documentation within the media and how through the advancement of social technology, this activity and its outcomes have changed over the centuries.

By taking a longer term view of popular protest, the lecture enabled attendees to better appreciate the significance and value of current demonstrations and reflect critically on the governmental, judicial and police responses to them.

Whether violent or non-violent, Dr Vallance outlined how mass protests emerge out of their own set of circumstances and grievances, with often a fine line between these two very different outcomes.  

One such case examined was that of 16^th August 1819 when 60,000 men, women and children gathered peacefully in Manchester to petition for parliamentary reform.  In what appears now to be a repeating occurrence, the authorities of the day felt threatened by the gathering numbers and through their conscious and direct actions 15 people were killed and 654 were injured, many seriously.  

This event become known as the Peterloo Massacre and Dr Vallance described how this event has continually been used as a potent symbol of inspiration to protesters, with similarities being drawn to Tiananmen Square. He continued by highlighting how both Martin Luther King and Ghandi were also influenced by these accounts in their advocacy of peaceful demonstration.  

Dr Vallance continued by debating whether a protest needs to have a violent element to make an impression and to change people's thoughts and perceptions. He explained how the public appears to repeatedly fail to appreciate the strategies involved but understand the scenarios portrayed by the media, with violence attracting attention and fitting very well with today's rolling news culture.  

The most famous example Dr Vallance discussed of a strategic approach was that of the Suffragettes, and how in time, and unintentionally, the violent response they received from the authorities is remembered alongside the rights of equality for which they were demonstrating.  

Taking into account this history of British radical movements Dr Vallance reiterated how we seem trapped in a distinctive cycle, verifying this in relation to more recent events including G20, the Iraq War, through to student protests, highlighting how the shape of our current political system looks suspiciously similar to the old one.