In 1742 and the Westminster district of greater London, William Bird earned a living as a jailer—his posting a small round-house utilized for holding prisoners until their appearance before a magistrate. On June 16, twenty women were under Bird’s care. At his order, jailers locked all the women into a small room with sealed windows. When the door strained against closure, a poker forced it to shut. In the summer heat, some of the prisoners began to remove their sweat-drenched clothing and beg their guards for water. The small room left the prisoners with no option but to remain standing against each other. A woman removed one of her shoes, banging it against the ceiling for attention. Another offered three half-pence for access to fresh air, …show more content…
Gin Craze is not found in contemporary dialogues. However, in modern terminology it approximates the tenor of the English hysteria regarding gin consumption and a perceived accompaniment of moral corruption in the first half of the eighteenth century, approximately 1720 to 1751. After its introduction to the English masses late in the seventeenth century, gin quickly became popular due to its domestic manufacture and resultantly inexpensive price. By 1720, the nation was seized by rapidly shifting discussions about the effect of gin consumption upon the nation and the extent of governmental action necessitated in response. By 1751, and after the final of four restrictive legislations meant to curb consumption, the panic abated due to the act’s seeming …show more content…
George Rudé’s 1959 “’Mother Gin’ and the London Riots of 1736” reiterates George’s conclusions without additional development. In 1966, more than forty years after George’s initial publication on the subject, T.G. Coffey’s “Beer Street: Gin Lane” strives and achieves nothing more than a parroting of George without the addition of further insight, simply transferring the errors of historiography into medical