Presented by the English Project, RIOTS ON RECORD is a banner-based exhibition about the story of the SWING RIOTS in Hampshire in the Autumn and Winter of 1830 told through archive material in the Hampshire Record Office and other sources.

 

The largest uprising of the rural labouring classes since the Peasants’ Revolt arose from a decade of agricultural distress and political discontent. Under the auspices of the mythical CAPTAIN SWING the seething unrest culminated in mass violence throughout the county precipitated primarily by the adoption of threshing machine technology by farmers who were determined to raise efficiency and reduce costs.

 

Hampshire was one of the most affected of the southern counties and the heavy handed response by the authorities was orchestrated by the Duke of Wellington, the Lord Lieutenant. The result of Swing versus Wellington was a Grand Assize in Winchester over the Christmas period 1830 in which 300 men were tried. Death sentences and long terms of transportation followed. Many families faced ruin and humiliation.

 

Drawing on press reports, letters, official documents and public announcements as well as popular cartoons this exhibition brings to life this painful period in Hampshire history.