Pauper Palaces
Anne Digby(Author)
Routledge (Publisher)
1st Edition
Will be published approx. on 1. October 2026
Book
Hardback
274 pages
978-1-041-39947-6 (ISBN)
Description
Based on a wide range of sources, Pauper Palaces (first published in 1978) is a stimulating analysis of the impact of the Poor Law in Norfolk which indicates the significance which workhouses-the 'pauper palaces' of the title-had in this locality. The study takes a pioneering approach in using a contextual analysis to reveal the economic, social, and political pressures which shaped the system of poor relief. In rejecting a standard administrative approach to nineteenth century poor law history, a fresh perspective on the Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834 is provided. The author believes that this can no longer be regarded as a major watershed which divided two epochs of social policy since the continuity of practice between the old and new Poor Law is shown to have been substantial at the local level. The 1834 Act retained a precarious local system of financing poor relief which undermined national attempts at poor law reform. The book shows that, in spite of the theoretically centralised administration of the new Poor Law, areas like Norfolk retained substantial autonomy in practice.
Dr Digby is concerned about differentiating theory from practice and myth from reality, and in doing so she directs new light on the Poor Law. She suggests that inside Norfolk's 'pauper palaces' the sick, the young, and the old discovered that the workhouse could be compatible with social welfare. This state of affairs is contrasted with that outside the workhouse, where the Poor Law became a class instrument by which farmer-guardians controlled both wages and relief for the able-bodied labourers.
Although the book deals particularly with Norfolk, the treatment and many of the findings are applicable to other rural areas in England and Wales. Case histories of paupers, an analysis of changing attitudes towards the use of poor relief, together with an account of pauper education, provide additional interest in this interpretation of an important aspect of social history.
Dr Digby is concerned about differentiating theory from practice and myth from reality, and in doing so she directs new light on the Poor Law. She suggests that inside Norfolk's 'pauper palaces' the sick, the young, and the old discovered that the workhouse could be compatible with social welfare. This state of affairs is contrasted with that outside the workhouse, where the Poor Law became a class instrument by which farmer-guardians controlled both wages and relief for the able-bodied labourers.
Although the book deals particularly with Norfolk, the treatment and many of the findings are applicable to other rural areas in England and Wales. Case histories of paupers, an analysis of changing attitudes towards the use of poor relief, together with an account of pauper education, provide additional interest in this interpretation of an important aspect of social history.
Reviews / Votes
Review of the first publication:'Pauper Palaces is an important contribution to the writing of English social history.'
- The American Historical Review, Volume 85, Issue 3
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Target group
College/higher education
Postgraduate
Dimensions
Height: 234 mm
Width: 156 mm
ISBN-13
978-1-041-39947-6 (9781041399476)
Copyright in bibliographic data is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or its licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Content
Preface 1. Perspectives 2. Economic and social life in Norfolk 3. Local reform before 1834 4. The impact of national reform after 1834 5. Poor rates and settlement 6. Poor relief in rural Norfolk 7. Poor relief and the political economy of Norwich, 1834-63 8. Paupers: I, the able-bodied 9. Paupers: II, the old and the sick 10. Pauper education 11. The propertied and the poor 12. Revolt by the poor Epilogue