Manchester University Press
7 Odious monopolies
Abstract
While the second half of the eighteenth century saw the emergence of new philosophical and medical speculations on the nature of intoxication and addiction, it also saw the return of some much older concerns over licensing and the social role of alehouses. In 1830, the passing of a Beer Act would, in one dramatic move, undo almost three centuries of work towards placing beer retail under the control of magistrates. The Beer Act of 1830 represented a victory of free trade capitalism over the established power of local economic and political elites. The 1830 Beer Act transformed an anti-spirits movement which stretched back to the days of the gin craze into a radical and well-organised teetotal temperance campaign. A confluence of anxieties over gin drinking and alehouses, radicalised by the pressures of a drift towards laissez-faire capitalism, kick-started a temperance movement which would become one of the dominant political forces of Victorian England. In 1787, George III was cajoled by William Wilberforce into issuing a Royal Proclamation against vice, profaneness, and immorality.
Abstract
While the second half of the eighteenth century saw the emergence of new philosophical and medical speculations on the nature of intoxication and addiction, it also saw the return of some much older concerns over licensing and the social role of alehouses. In 1830, the passing of a Beer Act would, in one dramatic move, undo almost three centuries of work towards placing beer retail under the control of magistrates. The Beer Act of 1830 represented a victory of free trade capitalism over the established power of local economic and political elites. The 1830 Beer Act transformed an anti-spirits movement which stretched back to the days of the gin craze into a radical and well-organised teetotal temperance campaign. A confluence of anxieties over gin drinking and alehouses, radicalised by the pressures of a drift towards laissez-faire capitalism, kick-started a temperance movement which would become one of the dominant political forces of Victorian England. In 1787, George III was cajoled by William Wilberforce into issuing a Royal Proclamation against vice, profaneness, and immorality.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Front matter i
- Contents v
- Introduction 1
- 1 A monstrous plant 5
- 2 Healths, toasts and pledges 21
- 3 A new kind of drunkenness 34
- 4 The politics of sobriety 51
- 5 A fascinating poison 59
- 6 Ungovernable passions 73
- 7 Odious monopolies 80
- 8 The last tyrant 96
- 9 A monstrous theory 109
- 10 The State and the trade 130
- 11 Central control 150
- 12 The study of inebriety 161
- 13 The pub and the people 180
- 14 Prevention and health 199
- 15 Beer orders 216
- 16 Drinking responsibly 233
- Conclusion 249
- Bibliography 263
- Index 278
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Front matter i
- Contents v
- Introduction 1
- 1 A monstrous plant 5
- 2 Healths, toasts and pledges 21
- 3 A new kind of drunkenness 34
- 4 The politics of sobriety 51
- 5 A fascinating poison 59
- 6 Ungovernable passions 73
- 7 Odious monopolies 80
- 8 The last tyrant 96
- 9 A monstrous theory 109
- 10 The State and the trade 130
- 11 Central control 150
- 12 The study of inebriety 161
- 13 The pub and the people 180
- 14 Prevention and health 199
- 15 Beer orders 216
- 16 Drinking responsibly 233
- Conclusion 249
- Bibliography 263
- Index 278
