Lord Byron. The Library of Congress.

Great Britain 1811-1813

Synopsis

Enraged by job loss, low wages, exploitation, and the use of unapprenticed workers spawned by the advent of mechanization in the English textile industry, workers secretly entered factories to destroy the machines that displaced them. The Luddites (followers of the mythical Ned Ludd) were part of a decentralized, politically ambiguous, underground worker movement that rioted and resisted mechanization by destroying textile machinery throughout English industrial centers. While different Luddite groups defended different goals, the revolts drew Britain closer than ever toward violent class warfare and revolution. The government quelled the rebellions by executing workers, imprisoning them, or exiling them to penal colonies. While the movement was all but crushed in less than two years, the name Luddite has survived to become synonymous with those who oppose new technology.

Timeline

• 1790: Mutineers from the...