When William IV. Was King

Proclamation of William IV. -- The Beer Act -- The Queen and gas -- Burial of George IV. -- The King and the Duke of Cumberland -- The King as a soldier -- He meddles with the u...

Opening of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway -- Death of Mr. Huskisson -- Agricultural lawlessness -- Captain Swing -- Executions for riot -- Riots throughout the country --...

Duke of Wellington mobbed and stoned -- Owing to riots, the King postponed his visit to the city -- No Lord Mayor's show, nor dinner -- Riots in the city -- Apsley House besiege...

Incendiary fires -- Captain Swing -- The result of Cobbett's lectures -- Special Commission -- Prosecution of Carlile -- Election expenses -- List of Close boroughs -- Collapse...

Opening of New London Bridge -- After the luncheon -- State of the waiters -- Provision for the Princess Victoria -- Sale of Sir Walter Scott's MSS. -- The coronation -- Its exp...

Scramble for coronation medals -- Bad weather -- Fireworks in Hyde Park -- Absence from the ceremony of the Duchess of Kent and Princess Victoria -- The _Times_ thereon -- Story...

Reform procession -- The Corporation of London and the King -- Dreadful riots at Bristol -- Riots in other parts of the kingdom -- Edward Irving and the "Gift of Tongues" -- The...

Commissions at Bristol and Nottingham -- Executions -- Employment of children in factories -- Cholera in London -- Day of fast and humiliation -- Riot in Finsbury -- Cholera rio...

Reform Bill passes the Commons -- Scotch boys and the Reform Bill -- Proposed increase of the peerage -- Passed in the Lords -- "The Marylebone or Tory Hunt" -- The Duke of Well...

The overland route to India -- The Government and Lieutenant Waghorn -- Police magistrate and the press -- Cobbett and the British Museum -- Prevalence of influenza -- "National...

The Queen's visit to the City -- Her unpopularity -- King's dislike of the Duchess of Kent -- Hungerford Market opened -- Death and funeral of Wilberforce -- Abolition of slaver...

Corporation commission -- Curious advertisement -- Discovery of treasure -- Bribery at Liverpool -- Duke of York's statue -- Trades' unions -- Skit thereon -- Riot at Oldham --...

Crockford's and game -- The _chef_ in trouble -- Burning of the Houses of Parliament -- The tapestry in the House of Lords -- Story of one piece -- Temporary House of Lords -- T...

First cargo of ice to India -- Election riots at Halifax and in Scotland -- A female sailor -- The new temporary Houses of Parliament -- The King and others hissed -- Question o...

Curious case of a girl stolen by gipsies -- Superstition _re_ light at Christmas in the North of England -- Designs for New Houses of Parliament -- King William III. statue blow...

Report on the British Museum -- The King and the Duchess of Kent; a scene -- Inauguration of George III.'s Statue at Charing Cross -- Poetry at the police court -- The trip of t...

Epidemic of influenza -- A scene in some Metropolitan graveyards -- Lord de Ros and his cheating at cards -- Invention of sewing machine -- Coming of age of Princess Victoria --...

Men's dress -- Education -- School advertisements -- The original of Squeers -- Girls' schools -- Tea as a meal -- Food -- A foreigner's sketch of an English dinner-party -- A h...

Architects and civil engineers -- Men of science -- Scientific societies -- Medical men -- Lawyers -- "Tracts for the Times" -- Curates' pay -- Flogging in the army and navy --...

"His Majesty, we regret to state, has experienced, during the last few days, an attack of indisposition. The King took an airing for some time on Monday. During the night his Ma...

Proclamation of William IV.--The Beer Act--The Queen and gas--Burial of George IV.--The King and the Duke of Cumberland--The King as a soldier--He meddles with the uniforms of t...

"He comes unexpectedly and unattended, as they are trooping the guard at St. James's, attired like a private gentleman, and nods graciously to the people, passes jokes with the...

About this time a melancholy but all-absorbing topic of conversation was the death of Mr. Wm. Huskisson, one of the M.P.'s for Liverpool; and the most succinct account I can fin...

Duke of Wellington mobbed and stoned--Owing to riots, the King postponed his visit to the city--No Lord Mayor's show, nor dinner--Riots in the city--Apsley House besieged--Irela...

Incendiary fires--Captain Swing--The result of Cobbett's lectures--Special Commission--Prosecution of Carlile--Election expenses--List of Close boroughs--Collapse of Reform Bill...

Opening of New London Bridge--After the luncheon--State of the waiters--Provision for the Princess Victoria--Sale of Sir Walter Scott's MSS.--The coronation--Its expenses--A "ha...

Scramble for coronation medals--Bad weather--Fireworks in Hyde Park--Absence from the ceremony of the Duchess of Kent and Princess Victoria--The _Times_ thereon--Story of a Grea...

Reform procession--The Corporation of London and the King--Dreadful riots at Bristol--Riots in other parts of the kingdom--Edward Irving and the "Gifts of Tongues"--The cholera-...

Commissions at Bristol and Nottingham--Executions--Employment of children in factories--Cholera in London--Day of fast and humiliation--Riot in Finsbury--Cholera riot at Paisley...

Reform Bill passes the Commons--Scotch boys and the Reform Bill--Proposed increase of the peerage--Passed in the Lords--"The Marylebone or Tory Hunt"--The Duke of Wellington mob...

On August 16th the King in person prorogued Parliament, and on December 3rd it was dissolved, by proclamation, and the country was plunged into all the turmoil of a General Elec...

At the opening of this year, perhaps, the principal topic of conversation was about the treatment of children in factories, and general commiseration was felt for their unhappy...

We saw how, in 1832, the East India Company refused to accelerate communication with India by means of steam vessels. I have now to record the earliest efforts of Lieutenant Wag...

In this reign there could scarcely be political agitation without violence, and we find on May 13th, there was even murder committed. The following account is taken from the _An...

The Queen's visit to the City--Her unpopularity--King's dislike of the Duchess of Kent--Hungerford Market opened--Death and funeral of Wilberforce--Abolition of slavery--Synopsi...

The first thing of importance in this year was the resumption of the sittings of the Corporation Commission, which was an inquiry into the Corporation of London. This object of...

One would imagine that Crockford's gambling "hell" was too solemn a place to extract laughter from, but yet there is a police case in connection with that place, and in which th...

First cargo of ice to India--Election riots at Halifax and in Scotland--A female sailor--The new temporary Houses of Parliament--The King and others hissed--Question of admittin...

Under the year 1833, I called attention to the prevalence of gaming-houses, but, in spite of the efforts made to put them down, they still flourished, as we see from the annexed...

Curious case of a girl stolen by gipsies--Superstition _re_ light at Christmas in the North of England--Designs for New Houses of Parliament--King William III. statue blown up--...

Bristol coach had ceased running for the last fortnight; and, upon asking for lodgings, was recommended to the Seven Stars. There she found a person who knew the place near the...

Report on the British Museum--The King and the Duchess of Kent; a scene--Inauguration of George III.'s Statue at Charing Cross--Poetry at the police court--The trip of the Nassa...

Epidemic of influenza--A scene in some Metropolitan graveyards--Lord de Ros and his cheating at cards--Invention of sewing machine--Coming of age of Princess Victoria--Illuminat...

Men's dress was very much as in our time, the trousers were somewhat tighter, the coat collars higher, the waistcoats were worn more open, and there was somewhat more than a _so...

How did the people amuse themselves? For men of the upper class there were clubs, which were nothing like so numerous as now. First of all comes White's, the _doyen_ of all exis...

On all hands, it is admitted that the streets of London were generally well paved, and there were but two bad hills, Holborn and Snow Hills, which were caused by the Valley of t...

But the road was not monopolized by horseflesh. Steam was asserting itself, and many were the trials of steam carriages on the turnpike roads. In 1821 Mr. Julius Griffith invent...

There were two amusements somewhat fashionable in this reign, wife selling and duelling. The former is still in existence, the latter is extinct in England. The halter round the...

Another thing, which has almost died out, but then was in full force, was smuggling; but then almost every import paid some duty, and that on spirits, tea, and tobacco was exces...

But enough of illicit trade. What was legitimate trade doing? The marvellous expansion which afterwards came, thanks to steam as applied to machinery, railways, and shipping, ha...

workman in coin, and payment in goods was declared illegal; that artificers might recover, by law, wages, if not paid in current coin, and that no employer should have any actio...

In music we had, as composers, Balfe, who is more honoured abroad than at home, John Barnett, Julius Benedict, W. Sterndale Bennett, Sir Henry Bishop, Michael Costa, J. B. Crame...

This was a reign in which both architecture and civil engineering were nascent, and yet there were some famous men in both professions. Among the former were Sir Chas. Barry, R....