Spa Fields riots: Difference between revisions

Content deleted Content added

Inline

Revision as of 11:10, 31 March 2019

The Spa Fields riots were incidents of public disorder arising out of the second of two mass meetings at Spa Fields, Islington, England on 15 November and 2 December 1816. The meetings had been planned by a small group of revolutionary Spenceans, who invited the popular radical speaker, Henry Hunt, to address the crowd. They hoped that the meetings would be followed by rioting, during which they would seize control of the government by taking the Tower of London and the Bank of England. The first meeting ended peacefully, with Hunt being elected to deliver a petition to Prince Regent, requesting electoral reform and relief from hardship and distress. At the second meeting some of the Spenceans harangued the crowd before Hunt arrived and led away a section of it. The rioters raided a gunsmith's shop and exchanged gunfire with troops at the Royal Exchange. Other incidents took place at Snow Hill and Minories, but after soldiers refused to hand over the Tower of London the rioters dispersed. In the aftermath of the riots, four leading Spenceans, John Hooper, Thomas Preston, Arthur Thistlewood and James Watson, were arrested and charged with high treason. Watson was tried first and the chief prosecution witness was John Castle, a government spy who had infiltrated the Spenceans. Castle's evidence was discredited by defence counsel and Watson was acquitted, at which point the prosecution presented no evidence against the other defendants and all four were released.

Background

The ending of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815 led to a sharp downturn in the British economy, bringing mass unemployment and distress.^[1]^[2] Radical leaders in London had organised petitions calling for parliament to relieve distress, but without success,^[3]^[4] and the Spenceans thought that more extreme action was needed. They called a mass public meeting at Spa Fields for 15 November 1816, with the object of marching to the Prince Regent's house to deliver their demands, which included universal (male) suffrage, annual parliaments, secret ballots and redistribution of land.^[5] They invited several leading radical speakers to attend,^[6] but Hunt was the only one to agree, and when he met the organisers prior to the meeting he persuaded them not to march to the house and to moderate their demands by dropping land reform.^[7] Hunt was a very popular speaker and the meeting was attended by around 10,000 people.^[5] He prevented any departure from the agreed plan and the meeting passed off peacefully, with Hunt and Sir Francis Burdett being elected to deliver the petition.^[8] However, when Hunt proposed that the meeting be adjourned until parliament next sat, Watson's son, also called James Watson, persuaded the crowd to support the earlier date of 2 December. Young Watson, Thistlewood and some of the other Spenceans had only reluctantly agreed to Hunt's terms for the first meeting and wanted the second to end in riots.^[9]

Rioting

Hunt made two attempts to present the petition to the Prince Regent (without Burdett, who had declined to participate) but had been refused admittance.^[5] Meanwhile the Spenceans advertised the second meeting with a number of inflammatory handbills, including one which quoted Lord Nelson at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805:

ENGLAND
Expects every Man to do his Duty
___________________________
The Meeting in Spa Fields
Takes Place at 12 o'clock
On Monday, December 2nd. 1816
To receive the answer of the PETITION to the PRINCE REGENT,
determined upon at the last meeting held in the same place,
and for other important Considerations
THE PRESENT STATE OF GREAT BRITAIN
Four Millions in Distress !!!
Four Millions Embarrassed !!!
One Million-and-half fear Distress !!!
Half-a-million live in splendid Luxury !!!
Death would now be a relief to Millions –
Arrogance, Folly, and Crimes – have brought affairs to this dread Crisis.
Firmness and Integrity
can only save the Country!!!^[10]

On 2 December another large crowd assembled in Spa Fields to hear Hunt. Before he arrived, however, both Watsons harangued the crowd and Watson junior picked up a tricolour flag, symbol of the French Revolution, and led off a section in the direction of the Tower.^[5]^[11] Most of the crowd stayed behind to listen to Hunt and the meeting passed off without incident.^[12]

The rioters robbed a gunsmith's shop in Snow Hill, during which shots were fired, the gunsmith wounded and a passer-by killed.^[5]^[4] At the Royal Exchange troops closed the gates and exchanged shots with the rioters.^[4] Further skirmishes took place at Fleet Market, Snow Hill and the Minories, which the rioters took under control for some hours. From there, Thistlewood led an armed band to the Tower of London, climbed a wall and invited the soldiers to surrender. They refused and the most serious public disturbance in London since the Gordon Riots of 1780 gradually petered out.^[4]

Arrests and trials

Watson was arrested on evening of 2 December, but his son and Thistlewood escaped. Young Watson fled to the United States but Thistlewood was arrested as he tried to escape on a boat at Gravesend,^[4] Hooper and John Cashman, a sailor, had been arrested during the Royal Exchange skirmish. Cashman was found guilty of theft of firearms and hanged on 12 March 1817.^[4] Hooper was acquitted but subsequently re-arrested and charged with high treason, along with Watson senior, Thistlewood and Preston.^[4] Young Watson's name was included on the charge sheet.^[13]

Watson was tried first and the hearing took over a week. The chief prosecution witness was Castle, who had been on the organising committee for both meetings. Hunt appeared as a defence witness and accused Castle of trying to make him commit treasonable acts on at least two occasions.^[14] Defence counsel exposed previous instances where Castle had entrapped others into committing crimes and, without naming him as a spy, presented him to the jury an agent provocateur.^[5] The jury accepted the defence's case and Watson was found Not Guilty. No further evidence was presented against the other defendants and they were also acquitted.

Aftermath

The riots marked the start of a period of mass anti-government meetings, marches and riots, including the march of the Blanketeers (March 1817), the Pentrich rising (June 1817) and the Peterloo Massacre (August 1819) and only ending after the failure of the Cato Street Conspiracy (February 1820).^[4]

Notes

^ Thompson, E. P., The Making Of The English Working Class (Penguin Books, 1963) p. 693.
^ Protheroe, Iorwerth, Artisans & Politics In Early Nineteenth-Century London, (Dawson and Son, 1979) pp. 63-67
^ Thompson, E. P., The Making Of The English Working Class (Penguin Books, 1963) p. 693
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Sutton, David C. (2009). "The Spa Fields Riots of 1816" (PDF). Retrieved 29 March 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Bloy, Marjie. (2003). "The Spa Fields Riots, 2 December 1816". Retrieved 29 March 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
^ Thompson, E. P., The Making Of The English Working Class (Penguin Books, 1963) p. 694
^ Protheroe, Iorwerth, Artisans & Politics In Early Nineteenth-Century London, (Dawson and Son, 1979) p. 90
^ Protheroe, Iorwerth, Artisans & Politics In Early Nineteenth-Century London, (Dawson and Son, 1979) p. 90
^ Protheroe, Iorwerth, Artisans & Politics In Early Nineteenth-Century London, (Dawson and Son, 1979) p. 90
^ Gurney, William Brodie, The Trial Of James Watson For High Treason At The Bar Of The Court Of King's Bench On Monday 9th June to Monday 16th June 1817 (London, 1817) Vol. II, pp. 11-25
^ Thompson, E. P., The Making Of The English Working Class (Penguin Books, 1963) p. 694
^ Thompson, E. P., The Making Of The English Working Class (Penguin Books, 1963) p. 694
^ Gurney, William Brodie, The Trial Of James Watson For High Treason At The Bar Of The Court Of King's Bench On Monday 9th June to Monday 16th June 1817 (London, 1817) Vol. II, pp. 11-25
^ Gurney, William Brodie, The Trial Of James Watson For High Treaso'At The Bar Of The Court Of King's Bench On Monday 9th June to Monday 16th June 1817 (London, 1817) Vol. II, pp. 258-275

References

Gurney, William Brodie, The Trial Of James Watson For High Treason At The Bar Of The Court Of King's Bench On Monday 9th June to Monday 16th June 1817 (London, 1817)

Protheroe, Iorwerth, Artisans & Politics In Early Nineteenth-Century London, (Dawson and Son, 1979)

Thompson, E. P., The Making Of The English Working Class (Penguin Books, 1963)

External links

This article related to the history of England is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

[1] Thompson, E. P., The Making Of The English Working Class (Penguin Books, 1963) p. 693.

[2] Protheroe, Iorwerth, Artisans & Politics In Early Nineteenth-Century London, (Dawson and Son, 1979) pp. 63-67

[3] Thompson, E. P., The Making Of The English Working Class (Penguin Books, 1963) p. 693

[Sutton-4] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Sutton, David C. (2009). "The Spa Fields Riots of 1816" (PDF). Retrieved 29 March 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

[Bloy-5] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Bloy, Marjie. (2003). "The Spa Fields Riots, 2 December 1816". Retrieved 29 March 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

[6] Thompson, E. P., The Making Of The English Working Class (Penguin Books, 1963) p. 694

[7] Protheroe, Iorwerth, Artisans & Politics In Early Nineteenth-Century London, (Dawson and Son, 1979) p. 90

[8] Protheroe, Iorwerth, Artisans & Politics In Early Nineteenth-Century London, (Dawson and Son, 1979) p. 90

[9] Protheroe, Iorwerth, Artisans & Politics In Early Nineteenth-Century London, (Dawson and Son, 1979) p. 90

[10] Gurney, William Brodie, The Trial Of James Watson For High Treason At The Bar Of The Court Of King's Bench On Monday 9th June to Monday 16th June 1817 (London, 1817) Vol. II, pp. 11-25

[11] Thompson, E. P., The Making Of The English Working Class (Penguin Books, 1963) p. 694

[12] Thompson, E. P., The Making Of The English Working Class (Penguin Books, 1963) p. 694

[13] Gurney, William Brodie, The Trial Of James Watson For High Treason At The Bar Of The Court Of King's Bench On Monday 9th June to Monday 16th June 1817 (London, 1817) Vol. II, pp. 11-25

[14] Gurney, William Brodie, The Trial Of James Watson For High Treaso'At The Bar Of The Court Of King's Bench On Monday 9th June to Monday 16th June 1817 (London, 1817) Vol. II, pp. 258-275

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 {{Use dmy dates|date=December 2010}}
-The '''Spa Fields riots''' were incidents of public disorder arising out of mass meetings at [[Spa Fields]], [[Islington]], England on 15 November and 2 December 1816.   Revolutionary [[Spenceans]], who opposed the British government, had planned to encourage rioting and then seize control of the government by taking the [[Tower of London]] and the [[Bank of England]]. [[Arthur Thistlewood]] and three other Spencean leaders were arrested and charged with high treason as a result of the riot;  [[James Watson (agitator)|James Watson]] was on trial during June 1817 with Messrs Wetherell and Copley as their defence counsel. Watson was acquitted and the other three were released without trial.
+The '''Spa Fields riots''' were incidents of public disorder arising out of the second of two mass meetings at [[Spa Fields]], [[Islington]], England on 15 November and 2 December 1816. The meetings had been planned by a small group of revolutionary [[Spenceans]], who invited the popular radical speaker, [[Henry Hunt (politician)|Henry Hunt]], to address the crowd. They hoped that the meetings would be followed by rioting, during which they would seize control of the government by taking the [[Tower of London]] and the [[Bank of England]]. The first meeting ended peacefully, with Hunt being elected to deliver a petition to [[George IV of England|Prince Regent]], requesting electoral reform and relief from hardship and distress. At the second meeting some of the Spenceans harangued the crowd before Hunt arrived and led away a section of it. The rioters raided a gunsmith's shop and exchanged gunfire with troops at the [[Royal Exchange, London|Royal Exchange]]. Other incidents took place at [[Snow Hill, London|Snow Hill]] and [[Minories]], but after soldiers refused to hand over the [[Tower of London]] the rioters dispersed. In the aftermath of the riots, four leading Spenceans, John Hooper, Thomas Preston, [[Arthur Thistlewood]] and James Watson, were arrested and charged with [[High treason in the United Kingdom|high treason]]. Watson was tried first and the chief prosecution witness was John Castle, a government spy who had infiltrated the Spenceans. Castle's evidence was discredited by defence counsel and Watson was acquitted, at which point the prosecution presented no evidence against the other defendants and all four were released.
-The first Spa Fields meeting, on 15 November 1816, attracted about 10,000 people and passed off peacefully in the main. Its official object was to seek popular support for the delivery of a petition to the [[George IV of England|Prince Regent]], requesting electoral reform and relief from hardship and distress. [[Henry Hunt (politician)|Henry Hunt]] addressed the meeting and was elected to deliver the petition, along with [[Sir Francis Burdett]], although the latter subsequently declined to go. The second meeting, on 2 December, was called after Hunt was refused access to the Regent to deliver the petition, and may have been attended by 20,000 people. To advertise for the meeting, the radicals used placards such as the one below, mimicking Nelson's famous call to his sailors to do their duty at Trafalgar in 1805.
+==Background==
+The ending of the [[Napoleonic Wars]] in 1815 led to a sharp downturn in the British economy, bringing mass unemployment and distress.<ref>Thompson, E. P., ''The Making Of The English Working Class'' (Penguin Books, 1963) p. 693.</ref><ref>Protheroe, Iorwerth, ''Artisans & Politics In Early Nineteenth-Century London'', (Dawson and Son, 1979) pp. 63-67</ref> Radical leaders in London had organised petitions calling for parliament to relieve distress, but without success,<ref>Thompson, E. P., ''The Making Of The English Working Class'' (Penguin Books, 1963) p. 693</ref><ref name="Sutton">{{cite web|last=Sutton|first=David C. (2009).|title=The Spa Fields Riots of 1816|url=http://www.davidcsutton.com/CMS/FILES/General_History/Spa_Fields.pdf|accessdate=29 March 2019}}</ref> and the Spenceans thought that more extreme action was needed. They called a mass public meeting at Spa Fields for 15 November 1816, with the object of marching to the Prince Regent's house to deliver their demands, which included universal (male) suffrage, annual parliaments, secret ballots and redistribution of land.<ref name="Bloy">{{cite web|last=Bloy|first=Marjie. (2003).|title=The Spa Fields Riots, 2 December 1816|url=http://www.victorianweb.org/history/riots/spafield.html|accessdate=29 March 2019}}</ref> They invited several leading radical speakers to attend,<ref>Thompson, E. P., ''The Making Of The English Working Class'' (Penguin Books, 1963) p. 694</ref> but Hunt was the only one to agree, and when he met the organisers prior to the meeting he persuaded them not to march to the house and to moderate their demands by dropping land reform.<ref>Protheroe, Iorwerth, ''Artisans & Politics In Early Nineteenth-Century London'', (Dawson and Son, 1979) p. 90</ref> Hunt was a very popular speaker and the meeting was attended by around 10,000 people.<ref name="Bloy">{{cite web|last=Bloy|first=Marjie. (2003).|title=The Spa Fields Riots, 2 December 1816|url=http://www.victorianweb.org/history/riots/spafield.html|accessdate=29 March 2019}}</ref> He prevented any departure from the agreed plan and the meeting passed off peacefully, with Hunt and [[Francis Burdett|Sir Francis Burdett]] being elected to deliver the petition.<ref>Protheroe, Iorwerth, ''Artisans & Politics In Early Nineteenth-Century London'', (Dawson and Son, 1979) p. 90</ref>  However, when Hunt proposed that the meeting be adjourned until parliament next sat, Watson's son, also called James Watson, persuaded the crowd to support the earlier date of 2 December. Young Watson, Thistlewood and some of the other Spenceans had only reluctantly agreed to Hunt's terms for the first meeting and wanted the second to end in riots.<ref>Protheroe, Iorwerth, ''Artisans & Politics In Early Nineteenth-Century London'', (Dawson and Son, 1979) p. 90</ref>
+==Rioting==
+Hunt made two attempts to present the petition to the Prince Regent (without Burdett, who had declined to participate) but had been refused admittance.<ref name="Bloy">{{cite web|last=Bloy|first=Marjie. (2003).|title=The Spa Fields Riots, 2 December 1816|url=http://www.victorianweb.org/history/riots/spafield.html|accessdate=29 March 2019}}</ref> Meanwhile the Spenceans advertised the second meeting with a number of inflammatory handbills, including one which quoted [[Lord Nelson]] at the [[Battle of  Trafalgar]] in 1805:
 {{poemquote|ENGLAND
 Expects every Man to do his Duty
+___________________________
 The Meeting in Spa Fields
 Takes Place at 12 o'clock
 On Monday, December 2nd. 1816
-To receive the answer of the PETITION to the PRINCE REGENT, determined upon at the last meeting held in the same place, and for other important Considerations
+To receive the answer of the PETITION to the PRINCE REGENT,
+determined upon at the last meeting held in the same place,
+and for other important Considerations
 THE PRESENT STATE OF GREAT BRITAIN
 Four Millions in Distress !!!
@@ Line 17: / Line 26: @@
 Arrogance, Folly, and Crimes – have brought affairs to this dread Crisis.
 Firmness and Integrity
-can only save the Country!!!<ref>''State Trials'', vol. xxxii, 1817, p. 86</ref>}}
+can only save the Country!!!<ref>Gurney, William Brodie, ''The Trial Of James Watson For High Treason At The Bar Of The Court Of King's Bench On Monday 9th June to Monday 16th June 1817'' (London, 1817) Vol. II, pp. 11-25</ref>}}
+On 2 December another large crowd assembled in Spa Fields to hear Hunt. Before he arrived, however, both Watsons harangued the crowd and Watson junior picked up a tricolour flag, symbol of the [[French Revolution]], and led off a section in the direction of the Tower.<ref name="Bloy">{{cite web|last=Bloy|first=Marjie. (2003).|title=The Spa Fields Riots, 2 December 1816|url=http://www.victorianweb.org/history/riots/spafield.html|accessdate=29 March 2019}}</ref><ref>Thompson, E. P., ''The Making Of The English Working Class'' (Penguin Books, 1963) p. 694</ref> Most of the crowd stayed behind to listen to Hunt and the meeting passed off without incident.<ref>Thompson, E. P., ''The Making Of The English Working Class'' (Penguin Books, 1963) p. 694</ref>
-At the meeting Hunt spoke as planned, and most of the crowd listened to him, but some disorder broke out according to the Spenceans' agenda.<ref name="Sutton">{{cite web|last=Sutton|first=David C. (2009).|title=The Spa Fields Riots of 1816|url=http://www.davidcsutton.com/CMS/FILES/General_History/Spa_Fields.pdf|accessdate=29 August 2012}}</ref>   A group of protesters moved away from the main crowd, accompanying James Watson and his son toward the [[Tower of London]], looting a gun shop along the way. They were met by troops at the [[Royal Exchange, London|Royal Exchange]] and dispersed or were arrested.   One man was stabbed during the disturbances, and a John Cashman was later found guilty of stealing weapons from the gun shop, and sentenced to death.<ref name="bailey">{{cite book| title = A Complete Collection of State Trials and Proceedings for High Treason and Other Crimes and Misdemeanors from the Earliest Period to the Year 1783, with Notes and Other Illustrations| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=2vc8UQII-jsC| year = 1816| publisher = Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme and Brown }}</ref>  The main witness to the 'plotting' was a government spy, John Castle, who had infiltrated the Spenceans.  He may have been working as an [[agent provocateur]], and his character and reliability were discredited at the trial of the first accused, James Watson.  Watson was acquitted and the case against other the arrested men was dropped.
+The rioters robbed a gunsmith's shop in Snow Hill, during which shots were fired, the gunsmith wounded and a passer-by killed.<ref name="Bloy">{{cite web|last=Bloy|first=Marjie. (2003).|title=The Spa Fields Riots, 2 December 1816|url=http://www.victorianweb.org/history/riots/spafield.html|accessdate=29 March 2019}}</ref><ref name="Sutton">{{cite web|last=Sutton|first=David C. (2009).|title=The Spa Fields Riots of 1816|url=http://www.davidcsutton.com/CMS/FILES/General_History/Spa_Fields.pdf|accessdate=29 March 2019}}</ref> At the [[Royal Exchange, London|Royal Exchange]] troops closed the gates and exchanged shots with the rioters.<ref name="Sutton">{{cite web|last=Sutton|first=David C. (2009).|title=The Spa Fields Riots of 1816|url=http://www.davidcsutton.com/CMS/FILES/General_History/Spa_Fields.pdf|accessdate=29 March 2019}}</ref> Further skirmishes took place at [[Fleet Market]], Snow Hill and the Minories, which the rioters took  under control for some hours. From there, Thistlewood led an armed band to the Tower of London, climbed a wall and invited the soldiers to surrender. They refused and the most serious public disturbance in London since the [[Gordon Riots]] of 1780 gradually petered out.<ref name="Sutton">{{cite web|last=Sutton|first=David C. (2009).|title=The Spa Fields Riots of 1816|url=http://www.davidcsutton.com/CMS/FILES/General_History/Spa_Fields.pdf|accessdate=29 March 2019}}</ref>
+==Arrests and trials==
-Henry Hunt's role in the events is disputed. He claimed afterwards not to have known about an uprising and tried to distance himself from events.
+Watson was arrested on evening of 2 December, but his son and Thistlewood escaped. Young Watson fled to the [[United States]] but Thistlewood was arrested as he tried to escape on a boat at Gravesend,<ref name="Sutton">{{cite web|last=Sutton|first=David C. (2009).|title=The Spa Fields Riots of 1816|url=http://www.davidcsutton.com/CMS/FILES/General_History/Spa_Fields.pdf|accessdate=29 March 2019}}</ref> Hooper and John Cashman, a sailor, had been arrested during the Royal Exchange skirmish. Cashman was found guilty of theft of firearms and hanged on 12 March 1817.<ref name="Sutton">{{cite web|last=Sutton|first=David C. (2009).|title=The Spa Fields Riots of 1816|url=http://www.davidcsutton.com/CMS/FILES/General_History/Spa_Fields.pdf|accessdate=29 March 2019}}</ref> Hooper was acquitted  but subsequently re-arrested and charged with [[High treason in the United Kingdom|high treason]], along with Watson senior, Thistlewood and Preston.<ref name="Sutton">{{cite web|last=Sutton|first=David C. (2009).|title=The Spa Fields Riots of 1816|url=http://www.davidcsutton.com/CMS/FILES/General_History/Spa_Fields.pdf|accessdate=29 March 2019}}</ref> Young Watson's name was included on the charge sheet.<ref>Gurney, William Brodie, ''The Trial Of James Watson For High Treason At The Bar Of The Court Of King's Bench On Monday 9th June to Monday 16th June 1817'' (London, 1817) Vol. II, pp. 11-25</ref>
-The Spa Fields meetings were one of the first cases of mass meetings in public, and contributed to the government's conviction that revolution was possible and action must be taken.  The [[Gagging Acts]] were passed in February and March 1817, and the [[Blanketeers]] march followed in the same month.
+Watson was tried first and the hearing took over a week. The chief prosecution witness was Castle, who had been on the organising committee for both meetings. Hunt appeared as a defence witness and accused Castle of trying to make him commit treasonable acts on at least two occasions.<ref>Gurney, William Brodie, ''The Trial Of James Watson For High Treaso'At The Bar Of The Court Of King's Bench On Monday 9th June to Monday 16th June 1817'' (London, 1817) Vol. II, pp. 258-275</ref> Defence counsel exposed previous instances where Castle had entrapped others into committing crimes and, without naming him as a spy, presented him to the jury an agent provocateur.<ref name="Bloy">{{cite web|last=Bloy|first=Marjie. (2003).|title=The Spa Fields Riots, 2 December 1816|url=http://www.victorianweb.org/history/riots/spafield.html|accessdate=29 March 2019}}</ref> The jury accepted the defence's case and Watson was found Not Guilty. No further evidence was presented against the other defendants and they were also acquitted.
-==References==
+==Aftermath==
+The riots marked the start of a period of mass anti-government meetings, marches and riots,  including the march of the [[Blanketeers]] (March 1817), the [[Pentrich rising]] (June 1817) and the [[Peterloo Massacre]] (August 1819) and only ending after the failure of the [[Cato Street Conspiracy]] (February 1820).<ref name="Sutton">{{cite web|last=Sutton|first=David C. (2009).|title=The Spa Fields Riots of 1816|url=http://www.davidcsutton.com/CMS/FILES/General_History/Spa_Fields.pdf|accessdate=29 March 2019}}</ref>
+==Notes==
 {{reflist}}
+==References==
+* Gurney, William Brodie, ''The Trial Of James Watson For High Treason At The Bar Of The Court Of King's Bench On Monday 9th June to Monday 16th June 1817'' (London, 1817)
+* Protheroe, Iorwerth, ''Artisans & Politics In Early Nineteenth-Century London'', (Dawson and Son, 1979)
+* Thompson, E. P., ''The Making Of The English Working Class'' (Penguin Books, 1963)
 ==External links==
 * [http://www.victorianweb.org/history/riots/spafield.html Spa Fields Riots at www.victorianweb.org]