Prostitution during the 18th and 19th century Essay Example

Prostitution during the 18th and 19th century Essay Example Prostitution during the 18th and 19th century Essay Prostitution during the 18th and 19th century Essay Prostitution became a important of London’s history during the 18th and nineteenth century. At the clip. harlotry was a chronic job of the public order. It became so large in London that it attracted the attending of many groups such as. the church. the province. the medical profession. altruists. womens rightists and others. ( Bartley. 1 ) All of these groups worked together in order to decide the job. even though at the clip harlotry was non illegal. However. it was an activity that many felt was socially unacceptable. Prostitution began because Britain was sing political and societal agitation during the Industrial Revolution. The industrial revolution brought up new societal groups. which had struggled to exercise themselves politically and culturally. ( Fisher. 29 ) During the 18th A ; 19th centuries London had many lacks in their legal system. which can explicate the openness of harlotry. A major factor of this job lays in the fact that about none of the Torahs under which cocottes were most normally arrested in the eighteenth century referred to their offense by name. Alternatively. cocottes were charged for go againsting Torahs. At the clip. Torahs of dark walking were put into the system. The chief aim was to implement a dawn-to-dusk curfew. so the constabulary could maintain the towns under close ticker. London decided that it was clip for to acquire involve and happen a solution before the metropolis went out of control. First of all. constabulary officers started by taking more action on the streets. Besides. they started patroling Disorderly houses. In add-on groups such as the Reformers. Commentators. Church and others. used their ain methods of deciding this job. Finally. how did the people of London feel towards harlotry and cocottes? The streets were going an insecure environment for the citizens of London. Prostitutes started busying the streets of London more often. Throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. the policing of London’s street girls were the duty of the constables. beadles. patrol. and watcher. Their responsibilities were to implement and keep public order. There was a general constabulary force consisting of upper and under Marshals. marshalmen. twenty-four hours and dark patrols and even particular forces for certain towns or countries such as the Smithfield country. Each metropolis had 26 Wards. which in bend produced their ain forces such as constables. beadles. and watchers. All of these work forces were able to implement the Torahs in the propinquity of the Ward. Figure 1 A ; 2. The constabulary force was to be responsible for incorporating street upset and debaring the danger from the uncontrolled and un-socialized categories. the constable function was to move as a domestic missionary. translating and interceding businessperson values in propertyless communities. ( Mahood. 120 ) In 1784. twenty-four hours patrol was introduced in Westminster. Nevertheless. before 1828 no parish anyplace in London had considered it either necessary or desirable to provide†¦ intensive daytime patrols. ( Henderson ( 1 ) . 191 ) During that clip all the resources devoted their clip to every night watch. as they believed it was more of a important period of the twenty-four hours for harlotry. Watchmans were the most intrusive in making their work. and besides reduced the importance of constables. A constable was normally in company with a beadle. whose responsibilities consisted of policing the streets of the parish every bit often as possible throughout the dark. ( Henderson ( 1 ) . 192 ) However. while on responsibility. they would alternatively pass most of their clip in a safer country around the ticker house. Furthermore. they would non even demo up sometimes for responsibility. Furthermore. the Watchman was ever expected to be on the streets from morning boulder clay twilight. It was really of import for the constabulary to unclutter up the streets. Solicitors and cocottes crowded the busy narrow streets of London. It was inevitable either group would come into struggles with other citizens. The public streets were countries where 1 could bask the position and sights of the beautiful metropolis. in add-on to being the chief passageways. for vehicles and walkers. However. to the cocottes the streets. and squares of London were a workplace. ( Henderson ( 1 ) . 198 ) Mr. William Logan was given the responsibility in 1843 to research and happen solutions of harlotry. He was an perceiver of many streets and whorehouse houses. and he stated several solutions towards harlotry. One of the solutions was the policing of the streets. He suggests. from eight to ten o’clock at dark. to bear in head those who are employed to carry on the eventide correspondence and transport it safely. ( Logan. 40 ) Therefore. that offense should. be traced to its beginning every bit accurate as possible. and a system of bar must be introduced. ( Asylums1817. 10 ) Police forces had many jobs in piecing together and during the late 1840’s a one-fourth of the Edinburgh constabularies force was dismissed yearly for misconduct and 63 per centum were recorded as rummy on responsibility. ( Mahood. 120 ) Patroling Disorderly house was another solution London brought about to extinguish harlotry. Disorderly and Bawdy houses were controlled. like street-walking. because of their menace to the well being of the society. They were the causes of eternal mischievousness. and tended straight to the overthrow of Men’s organic structures. to the cachexia of their Supports. and to the endangering of their psyches. ( Henderson ( 1 ) . 253 ) The general society saw these houses as a topographic point without ethical motives or spiritual rules. and instead a topographic point of corruptness. They were besides concerned that the people that worked in the houses were being funded through fraud and robbery. Figure 3. Select Police Committee members in 1816 and 1817 showed great concern of the spread of these cheap licensed houses. They were catered merely for stealers and cocottes. The Committee introduced a licence for selling alcoholic drinks. where if the house did non pattern the Torahs. their intoxicant licence would be removed. The Justices of the Peace had the primary duty. to allow these licences. This process began in 1729 and it still in consequence today. Before 1729. it was possible to acquire a licence from the Stamp Office. which was a pattern that helped maintain open the Disorderly Houses. In 1743. the Gin Act was introduced. and in 1751 confirmed and. forbade any but tavern. victualling house. hostel. java house. or alehouse keepers to keep a licence to sell spiritous spiritss. ( Henderson ( 1 ) . 257 ) When it came clip to regenerate licences. the constable of each Ward or parish was to show to the magistrates a list of those houses necessitating a reclamation of their licence. After that. each Constable would be placed under curse and questioned about the behavior of the house in his territory. every bit good as if any neighbours had made any ailments. ( Henderson ( 1 ) . 258 ) Even though the Constable had spoken good of the house or non. any individual that was present was able to province their expostulations towards the issue. Representatives of the parish or ward raised most of the expostulations. and in some instances there would be the presence of the neighbours. In 1752. London passed the Disorderly House Act. This act encouraged people to turn in the houses and proprietors into the constabulary. If the information led to a charge. the informant would have ?20. The houses where divided into three different categories: First. Second. and Third. Figure 4. Affluent merchandisers. military officers. and those in the higher circle of society normally visited the First category houses. The Second category houses were largely intended for business communities. and blue-collar people. Finally. the Third category houses were for the non so affluent citizens. As a consequence of the close monitoring of these houses and spirits licences. the sum of Disorderly houses dropped. by the terminal of the nineteenth century. Other major groups besides the constabulary wanted to acquire involved to set a halt to harlotry. These groups consisted of Parish commissions. Reformers. and Philanthropist. They all contributed in different ways. The Church helped out the constabulary by engaging watchers. for the country that surrounds them. In 1796. St. James parish in Westminster was using 64 watchers. six beadles and two inspectors every bit good as its organic structure of constables. ( Henderson ( 1 ) . 192 ) Even the smaller parishes helped out and had larger Numberss of people working. This was all possible because in Westminster from 1753. on. a series of Watch Acts where introduced. These Acts of the Apostless gave single parishes. or to the City and Liberty as a whole. the right and responsibility to set up a parochial ticker. under the general supervising of the Middlesex Watch Justices of the Peace. ( Henderson ( 1 ) . 190 ) Besides the churches forbade adult females that were working as cocottes of any spiritual rights. If they were still making the trade until they died. they would non have proper burial rights. The Church besides made its ain tribunal and was responsible for keeping acceptable criterions of Christian behaviour. ( Henderson ( 2 ) . 81 ) Reformers believed that cocottes were victims of upper category work forces who seduced them. However. they besides believed that harlotry was the result of personal moral failing. and hence blamed adult females for harlotry. ( Bartley. 5 ) Moral reformists demanded that the constabulary be granted the authorization to control soliciting and whorehouse maintaining. ( Mahood. 121 ) The Reformers believed the lone manner to extinguish harlotry was to acquire rid of cocottes. In bend. they started and founded a assortment of establishments. such as big penitentiaries. refuges. and even little places. These centres were used as topographic points of rehabilitation. Figure 5. These establishment centres were located within most big metropoliss and towns. In 1758. in Whitechapel. London the Reform opened up The Magdalen Hospital. It was a great success and therefore led to the gap of more establishments. The Church tried non to link all establishments with a spiritual facet. like Lock Hospitals with lock wards. This sort of establishment dealt more with single females and tried to handle them for venereal diseases. Figure 5. By the terminal of the nineteenth century. a particular group was formed. National Union of Women’s Worker ( NUWW ) . whose members met one time a twelvemonth to discourse schemes and to compare patterns. ( Bartley. 26 ) Each establishment had its ain managerial system ; the upper and in-between category managed most of them. There were three chief methods of pull offing a reform establishment: some were managed by work forces who employed female workers as matrons and laundry workers ; some where managed jointly by work forces and adult females ; some were managed by adult females merely. ( Bartley. 27 ) Reform Institutions had great success. Which resulted in a diminution in harlotry. Furthermore. a mixture of clergy and laypersons and adult females ran establishments that were set up by the Church of England. Philanthropists saw harlotry as a job because of its negative consequence on the population. They excessively enforced establishment and ran them similar to the Reform. The bulk of the people in London did non hold with harlotry. nor did they understand it. Peoples of London felt that harlotry was impacting the Modernity of London. Prostitutes disordered the province and threatened the imperium. ( Ogborn. 47 ) Peoples felt that childs that are surrounded by cocottes. particularly male childs would non turn up to be healthy. and productive work forces because cocottes were merely distributing ruin. disease. and decease. Prostitution was an intervention of societal dealingss and the geographicss that surrounded them. which created new relationships and new infinites. It besides was responsible for overthrowing the dealingss of the populace sphere ; even the hierarchies and equalities of the populace sphere were being affected. They besides felt that harlotry caused the ruin of households. Prostitutes were looked upon as evil people. and were treated as though they were infected with the pestilence. They were public nuisances as one tradesman describes. The activities of cocottes and their toughs along Fleet street and Ludgate Hill adversely affected their concern. ( Henderson ( 1 ) . 195 ) It besides became difficult for all the adult females in the town. for they were besides treated like cocottes. For illustration if a adult female were walking on the streets merely after twilight. she would be harassed and insulted. On the other manus. people believed that work forces who engaged with cocottes were non at mistake because of the enticement the adult females give off the male passerby. In 1864. the Contagious Disease Act ( CD Acts ) was passed. It was meant to do paid sex safer for people. particularly those in the armed forces. This act was passed because. at the clip in the Army and Navy. many work forces had contracted genital diseases. So. the authorities enforced that all adult females that were practising harlotry must be inspected. Police were given the authorization to collar any adult female that was suspected of practising harlotry. and do her undergo an internal scrutiny at a Certified Hospital. If a disease were found she would be detained until the disease was cured. Reformers felt that it was just to state that Prostitution helped spaced out the wealth of work forces. because there would be different subdivisions in the community. In one country you would hold work forces that were good away and in another country work forces that were non good off. William Logan describes the misss that he observed were hapless and guiltless kids that were invariably being abused by their protagonists. ( Logan. 26 ) It is clear that prostitutes played a really of import function during the 18th and 19th centuries. which were modernity times of London. Consequently. it was non a good function. Prostitution affected the development and growing of the metropolis. As a consequence. the metropolis had to set a halt to the Acts of the Apostless and began by patroling the streets. They tried to command the narrow overcrowded streets to do them a safer topographic point for other persons. Second. they tried to command Disorderly houses. They achieved this by engaging inspectors and constables to watch the houses. and even enforced Liquor Licenses. Furthermore. groups such as the Church and Reformers had their ain techniques to halt harlotry. Both groups built a series of establishments that were treated as rehab centres. Ultimately. citizens of London had their ain position and apprehension of harlotry. Most felt that it was the ruin of London. and it was impacting the modernisation of the metropolis. particularly refering the societal dealingss and the geographicss that went along with them. Others felt sorrow for these immature misss ; they believed they were victims of upper-class work forces. Although harlotry still exists today. its development in the 18th and 19th centuries will be a important portion of London’s history forever. Work Cited Bartley. Puala. Prostitution: Prevention and Reform in England. London: Routledge. 2000. Fisher. Trevor. Prostitution and the Victorians. New York: Sutton. 1997. ( 1 ) Henderson. Anthony. Female Prostitution in London 1730-1830. London: University of London. 1992. ( 2 ) Henderson. Tony. Disorderly Women in the eighteenth Century London. New York: Longman. 1999. Logan. William. Female Prostitution in London. Leeds. and Rochdale. London: Personal Observation. 1843. Mahood. Linda. The Magdalenes: Prostitution in the nineteenth Century. London: Routledge. 1990. Ogborn. Miles. Spaces of Modernity. New York: Guilford Press. 1998. Report of the Committee of the Guardian Society for the saving of public ethical motives. supplying impermanent Refuges for Prostitutes. Dec. 1815. Report of the Committee of the Guardian Society for the saving of public ethical motives. supplying impermanent Refuges for Prostitutes. Oct. 1817.