Poor people could work in mines, in mills and factories, or in workhouses. Whole families would sometimes have to work so they’d all have enough money to buy food. Children in poor families would have jobs that were best done by people who weren’t very tall.
How were the poor treated in Victorian times?
The new Poor Law ensured that the poor were housed in workhouses, clothed and fed. Children who entered the workhouse would receive some schooling. In return for this care, all workhouse paupers would have to work for several hours each day. However, not all Victorians shared this point of view.
What was life like for the poor?
| The Poor | The Wealthy |
|---|---|
| had few luxuries. ate food they could afford to buy worked long hours lived in damp, filthy conditions. Many children died of disease. | usually well fed, clean and well clothed. didn’t need to work lived in big houses with servants went on holidays children had expensive toys children went to school |
What was life like for poor children Victorians?
Poor children often had to work instead of going to school. Many worked with their parents at home or in workshops, making matchboxes or sewing. Children could also earn a bit of money as chimney-sweeps, messengers or crossing sweepers like the boy in this picture.
What did the poor Victorians eat?
For the poorest a sandwich of bread and watercress was the most common. At the start of the week, porridge made with water might be possible. Lunch involved bread, combined with cheese if possible or more watercress. At the start of the week, soup could occasionally be bought as cheap street food.
Did poor Victorians have toilets?
In reality, bathrooms were not commonplace in the Victorian Era. The conversion of older houses to include bathrooms did not take place until the late 1800s. It was not until the 1900s that all but the smallest houses were built with an upstairs bathroom and toilet.
How much did poor Victorians get paid?
The average wage in the 1850s was about 15 shillings (75p) a week. Many children got just 5 shillings (25p) a week, or less. While thousands of children worked down the mine, thousands of others worked in the cotton mills.
Why was life unfair for poor people in Victorian society?
Large numbers of both skilled and unskilled people were looking for work, so wages were low, barely above subsistence level. If work dried up, or was seasonal, men were laid off, and because they had hardly enough to live on when they were in work, they had no savings to fall back on.
What are the problems faced by the poor people’s?
Its manifestations include hunger and malnutrition, limited access to education and other basic services, social discrimination and exclusion as well as the lack of participation in decision-making.
What type of houses did poor Victorians live in?
Poor people in Victorian times lived in horrible cramped conditions in run-down houses, often with the whole family in one room. Many people during the Victorian years moved into the cities and towns to find work in the factories.
Did poor Victorians go to school?
Where did poor Victorians go to school? Poor children sometimes had the opportunity of attending a church school, but these schools had very poor facilities with class sizes of up to 100 children. However, from 1880 the law changed and all children between the ages of 5 to 10 had to go to school.
How were poor Victorians educated?
Poor children went to free charity schools or ‘Dame’ schools (so called because they were run by women) for young children. They also went to Sunday Schools which were run by churches. There they learnt bible stories and were taught to read a little.
What did poor Victorian kids eat?
Poor families ate more carbohydrates, such as bread, potatoes and porridge oats, as these were cheaper and more filling. Bread with lard or dripping spread across it was a staple meal. Seasonal vegetables were also a large part of their diets. These include onions, turnips, cabbages, apples and parsnips.
What did poor Victorians have for breakfast?
A typical breakfast might consist of stoneground bread smeared with dripping or lard (consisting largely of healthy monounsaturated fats), accompanied by a large bunch of watercress, rich in vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients.
What alcohol did poor Victorians drink?
Beer and gin were cheap, costing about 1d. Drink was also easier to get hold of than clean drinking water. This meant that many people drank alcohol instead and drunkeness was a problem in some areas. Illness and death were common, especially in children.
What did Victorians smell like?
By the middle of the Victorian era, bergamot and lemon oil had surpassed Eau de Cologne to become the most popular fragrance for women. According to Goodman: “Bergamot and lemon oil, sometimes employed separately but more often used in combination, was the signature smell of the middle years of the century.
How often did Victorian ladies bathe?
In Victorian times the 1800s, those who could afford a bath tub bathed a few times a month, but the poor were likely to bathe only once a year. Doctors advised against bathing believing it had a negative effect on health and on the appearance of the skin.
What did the Victorians use instead of toilet paper?
Before that, they used whatever was handy — sticks, leaves, corn cobs, bits of cloth, their hands. Toilet paper more or less as we know it today is a product of Victorian times; it was first issued in boxes (the way facial tissue is today) and somewhat later on the familiar rolls.
Did servants ever get a day off?
By the 1880s, servants were given a half-day off on Sundays, starting after lunch (and only if all their chores for that morning had been completed), and they were usually given one day off each month, starting after breakfast, and again, their chores all had to be finished first.
How were children treated in workhouses?
The conditions were harsh and treatment was cruel with families divided, forcing children to be separated from their parents. Once an individual had entered the workhouse they would be given a uniform to be worn for the entirety of their stay.
What did Victorian servants eat?
The servants had their dinner at midday , in contrast to the family’s lunch served at one. This midday-meal consisted of roast or boiled meat served with vegetables, followed by a dessert of apple tart, plum pudding, or cake.