The causes of poverty - unemployment and vagrancy
Poverty was one of the major problems Elizabeth faced during her reign. During this period the number of unemployed people grew considerably for a range of reasons. Attitudes towards poverty were also different from today with many believing the unemployed were just too lazy to find work. There was also only a very limited system of Financial help provided by the government. to help those in need.
Increase in poverty
A wide range of factors led to the increase in poverty during this period. Twenty years before Elizabeth’s reign, Henry VIII had Between 1536 and 1541, Henry VIII closed all of the monasteries in England and Wales. All of their land and buildings were sold..
This did not help as not only were monks' and nuns’ servants dismissed, but people living in poverty had nowhere to go for occasional shelter. From the mid-1500s on the following factors contributed greatly to the problem of poverty.
| Reason | Explanation |
| Rising population | The population rose by a million during the Elizabethan period. More people meant there was more demand for goods, and so prices rose. |
| Inflation | Prices for goods rose, but wages fell as there were more people around to do the work. |
| Cloth trade collapse | Woollen cloth was England’s main export. There was a decline in demand and this led to unemployment. |
| Wars | Taxes were increased to compensate for the price of waging war. |
| Bad harvests | Harvests were particularly bad in the 1590s leading to even higher demand and more rising prices. |
| Changes in farming | Many landlords decided to enclose their fields and keep sheep instead of growing crops which led to high unemployment. |
| Reason | Rising population |
|---|---|
| Explanation | The population rose by a million during the Elizabethan period. More people meant there was more demand for goods, and so prices rose. |
| Reason | Inflation |
|---|---|
| Explanation | Prices for goods rose, but wages fell as there were more people around to do the work. |
| Reason | Cloth trade collapse |
|---|---|
| Explanation | Woollen cloth was England’s main export. There was a decline in demand and this led to unemployment. |
| Reason | Wars |
|---|---|
| Explanation | Taxes were increased to compensate for the price of waging war. |
| Reason | Bad harvests |
|---|---|
| Explanation | Harvests were particularly bad in the 1590s leading to even higher demand and more rising prices. |
| Reason | Changes in farming |
|---|---|
| Explanation | Many landlords decided to enclose their fields and keep sheep instead of growing crops which led to high unemployment. |
Beggars
The increase in unemployment was accompanied by an increase in the number of beggars wandering the countryside and towns looking for work. The Elizabethan government was very worried about the problem of people living in poverty, as were ordinary people.
- Disease – there were many outbreaks of plague and other infectious diseases in the 16th century. Many people believed that wandering groups of beggars spread diseases.
- Crime – beggars often turned to crime. There was no police force at this time and JPs thought that beggars were a serious threat to their authority.
- Rebellions – 16th century governments were always worried about the threat of rebellion. Discontented nobles might try to win the support of people living in poverty for a rebellion against the Queen.
- Idleness – most people thought that beggars set a bad example because some refused to work. They thought idleness was a sin and that these people should be punished.
- The social order – it was believed that everyone had a fixed place in society and social superiors should be obeyed. Wandering beggars threatened this ‘natural order’ and were therefore a threat to society.
'Deserving' and 'undeserving' poor
The belief at the time was that there were different kinds of people who were living in poverty. Generally, they were considered to be either 'deserving poor' or 'undeserving poor'.
'Deserving poor'
These were people who lived in poverty through no fault of their own – such as people who were sick, young, old or disabled. The belief was that these people deserved help. They were also described as the ‘impotent poor’.
‘Undeserving poor'
The belief was that these people did not deserve any help. Another term used to describe them was the ‘able-bodied poor’ - the sturdy or able-bodied beggars who people thought chose not to find work. Laws were passed that punished people like this.
Vagabonds were the government’s biggest problem and even then there were many different types.
- Abraham-men/Tom O’Bedlam – beggars who pretended to be mad, trying to get money through charity.
- Clapperdudgeon – pretended to be ill by making artificial sores on their bodies, hoping for sympathy.
- Counterfeit cranks – pretended to be epileptic. They used soap to make themselves foam at the mouth.
Institutions for people living in poverty
Larger towns did try to deal with the problem by setting up various institutions to deal with different types of people living in poverty. Places such as London, Ipswich, Lincoln and Norwich made plans to set them to work.
Many places began taking a An official count of the population. to determine their population. London in particular had to deal with many people living in poverty and hospitals such as St Bartholomew’s and St Thomas’ were used for the sick.
