1831 Bristol riots

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Riots took place in Bristol from 29 to 31 October 1831 and were part of the 1831 reform riots in England. The riots arose after the second Reform Bill was voted down in the House of Lords, stalling efforts at electoral reform. The arrival of the anti-reform judge Charles Wetherell in the city on 29 October led to a protest, which degenerated into a riot. The civic and military authorities were poorly focused and uncoordinated and lost control of the city. Order was restored on the third day by a combination of a posse comitatus of the city's middle-class citizens and military forces. Much of the city centre was burnt, with up to £300,000 of damage caused and up to 250 casualties incurred. The city's mayor Charles Pinney was tried for failing to prevent the riot and acquitted. Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas Brereton, the military commander, was court-martialled on a similar charge but died of suicide before his trial was concluded. A renewed third reform bill passed in 1832, as the Great...

Read on Wikipedia · Image William James Müller (28 June 1812 – 8 September 1845),, Public domain