1766 food riots

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The 1766 food riots took place across England in response to rises in the prices of wheat and other cereals following a series of poor harvests. Riots were sparked by the first large-scale exports of grain in August and peaked in September - October. Around 131 riots were recorded, though many were relatively non-violent. In many cases traders and farmers were forced by the rioters to sell their wares at lower rates. In some instances, violence occurred with shops and warehouses looted and mills destroyed. There were riots in many towns and villages across the country but particularly in the South West and the Midlands, which included the Nottingham cheese riot. The Whig government of the Marquess of Rockingham implemented tax cuts on imported grain and prohibited exports in an attempt to lower the price of food. Rockingham's successor William Pitt the Elder went further, prohibiting the use of grains in distilling and suspending more import duties. The public responded to the riots by...

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