John Fielden and the Politics of Popular Radicalism 1832-1847

This is the first biographical study of John Fielden, industrial magnate and radical MP for Oldham in Lancashire from 1832 to 1847. Best known as a leading advocate of factory reform - he was the parliamentary sponsor of the momentous Ten Hours Act of 1847 - Fielden also took a conspicuous part in the Owenite, Chartist, and anti-Poor Law movements. Drawing on a little-used collection of Fielden family papers, the book offers an assessment of each of the movements in which Fielden's relationship with them, and discusses the influences which went into the making of a radical industrialist who occupied a unique place in Parliament as the people's representative. This long overdue account of his personal, business, and political life offers new insights into the turbulent politics of mid-nineteenth century England.