Vices of the 19th century of the Great British Empire, which are not accustomed to mention

2024 Author: Seth Attwood | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 15:55

What could be more charming good old England, its neo-Gothic architecture, rigor of etiquette, sea majesty and inner vicissitudes of passions that Shakespeare described to us? But what do we know about the true way of life of the British?

ENGLAND UNDER THE COVER OF OPIUM

During the Victorian era, drug use, mainly opiates and cocaine, was very common. Due to the harsh anti-alcohol laws, alcohol was expensive, and most people preferred to buy opium. It was a universal remedy: a way to relax or escape reality; girls used it to beauty their hair; doctors prescribed medications to sick adults and even children because of a lack of understanding of the danger.

All segments of the population of England suffered from opium addiction. The poor preferred opium because of its easy availability and low cost, and the upper class used it to calm their nerves. Most often these were secular ladies who were prescribed opium tinctures for nervousness, hysteria, painful menstruation and any ailments.

In London, one could often find the so-called "clubs" where aristocrats liked to smoke opium pipes. These were brothels where stoned secular bohemians could lie on the floor with street prostitutes. A similar picture is vividly described in the novel by Oscar Wilde "The Portrait of Dorian Gray". They were also solid establishments, enveloped in chic, where they took seriously the design of an opium pipe, it was a little longer than the usual one and was always decorated with some interesting ornament, so that it was pleasant to hold it in the hands, as it intensified the sensations.

The government did not seek to solve this problem, because alcohol was considered a great evil at that time. In addition, at the time of the prosperity of the East India Company, tons of opium were sent to China. The country was very addicted to this type of drugs, which led to the famous Opium Wars. Emperor Daoguang ordered to completely close the entrance to trade with foreigners. The reason for this was that up to 60% of the people from the emperor's entourage used opium.

Only at the beginning of the 20th century did the authorities pay attention to drug addiction and subsequently the International Opium Convention was signed, uniting thirteen countries in the fight against this problem.

LONDON SMRAD

Let us recall the novel by Patrick Suskand “Perfumer. The story of a murderer. " Approximately the same epithets can be used to recreate the atmosphere of the 19th century that reigned in England: provincials came to London and complained that the stables smell better. Problems with cemeteries, or as they were called "lighted cesspools", seemed like a trifle compared to the lack of sewage. If the citizens did not store the contents of the pots in the basement, then they poured it out the windows onto the streets. Although the enterprising English managed to find a benefit in this: they sold waste to farmers for manure, but there were so many of them that they did not have time to buy. Prayers were heard, and by the middle of the 19th century, flush toilets appeared. True, this also caused a lot of trouble: people in the Victorian era were so shy that they could sit in the latrines for a long time until the voices stopped outside the door, because the sound of the flush was very loud, and the bathroom was located next to the living room.

SCREAMING LUXURY EARNED UNDER THE BLANKET

They fought against prostitution in England in an interesting way. For a long time, the government did not pay attention to courtesans, and only problems with sexually transmitted diseases became the impetus for action.

The newly introduced Communicable Diseases Act stipulated that prostitutes could be screened in all ports, at any time. If the doctor found syphilis in them, then they could be sent to a venereal hospital for 9 months, and if the woman refused, then she was brought to trial and paid a fine. And everything seems to be fine, after such a law everything should be fine, but the parrying in the Chamber led to new questions: why not raise the standard of living of girls and provide them with jobs; officers who did not dare to examine were considered carriers of disease, and why not allow the soldiers to marry and allocate funds for their support? It would be much more effective.

It got to the point that a girl was taken down the street for an examination, and some feminist activist shoved a leaflet at her and asked if the procedure would be carried out with her consent. And she might not even know where she was being taken, and not be a prostitute at all.

But the most serious problem was the issue of child prostitution. Then they did not know whom to consider a child. By law, minors had the right to sell their bodies from the age of 12. Many of these girls were attached to themselves by pimps by deception, and the baby could no longer do anything. Most often, girls were taken from poor families, and their parents were told that she would work in the house of a maid. And many did not think that there was something suspicious in this, because many did so.

The owners of brothels drank opium on the newcomers, and the next morning they woke up in blood, with pain and tears. But in such situations there will always be the right words, such as, for example, that if a girl wants to be a lady and live in abundance, then there is only one way out, because now she is fallen and no one needs her like that. They did not care much about their well-being, except that they were sent to an obstetrician, and even there the girls could get injured during examination.

It took a lot of time and scandals in the press for the government to seriously start thinking about the problem. A mass of speeches swept across London due to the inaction of the authorities. Naturally, no one in parliament wanted to appear as a molester of young virgins, and in 1885 the age of consent was raised from 12 to 16. And the triumph was the repeal of the Contagious Diseases Act.

PATRIOTIC SMUGGLERS

In the 19th century, smuggling in England was especially developed due to the outbreak of the war with France. The stubborn Napoleon could not seize the naval power in any way thanks to its strong fleet. Then he decided to prohibit trade relations with the British to all of Europe, which he had captured. This largely hit the European countries, since they were left without British wool, tea, sugar, and their own production without British sales markets. The smugglers did not miss the opportunity to lend a helping hand and transported goods in secret. This was not a big deal: when the goods were delivered to the shore, they were hidden in caves or tunnels and then handed over to the customer. If the smugglers were in trouble, it was only in the person of the customs officers. But here, too, they managed to come up with a mechanism for storing the cargo: they flooded boxes and barrels with contraband and fished out later. The goods were hidden in double-bottomed fresh water barrels, under false decks or under false ceilings in cabins. Interestingly, Napoleon himself used the services of smugglers to transport gold from England to pay for his own troops.

Most of the smuggling was associated with wars. Despite the British colonies, from which exotic fruits such as pineapples and bananas were imported into the capital of the British Empire, smuggling continued. A striking example of this is the charismatic Tom Johnston from Liminton. Quite clever and resourceful, he quickly agreed to spy on England and bring all information to Bonaparte. Not having time to escape and become an honest smuggler, he was caught by the British and hired to privateering against the French. The insatiable Johnston climbed into a hole in debt and fled back to the French. He became famous for rejecting Napoleon's offer to help him lead the French fleet to the shores of his native England. His bright life ended at the 67th year.

But in the 1920s, the government decided to seriously deal with smugglers. The underwater crates trick was no longer as effective. Customs officers learned to tap the cargo, and if the box turned out to contain a "secret", they mercilessly opened it. By the middle of the 19th century, maritime smuggling in the English Channel was done away with. Such stubbornness on the part of the authorities was caused by the notorious brutality of the Hockhurst gang, which successfully wielded at the end of the 18th century, and the unpatriotic actions of Tom Johnston.

IN PRISON AS IN A MONASTERY

If we talk about the prisons of the 19th century, then they said goodbye to dilapidated walls and cramped life. This was a new, completely different example of prison life and, at first glance, even pleasant.

At the same time, debates began on how exactly the prison should be arranged, and it was decided that it would be good to turn it into a "monastery" where prisoners would take a "vow of silence." And then it will be discouraging if the inveterate criminals will young people do not need to teach. For complete isolation, Pentonville Prison had 520 solitary confinement cells with decent conditions: a window, a hammock, and winter heating.

True, the situation was so oppressive that people often went crazy there. How not to go crazy when they put a mask on you while walking? The hard labor was no better: people spent 8 hours a day behind them just to wear out the body and moral strength.

The fate of the criminals was no better. The famous Brixton women's prison had its own characteristics: the prisoner got there and lived in solitary confinement for the first four months. After that, she went out to the rest of the women prisoners, but still could not talk to them. For good behavior, women were allowed visits, correspondence with relatives and a small weekly payment for a prosperous life after serving time.

Juvenile delinquents were sent to Tothill Fields Prison, where they served sentences ranging from several days to six months. There were many repeat offenders among them. It was often possible to see a picture of children breaking shop windows or windows, and waiting for the "bobbies" to send them in conclusion to warm up and eat poorly …