Manchester Observer Eyewitness Account

28 August: Anonymous eye witness letter to the editor of the Observer; aims to ‘bring to light the bloody actions of men’ in the Yeomanry.

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Manchester Observer, 28 August 1819.

 

Letter, ‘AN EYE WITNESS’

To the Editor of the Manchester Observer,

 

Sir,

As every information is necessary, at this time, to bring to light the bloody actions of men; these lines will inform you of a few plain facts, which took place on Monday evening, the never-to-be-forgotten 16^th of August, 1819.

When the men, women and children, to the number of about 1400 in the employment of Mr Geo Murray’s factory in Jersey St, were coming peaceably and quietly out of the Factory, after working from half past five o’clock in the morning, until seven in the evening, (this Factory is about a mile from the place where the meeting was held and out of any public road leading to Peter Loo place,) about 18 or 20 dragoons, at full gallop, rushed in amongst them, cutting and knocking the people down, in every direction, with their swords, both right and left;  and had it not been for the doors of the houses in Maria and Jersey streets being left open several hundreds must have been mortally wounded.

The door of the Factory was left providentially open, when several hundreds run for their lives, and jumped upon one another in the lobby of the Factory, the women and children crying murder! murder! save our lives &c., and the blood hounds standing over them, with all their might, trying to murder the innocent women and children, who were on their knees and on their backs, on the ground, craving mercy from where there was none. The lives of many were providentially saved by the doors of the lobby being too narrow for the horses to come in, although they tried with all their might and strength to drive their horses on the unprotected people. There are several marks made with the swords of these canibal horsemen, to be seen on the stones, and on the door frame of Mr Geo. Murray’s Factory.

The truth of the above statement can be proved by any of the men in the above employ.

 

AN EYE WITNESS

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