What is a Luddite?
Luddites were members of a social movement of textile workers in England during the early 1800s. The movement began in the town of Nottingham in 1811. It was formed during the peak of the Industrial Revolution, which the workers felt threatened their jobs through automation. Their concern led them to destroy multiple textile machines and stage widespread protests. The British government reacted harshly, making industrial sabotage a capital crime and sentencing or exiling prominent figures in the movement, which at one point became quite large, with thousands of adherents. The Luddite movement was relatively short-lived, lasting between 1811 and 1813. The Luddite movement resulted in the destruction of many wool and cotton mills, quickly attracting the attention of the authorities, who dispatched many British soldiers to counteract the Luddites. Actual clashes occurred at Middleton and at Westhoughton Mill, both in Lancashire county. The Luddite’s mythical leader was Ned Ludd, or “Gener
