What were the working conditions in 19th century English factories?
A child living in London at the end of the 19th century would have experienced a very different childhood to that of their grandparents born in the early years of the century. By 1899 London was an extremely crowded city, as more people came to live and find work in the capital. Many urban developments altered the lives of all children, but the experience of changing childhood in the 19th century was closely linked to family and social background. The life of a wealthy child was very different from that of a poor child. Wealthier children throughout the Victorian period were made aware of the suffering of the poor through the moral and religious education they received at Church Sunday schools. Those more comfortably off were encouraged to help those less fortunate than themselves by donating their money and time to charity. By the end of the 19th century, not only families but the government too had changed the way it treated children. At the time, more than a third of those living in
