Focusing on the experiences of the street poor from 1815 to 1985, this lively social history delves into the challenges faced by marginalized communities over two centuries. It offers a detailed examination of societal changes and their impact on poverty, making it a valuable resource for students of history, criminology, and sociology. Through its in-depth analysis, the book sheds light on the historical context and evolving dynamics of social issues related to poverty.
Before contraception was generally available, and when abortion was fraught with danger, infanticide was a common solution to the problem of unwanted children. Massacre of the Innocents, first published in 1986, shows the causes and consequences of the high tide of infanticide in Victorian Britain. Lionel Rose describes the ways in which unwanted and 'surplus' infants were disposed of, and the economic and social pressures on women to rid themselves of their burdens by covert criminal and sub-criminal means. He discusses the activities of infanticidal and abortionist midwives, and shows how the practices of wet nursing and baby farming were closely related to infanticide. Unscrupulous insurance salesman even turned infanticide into a profitable business, in their reckless grab for commissions. Infanticide declined with the growing practice of contraception, the lessening of pressure of unmarried mothers, and as adoption was made easier. This is a hard-hitting, scrupulously documented piece of social history. This title will be of interest to students of history and criminology.