In June
1780, Lord George Gordon, President of the Protestant Society, presented a
petition to Parliament protesting against the Catholic Relief Act of 1778,
particularly the measure which allowed Catholics to join the army.
The Gordon Riots
from The Chronicles of Crime or The Newgate
Calendar by C Pelham illustrated by Phiz (1841)
With him were 60,000 protestors who became increasingly violent toward Catholics and those whom they held responsible for the Act. They ransacked the house of Lord Chief Justice, Lord Mansfield, and destroyed his collection of manuscripts. They also attacked four prisons, several chapels, a distillery, and over 70 other houses. Hundreds of people – possibly as many as 850 – died in the riots.
The Horse Guards originally comprised several independent troops who acted as bodyguards to the Sovereign. The ranks of these troops consisted of members of the gentry and they were employed in actions against the mob during the riots.
For more information on the Gordon Riots, read my full blog here.
