See Also:
Welfare Reform History
Timeline - Roman Era to 1800's
Europe and United States |
|
|
| Date |
Continent:
Country |
Event |
|
| 71 B.C |
Europe:
Rome |
40,000 people receive food each year from Roman food stores.
|
|
| 44 B.C. |
Europe:
Rome |
150,000 people receive food each year from Roman food stores
under Caesar. |
|
| 1529 |
Europe:
Lyons |
Food riots in Lyons.
Charity at this time just involves almsgiving through the
Church and begging on the street. |
|
| 1531 |
Europe:
England |
English Parliament passes an act to register poor and provide
them with a document allowing them to beg. |
|
| 1534 |
Europe:
Lyons |
To reduce poverty riots, Lyons centralizes administration
("Aumone-Generale") for giving aid to the poor.
Includes house-to-house surveys, free medical care for the
sick, begging was outlawed. |
|
| 1536 |
Europe:
France |
King Francis I asks that all parishes in France set up a
mechanism to register and care for the poor. |
|
| 1536 |
Europe:
England |
Under Henry VIII, English Parliament passes an act that
requires all parishes to care for their poor. Beggars were
outlawed and punished. |
|
| 1550's |
Europe:
Lyons |
Relief for poor in Lyons grows to 10% of population with
definite means to monitor the poor. |
|
| 1572 |
Europe:
England |
Elizabethan Poor Laws are passed. Poor tax is instituted
to provide for care of the poor. Relief administrators ordered
to put vagrants to work. |
|
| 1576 |
Europe:
England |
Relief officials required to supply the poor with raw materials
so the poor could work in their homes with the relief pay
based on their work output. |
|
| 1597 |
Europe:
England |
Parliament restructures the Poor Laws and requires that
families of the destitute care for their own. |
|
1600
to 1620 |
Europe:
England |
Parish relief system whithers away. |
|
1621
to 1622 |
Europe:
England |
Disorders results in Privy Council setting up a commission
to administer the Poor Laws. |
|
| 1630's |
Europe:
England |
Better administration of Poor Laws instituted by the Privy
Council commision ends up with higher relief rolls and less
disorder. |
|
Mid
1600's |
Europe:
England |
Relief rolls decrease dramatically during the Civil War.
|
|
| 1723 |
Europe:
England |
Act of parliament allows establishment of workhouses. |
|
| 1740 |
United States |
First almshouse set up in Boston. |
|
| 1750's |
Europe:
England |
"Bills of Enclosure" force many farmers from the land ending
with high unemployment and riots. |
|
1760
to 1781 |
Europe:
England |
Relief taxes grow by 60% to support the displaced rural
population. |
|
| 1790 |
Europe:
Bavaria |
Establishment of work institution for the poor to manufacture
clothing. |
|
| 1818 |
Europe:
England |
Relief tax increases by sixfold from 1760 to 1818. |
|
| 1840-41 |
Europe:
England |
"Labor yards" established where unemployed could come and
work |
|
| 1845-50 |
Europe:
Ireland |
The Great Irish Famine.
A potato blight partially destroys the Irish crop and causes
widespread famine, destroying the old social order. Different
attempts are made at relief but to little avail.
Famine
sources worldwide.
|
|
| 1850 |
Europe:
England |
Nearly 10% of population are paupers. |
|
| 1884 |
United States |
By this time, an estimated 600 almshouses had been set up
in New England. |
|
1880's
to 1890's |
United States |
Attempts were made to move poor from work yards to poorhouses
if they wanted relief funds. |
|
| 1893-94 |
United States |
Some members of Congress attempt to establish unemployment
payments but fail during the 1893-1894 recession. Similar
attempts failed in 1914 and 1921. |
