Portrait of Hugh Hornby Birley, Captain of the Manchester and Salford Yeomanry

On 16 August 1819, blood ran in the streets of Manchester. 18 people were killed and hundreds injured attending a peaceful demonstration at St Peter’s Field, now the area around St Peter’s Square. 60,000 people had gathered to demand the vote. The massacre became known as Peterloo. A major event in Manchester’s history and a defining moment for Britain’s democracy.

That day, the magistrates read the Riot Act but nobody heard. The crowd panicked when the yeomanry rode in on horses armed with sabres. They slashed and hacked at men, women and children in an attempt to arrest Henry Hunt and break up the meeting.

The Manchester and Salford Yeomanry were a force of volunteer soldiers working for local government leaders. They were made up mostly of local businessmen and were hostile to the reformers. Hugh Hornby Birley, Manchester mill owner and captain of the yeomanry, ordered the soldiers into the crowd.

More than 300 harrowing eyewitness accounts provide a powerful testimony to the brutality of events on the day. Within these accounts Hugh Hornby Birley’s cruelty and violence was often noted. This portrait shows off his wealth and power. We do not have similar portraits for the ordinary protestors at Peterloo.

Part of the national commemorations marking 200 years since the Peterloo Massacre, this painting of Hugh Hornby Birley, Captain of the Manchester and Salford Yeomanry featured in the Disrupt? Peterloo and Protest exhibition at People’s History Museum in 2019 to tell the story of Peterloo and highlights its relevance today.