The Poor Laws

• Poverty was mostly considered to be your own fault in Elizabethan times, but attitudes started to change towards the end of Elizabeth’s reign and the government decided to take action
• Why did attitudes to poverty start to change towards the end of Elizabeth's reign

  • fears that the ‘social order’ might be threatened if the growing number of poor people ganged together and started a rebellion
  • the risk that vagabonds and beggars might turn to crime
  • fears that the poor might spread disease
  • landowners giving more to the poor
• What actions were taken to help the poor at a local level?

  Unpaid local officials, called Justices of the Peace , were made responsible for poverty related issues in their parish. They were allowed to collect taxes in order to help the poor and unemployed.
• For much of the century the authorities grouped people into either the 'impotent poor' or the 'able-bodied poor': 


  • Impotent poor – people unable to work due to age, disability or other infirmity. Limited relief was provided by the community in which they lived.
  • Able-bodied poor - these were people who were physically able to work and were forced to, to prevent them from becoming vagrants, beggars or vagabonds. It was thought many able-bodied poor were lazy, idle and threatened the established social order.
• The 1572 Vagabonds Act introduced severe action against vagrants who could now be whipped, bored through the ear and put to death if they were repeatedly caught begging.
• 1601 saw the formalisation of earlier acts and laws of poor relief. Poor Laws were key pieces of legislation:

  • they brought in a compulsory nationwide Poor Rate system
  • everyone had to contribute and those who refused would go to jail
  • begging was banned and anyone caught was whipped and sent back to their place of birth
  • almshouses were established to look after the impotent poor
• The first 30 years of Elizabeth’s reign saw stability and prosperity, but a rising population led to growing poverty and problems, especially in towns
• • By the end of Elizabeth’s reign wide-ranging laws were passed to support the poor, which remained in place for the next 200 years 
  • They played an important role in supporting the poor and signalled the first move into welfare from the state, but they did not end poverty and in fact more relief money still came from private charity.