The Victorian Workhouse

A workhouse is a building which provided work, lodging, and food to the impoverished and destitute.  Sometimes the workhouses would form unions, which resulted in the widely used term 'Union Workhouses'. Workhouses were a result of the Poor Law Amendment Act and the Workhouse Test Act of 1723 in England. The government used it as a way of clearing out the poor and homeless among the streets. Workhouses generally include a central building surrounded by extensions of the building and courtyards. The conditions in the Victorian workhouses were bad, because it is meant to be a way of eliminating the destitue from the able-bodied men. The conditions were so desperate and harsh that the able-bodied would try to find work elsewhere. So the workhouses were reserved for people who were poor and old, and single mothers and orphaned children. As a result, many children were born into workhouses, with no choice but to work there and be 'imprisoned' their whole life. The 'inmates', as they were called, were underpaid, and normally worked long hours. Many were 'rented' out to other factories to work in. The food there was dreary, and normally only consists of gruel, broth, bread and cheese. The workers were practically imprisoned there, though they are allowed time out, with a reasonable excuse, for normally around 3 hours. Although the workhouses provided education, the teachers were normally poorly trained, and had to mange large classes of unruly children. Another problem at the workhouse was the matrons. They were normally abusive to the workers, and often whipped the inmates. I think that Scrooge would not understand the horrors of the workhouse. He has had a privelaged life, compared to many others. He was sent to boarding school, had a proper education, and was even apprenticed. Many of the poor and destitute had not such advantages. They were denied many basic needs. Scrooge then continued on and made money, and didn't have to worry and food and lodging, while the poor had to work under these terrible conditions just to get a piece of bread each day.