Peterloo was the name given to an incident in 1819, when social unrest in England was producing a wide demand for parliamentary reform. A mass meeting of 60,000 people gathered in St. Peter’s Field, Manchester, to hear a speech by Henry Hunt, a radical leader. Magistrates sent troops to arrest Hunt. When the crowds resisted, the troops charged with drawn swords, killing 11 people and wounding about 400. The incident became known as the Peterloo Massacre.
