The Hull Advertiser and Exchange Gazette – A Collection of Sixteen Original Regency Newspapers from the Year of Peterloo – Hull, 1819

Hull: Printed and Published by William Rawson, Isaac Wilson and William Holden, No. 49 Lowgate, Hull, 1819.

Sixteen original issues of The Hull Advertiser and Exchange Gazette, comprising examples published between June and December 1819. Each issue four pages. Folio. Approximate sheet size 52.6 x 32.4 cm.

Condition: Some chips, splits to the fold-lines, small losses, occasional closed tears, old folds and age-toning. Owing to the inherently fragile nature of early nineteenth-century newsprint, the collection survives in good overall condition.

An exceptional collection of original Hull newspapers printed during one of the most important and turbulent years of the Regency period. Published in the months immediately preceding and following the Peterloo Massacre of August 1819, these issues preserve a remarkably detailed contemporary record of political reform, criminal justice, imperial expansion, commercial life, transport, science, literature and everyday existence in Yorkshire and across the British world.

The year 1819 marked a pivotal moment in British history. The nation was still grappling with the economic and social consequences of the Napoleonic Wars, while agitation for parliamentary reform was reaching unprecedented levels. Industrial unrest, agricultural depression, political radicalism and demands for greater representation increasingly dominated public discussion. These newspapers capture that atmosphere as it unfolded week by week.

Particularly notable are the extensive reports from the Yorkshire Assizes, providing substantial accounts of criminal prosecutions and civil proceedings. Among the most interesting is the detailed report of the trial of William Bateman for Highway Robbery, published in the issue of 31 July 1819, in which Bateman was found guilty. Highway robbery remained one of the most serious offences recognised by English law and such reports provide valuable insight into the administration of criminal justice before the establishment of modern police forces and Victorian legal reforms.

The political content is especially significant. The issue of 7 August 1819 contains proceedings of Radical Reformers during a period of mounting political agitation. Appearing only days before the events at Peterloo, these reports offer a contemporary perspective upon the reform movement that would become one of the defining political forces of nineteenth-century Britain.

The newspapers also contain material relating to Britain’s expanding imperial and colonial interests. Particularly noteworthy is an account published on 24 July 1819 concerning the proposed colony at the Cape of Good Hope, together with details of the assistance being offered by the government to prospective emigrants. The report provides valuable contemporary evidence relating to the migration schemes that would culminate in the celebrated 1820 Settler movement to South Africa.

International affairs are represented by reports from British India, including an extensive account of the Calcutta Supreme Court case of Comberbach v. Croft, an action arising from the alleged seduction of a daughter. Damages initially sought amounted to 50,000 rupees, while the eventual settlement of 25,000 rupees—equivalent to £3,520—represented a substantial fortune in Regency Britain and illustrates the extraordinary wealth circulating within the East India Company’s sphere of influence.

Commercial and economic life is richly documented throughout the collection. Numerous bankruptcy notices reflect the financial difficulties experienced by merchants, tradesmen and landowners during the difficult post-war years. Auction advertisements record the sale of imported goods, estates and commercial property, including a notable sale of thirty-nine logs of St Domingo mahogany, illustrating the continuing importance of Caribbean trade within the British economy.

Among the most striking items is an advertisement published on 10 July 1819 announcing the disposal of military stores by order of His Majesty’s Storekeeper General. Offered for sale were 721 Flanders tents, 15,000 blue coats, 4,000 red coats, 7,000 grey trousers, 600 sets of infantry accoutrements, 200 sets of cavalry accoutrements, 15,000 knapsacks, 6,000 canteens and 500 pounds of white lead, together with numerous additional stores. Few contemporary notices illustrate more vividly the scale of Britain’s post-Waterloo demobilisation. Appearing only four years after the defeat of Napoleon, the advertisement provides a remarkable snapshot of the vast quantities of military equipment being dispersed as Britain transitioned from wartime mobilisation to peacetime economy.

Transport history is exceptionally well represented. The newspapers contain advertisements for stage-coach services, sailing vessels and steam packets, together with notices concerning improvements intended to increase the speed and efficiency of the postal service. Such material documents the rapid transformation of communications and travel during the Regency era. Reports of vessels returning from the Greenland fishing grounds provide further evidence of Britain’s important Arctic whaling industry, of particular relevance to Hull’s maritime economy.

The advertising content is unusually rich and varied. Included are notices for lotteries, educational establishments, insurance companies, booksellers, agricultural shows and livestock exhibitions, together with numerous examples of patent medicines and proprietary remedies. Among the latter is Dr Boerhaave’s Red Pill No. 2, representative of the flourishing trade in quack medicines before the advent of modern medical regulation.

The literary and scientific advertisements are equally fascinating. Offered for sale are Edward Donovan’s celebrated works on natural history, including British Zoology, together with advertisements for Egyptian Scenery and Antiquities, reflecting the growing British fascination with Egypt following Napoleon’s campaigns. Literary notices include Dr Syntax in London and Amusements for Winter Evenings, the latter featuring Johnston’s ingenious moveable characters complete with interchangeable hats, caps and wigs.

Among the most remarkable reports is the account published on 17 July 1819 concerning the death of Madame Sophie Blanchard, Europe’s most celebrated aeronaut and one of the pioneers of balloon flight. Her fatal accident in Paris attracted international attention and remains one of the earliest and most famous disasters in the history of aviation.

Additional contents include notices concerning absconders and runaways, commercial disputes, shipping intelligence, local Yorkshire affairs and numerous smaller reports which together provide a vivid portrait of daily life during the Regency period.

Individual provincial newspapers of this era were intended for immediate use and disposal. Consequently, relatively few survive, particularly in groups retaining their original advertising content and local reporting. The present collection offers a substantial and highly informative archive of Yorkshire life during one of the most consequential years of the nineteenth century, preserving the concerns, interests, anxieties and aspirations of contemporaries as Britain stood on the threshold of political and social transformation.

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