brixton windmill

The mill was built in 1816 – a year after a period of great unrest. In 1792 France had declared war on Britain, which resulted in one of the longest and cruellest wars ever to be fought at sea, comparable in scale only to the Second World War. The Age of French Wars, as it became known, ended in 1815, but during this period it had caused havoc across Europe and the wider world.

War combined with bad weather had brought Britain to the brink of famine. At the same time, the wars had disrupted European trade. As supply of wheat was shortened, prices began to rise quickly and sharply. Also, if not to make matters worse, during this period a process of market deregulation was occurring. In the 18th and early 19th century there were hundreds of protests and hunger marches. The price of wheat was too high and people could not afford to eat.

During the course of the 18th century, the diet of most Britons changed towards a greater dependency on wheat-based foodstuffs rather than products derived from oats or barley. Bread was an extremely important part of the diet in the 18th and 19th century – particularly of working people at this time. It was not just one item among many as it is today – to many no bread meant, no food.

Because of the rising cost of wheat ‘bread riots’ occurred throughout 18th- century and early 19th-century England. Millers were wealthier than ordinary people who worked the land and this often led to jealousy. During periods of famine mills and millers were often the focus of people’s anger. Not only were they widely believed to practice forms of adulteration, adding all sorts of rubbish to flour to increase profits but at times of high wheat prices they would be accused along with farmers and landowners of hoarding wheat to jack up prices. In many folk and fairy tales the miller is often characterised as greedy and cheating.