The Hell of Life in Victorian Slums (19th Century London's Rookeries)

Who lived in the hellish poverty of overcrowded hovels called slums of Victorian London? These warrens of dark courts with even darker activities were known as rookeries, because they were so overcrowded. In this video we take a closer look at the inhabitants of these abodes of the poor and unfortunate with a man of the church, as he journeys through the East End and across the River Thames. In this genuine account you will find out about the hard lives and terrible living conditions of some of the people he meets.

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Check out Victorian documentaries (Playlist):

CC BY - Gloucester smallpox, 1896 six convalescent children. Photograph by H.C.F., 1896 by Wellcome Collection; Illustration depicting cramped and squalid housing conditions by Wellcome Collection; The Rooks over Carlow by SerpentStare

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✅ Please support the channel by sharing this video on social media 📲 It really helps the channel grow so we can bring you more content to watch 📺 Thank you 👍

[michaelscales]

I had an uncle who was born in the East End of London in late Victorian times.He lied about his age so he could enlist in the army, and fight in the First World War.He did this to get away from the poverty and squalor he lived in.I believe he was at the Somme.
In the army he had 3 meals a day, , and certain ailments he suffered from, such as boils, all cleared up.He put that down to having vegetables in his diet, which he rarely had before.Also for the first time in his short life, he had boots that didn't have holes in them, and he had only ever worn dirty second hand rags before, so the army uniform was an absolute luxury.
He was very happy for the first time in his life, , running up and down the trenches carrying ammunition for the soldiers, despite the German shells landing nearby.

[trinkabuszczuk]

My mum is 94 and is one of sixteen siblings, eight of whom survived to adulthood. Before doctors were free to visit in England, many families couldn’t afford to send their kids to a doctor if they were sick: they put them to bed and if they got up after a few days, all good: if not, you buried them. Mum’s siblings died from TB, diphtheria, measles: the usual childhood diseases before immunisation was available. I remember her telling me that one day, her little brother, Eric was in a bed downstairs as he was sick. My mum went to play with her friends and when she returned, her mum was crying. Eric had died. They hadn’t the money to bury him but a kindly neighbour whose child had also died let them put Eric in with their child. This is in Oldham and is in living memory, folks.
Count your blessings, love your NHS and vote for people who don’t want to profit from the sickness of others.

[franceskronenwett]

No social welfare in those days. The common thought back then amongst the upper and middle classes was that the poor were poor due to laziness and fecklessness. If people became destitute there was always the parish workhouse which was absolutely dreaded by the poor. There families were separated and people had to do heavy work for long hours with no pay and very little food. The good old They were only good for an extremely small percentage of British people - the rich.

[ahuddleston]

A bit ironic that some of these slums are overpriced trendy areas now. Bermondsey is one that was mentioned in this.

[angelamullen]

My dad, born 1932, always said there never was the good old days, he only knew the bad days… South Shields

[tornadosimon]

And obviously this was the playground of Jack The Ripper.

As a Ripper case fan I studied and still studying what are the economics, social and politics causes that gave the birth to the East End of London and the rise of the rookery.

Well done, sir.

[jadedchick.]

This is what I think of when people say… “The good ole days.” They weren’t. Life has always been difficult, sad and poor. 😢

[gunga]

Slums and poverty the shame of the so called elites.
Their greed have always caused
this misery.

[somethingyousaid]

This world continues to be in denial about the very suffering that it perpetuates.
Nice narrator's voice.

[ewusnr]

I have an ancestor who stowed away on a ship out of London around 1740. He was sold as an indentured servant in Charleston to pay for his passage. I always wondered what he was running away that made it worth being sold that way. This explains it. He was made an apprentice to a furniture maker. That was probably heaven compared to what he left in London.

[allanlindsay]

You sir, are a born narrator and presenter. Not to mention the quality of the "immense" content. A very gifted man.

[edwardharrington]

This was when Queen Victoria was on the thrown and we were the richest nation on earth yet the working class lived in abject poverty.

[janeholmes]

As a published poet I would love to write a series for TV titled "The Rookeries" I am also a retired Social Studies lecturer and have taught students about the dreadful conditions which people lived. Personally I am sick to death of programmes like Downton Abbey, Sanditon, and other series which only revolve around the lives of the rich of which was only 1% of the population. I think it is time for viewers to see the real side of life of which the majority of their ancestors came from. I would be interested to know how people feel about this idea

[janettewebster]

Children of the poor never really had "childhoods" & wore clothing in miniature of the adults & were expected to begin work as soon as they were able, to eke out the families income.

Only the children of the middle classes & the rich had childhoods & wore children's clothing & weren't expected to work.

[thomaslucas]

If Them people went to Hell they couldn't tell the difference. It makes a world of difference what century you were born into.

[bubble]

Such a terrible shame that the only crime for a lot of these people was basically being poor 😥

[homuraakemi]

I would totally buy an audio book if you ever make one

[Laurasere]

I remember my grandmother terrified of the workhouse to such a point that in the 1960s she was very suspect of the welfare ‘state’. And refused all help available, having heard that meals on wheels were bad would refuse any attempt to help her . Made it difficult to help her.

[AlcibiadesMD]

Tis program just sent chills to the core of my being, we are so very fortunate in today’s modern era, where even the very poor can be taken care of medically with way better living conditions, the middle class as well has all the bare necessities covered, we are extremely lucky in the 21st century.
Most of these poor souls perished due to crime, illness and gruesome unsanitary conditions, what a horrible time to be alive, not very different from Europe’s Middle Dark Ages…Thank You for posting these informative and most interesting lectures, I’m taking my time, one episode at a time, sincerely…a loyal subscriber.