Case Study: Liverpool & London's East End (Edexcel GCSE History) : Revision Note

How did migrants shape Liverpool and London’s East End?- Summary

In the 1800s, cities like Liverpool and London’s East End were shaped by migrants.

Irish migrants came to Liverpool during and after the Great Famine. They helped build the city’s transport network by working on docks, roads, and railways. They brought their Catholic faith and formed large communities, but also faced poor housing and disease. Liverpool also became home to migrant sailors from China, India, and the Caribbean, making the city one of the most diverse ports in Britain.

In London, Jewish migrants settled in the East End, especially in Whitechapel and Spitalfields. They came to escape violence in Eastern Europe. The existing Jewish community supported migrants with schools, shelters, and organisations. Many worked in sweatshops, making clothes. Although they helped grow the local economy, they still faced prejudice. This was especially during the Jack the Ripper case, when rumours linked the killer to the Jewish community.

Migration in nineteenth-century Liverpool

Why did Liverpool become a port city?

• Liverpool is on the west coast of Britain, making it ideal for trade with America and the Caribbean

• It has access to the River Mersey and deep-water docks, which were good for large ships

• The city became a stopover point for European migrants, especially those heading to the USA or Canada

IMAGE

A map showing where Liverpool is in the UK and how it looked like in the 19th century

The development of Liverpool

• Liverpool's economy grew because of the transatlantic trade

  • Slave traders invested their profits into Liverpool to grow its docks

• When slavery ended in 1833, Liverpool continued to trade goods across the Atlantic, such as:

  • cotton

  • sugar

  • tobacco

• Cotton was important to Liverpool

  • Manchester, only around 30 miles away from Liverpool

    • Manchester was Britain's main manufacturer of cotton products and textiles

  • Most of Britain's cotton imports from the USA came through Liverpool

• Liverpool became the second biggest port in the world by the mid-1800s

  • In the 1850s, Liverpool docks handled over 40% of Britain’s trade

The Irish community in Liverpool

• Liverpool was a popular destination for Irish migrants

  • By 1851, around 20% of Liverpool’s population was Irish-born

• They often lived in the poorest, run-down parts of Liverpool

Work and businesses

• Many Irish people worked in Liverpool as:

  • navvies

  • dockers

  • street sellers, servants, and labourers

• Irish pubs became the heart of the community

  • They gave advice and support to newly-arrived migrants

Living conditions

• Cramped and poor-quality housing spread disease quickly through Liverpool's Irish community

• In 1847, 60,000 Irish migrants caught typhus

  • Liverpool Workhouse Infirmary used large shed by the docks as isolation wards

  • Typhus became known as 'Irish fever'

Religion

• Most Irish migrants were Catholic

  • In Liverpool, they created 8 Catholic parishes by 1870

Treatment in Liverpool

• English settlers in Liverpool did not like Irish migrants

  • Many people did not like Catholics

  • They believed Irish migrants spread diseases

  • English residents of Liverpool blamed Irish migrants for the city's crime

Sailors in Liverpool

• Liverpool attracted migrant sailors from all over the world, such as:

  • India

  • China

  • Africa

India

• Lascars often stayed in Liverpool once they docked

  • Some continued to work as sailors

  • Others found employment in Liverpool, for example, creating lodging houses

• Lascars integrated into Liverpool's community

  • Many married English women

  • In 1890, the community made a mosque

China

• In the 1850s, Liverpool expand its trading routes to Shanghai and Hong Kong

  • They received tea and silk imports

• Some Chinese sailors settled in Liverpool

  • They created their own businesses

    • Liverpool had the largest Chinatown in Europe

  • They gained a positive reputation for their work ethic

  • Many married English women

Africa

• The transatlantic trade brought African sailors to Liverpool

• English employers exploited African sailors

  • They paid them lower wages

  • They worked in worse conditions than English sailors

Jewish migration in London's East End

Why did the East End attract Jewish migrants?

• The East End of London, especially Whitechapel and Spitalfields was where many Jewish migrants settled

  • It was one of the poorest but most populated areas of the city

  • It was close to the River Thames and the docks, where ships from Eastern Europe arrived

    • Many Jewish migrants came from Russia and Poland to escape pogroms

• The East End already had established Jewish communities, which helped new arrivals settle

  • Migrants often stayed in Jewish-run shelters that gave 14 days of food and housing

• Support services included:

  • Jewish Free School

    • Educated Jewish children in English and Jewish traditions

  • Jewish Lads’ Brigade

    • Taught discipline, skills, and helped boys find jobs

  • Russian Vapour Baths

    • Used for hygiene and social support in the community

Sweatshops in the East End

• Jewish migrants had experience in tailoring, so many worked in or set up sweatshops

• Some Jewish employers underpaid workers

  • Trade unions tried to improve working conditions and challenge exploitation

• Jewish sweatshops were hard to close

  • They were run inside private homes, making it difficult for inspectors to intervene

  • Many owners only spoke Yiddish so the police could not communicate to them

Hostility and prejudice

• Jewish migrants faced antisemitism

• They were blamed for:

  • overcrowding

  • low wages

  • changes to local culture

• The police rarely took strong action to protect migrants from discrimination

  • Hate crime against Jewish migrants meant that police did not want to patrol certain streets in Whitechapel and Spitalfields

• The government made minimal attempts to help Jewish migrants

  • Parliament created two committees to investigate antisemitism

The Jack the Ripper Case (1888)

• The Ripper murders took place in Whitechapel in 1888

• Some witnesses claimed the killer “looked like a foreigner”

  • Many locals blamed Jewish people

• Graffiti found on Goulston Street said:

• Police saw this as evidence that Jack the Ripper could be a Jewish person

  • It is likely that the graffiti was fake to distract the police

• Cheap booklets called penny dreadful claimed the killer might be a Jewish immigrant

• The fact that the killer was never caught led to more fear and growing antisemitism

  • Many Jewish people were afraid to walk alone

  • Some changed how they dressed to avoid being targeted