Victorian England from 1837-1901 was dominated by Queen Victoria's 63-year reign. It was a time of industrialization and technological development alongside stark class divides and gender inequality. Women had few rights and children faced difficult working conditions, while the poor faced hardship and disease with the workhouse as a last resort. Crime and punishment could be harsh, as seen in the unsolved Jack the Ripper murders that shocked London in 1888.

1. Context surrounding Jane Eyre
VICTORIAN LONDON 1837-1901

2. QUEEN VICTORIA
 Born 1819
 Became Queen at 18 years old after there was no other
heir after her father‟s brothers died
 One of the longest reigning monarchs as she was
Queen for 63 years
 Queen Victoria proposed to her cousin Albert, whom
she had mutual feelings for, on 15 October 1839, five
days after he had arrived at Windsor. They married on
the 10th February 1840.
 Her and Albert had nine children
 Prince Albert dies in 1861 of typhoid fever, Queen
Victoria had his clothes lied out on their bed for 40
years before her death in 1901

3. INDUSTRIALISATION
The Victorian Era was a time of development with
many developments in technology, medicine and new
inventions
Major turning point inventions:
 Telephone by Alexander Bell
 X-rays
 The first successful airplane flight
 Microphones
 Major and minor operations
 Bright dyes used for clothing
 Dynamite
 photography
 Railway

4. CLASS DIFFERENCES
 There was a big social divide between the Working
class and Aristocracy
 The Aristocracy lead a life full of luxury and
received a good education
 The working class in contrast had to work hard in
order to survive, only some could read
 There was a rise of the Middle class, these were
people like Jane, and Bronte herself, who resumed
the profession of governess

5. WOMEN
 Women were classed as 2nd class citizens
 Times were hard as woman in the Victorian Era in a
male dominated society
 It wasn‟t until 1918 that Women were allowed to vote
 Female writers, such as Charlotte Bronte and her
sisters, used male pen names so that their work was
published otherwise they wouldn‟t stand a chance
 Women were expected to marry and have children, turn
to religion or become a governess/teacher
 If you didn‟t marry young you would considered a
spinster

6. CHILDREN
 Children were seen as and dressed as adults
 Child labour was common, children worked in
factories, coal mines, as chimney sweeps, you
could even become a teacher at the age of 13!
 Because of the manual labour children did they
suffered from deformities of the spine because of
the type of labour they were doing.
 Children started work aged 5 and generally died
before 25 years old

7. EDUCATION
 Some children went to school, mostly either
religious or charity schools
 Religion was a big part of education
 Girls were taught how to sew, cook, paint and play
instruments whilst boys were taught more
academic subjects

8. MEDICINE
 Chloroform was introduced in 1847 and grew in
popularity after Queen Victoria was given some for
the birth of her eighth child, she claimed it to be “a
God send”
 Antiseptics by Joseph Lister (1867) was introduced
and was used by hospital staff for cleaning and to
kill bacteria

9. DISEASE
 Even though the world of medicine had came a
long way, disease still affected many of the
population
 There was an outbreak of cholera which killed
thousands of people
 Hygiene was poor so disease spread very quickly

10. THE WORKHOUSES
 Poverty was a big problem in the Victorian Era, the
rich were filthy rich strongly contrasted by the poor
who lived in dire conditions
 The mentally ill and handicapped were also sent to
the workhouses
 The workhouses were seen as the last resort, most
people would rather and did starve to death than go
in a workhouse
 The workhouses provided routine, for people who
had been out of work, and discipline
 They weren‟t the most luxurious place; but they put
a roof over people‟s head and provided food

11. THE SUBJECT OF INSANITY
 People who were mentally ill were often sent to
either workhouses or asylums
 It was seen as an embarrassment to the family and
was often frowned upon
 Patients suffered extreme abuse, rape and were
often experimented on

12. CRIME AND PUNISHMENT
 Punishments were harsh as children would be
caned for being disobedient and you could go to
prison just for stealing a loaf of bread
 Even children could go to prison!
 The death penalty was still administrated to the
worst criminals and murderers

13. JACK THE RIPPER
 The infamous Jack the Ripper caused quite a stir at
the time in 1888
 He murdered and mutilated 5, possibly more,
prostitutes on the streets of London
 There were three main suspects to the identity of
the murderer could have been one being a doctor,
a member of the royal family who suffered from
insanity and the „man with no identity‟
 Jack the Ripper was however never caught, his
identity remains still a mystery