Tolpuddle Martyrs

The Tolpuddle Martyrs were six agricultural labourers from the village of Tolpuddle in Dorset, England, who, in 1834, were convicted of swearing a secret oath as members of the Friendly Society of Agricultural Labourers. They were arrested on charges under the Unlawful Oaths Act during a labour dispute over cut wages before being convicted in ''R v Loveless and Others'' and sentenced to penal transportation to Australia. They were pardoned in 1836 after mass protests by sympathisers and support from Lord John Russell and returned to England between 1837 and 1839.

The Tolpuddle Martyrs became a popular cause for the early union and workers' rights movements. Provided by Wikipedia