Thread by @ElectionMapsUK

THREAD: ON THIS DAY 1881, riots took place in #Basingstoke by locals who’d had enough of the Salvation Army’s weekly temperance parades & took matters into their own hands. This resulted in THE BATTLE OF CHURCH SQUARE.

It pitted church vs church, & mayor vs council. Read on...1/

By 1880 Basingstoke had a population of 6,500 who were fond of a drink or two & supporting 50 pubs & 3 breweries in the town.
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The Salvation Army decided to “save” the town and sent a couple of ladies down to settle the Old Silk Mill & bring some musicians down too. Soon weekly temperance marches were taking place in the town Sunday mornings & afternoons. They were here to “Aim fire at Sin and Satan”
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Locals fed up with this set up a “Massagainian” Army in response (to “Mass Again” against the teetotallers) - following the Sally marchers with their own musical instruments (mostly rocks in tins and the odd drum). 4/

The Congregational Church who dominated the local council under the Liberal banner supported the marches and provided protection.

The Mayor of Basingstoke, however was a brewer, owned several pubs and had little time for these “God-fearing, do-gooders”. 5/

Each week the stakes were upped with more people joining both sides & various unsavoury incidents took place including a Salvation Army soldier having his arm broken when trying to seize a Union Jack off the Massagainians. Locals also threw five temperance women into the canal.6/

By this stage it was clear that both sides were trying to provoke the other, but surprisingly the local Anglican Vicar declared for the Massagainians, being fed up with the deliberate provocation by the temperance marchers (& a good excuse to poke a stick at a rival church). 7/

Things came to a head 27th March 1881 when news reach the Town Hall that over 3,000 locals had turned up to oppose the march (nearly half the population!). The council ordered up 100 locals to protect the march whilst the Mayor refused to allow the real police to get involved. 8/

The morning march passed without incident, but as the drinks flowed the crowd got rowdier. The mayor ordered the afternoon march be cancelled but the Sally Army refused.

Most of the council’s constables walked off the job - and indeed some swapped sides to the Massagainians. 9/

Windows were smashed, a riot broke out and the Royal Horse Artillery had to be called in to clear the streets: THE BATTLE OF CHURCH SQUARE.

In a nice twist the pro-temperance councillors had to take refuge in the mayor’s brewery behind locked gates for safety. 10/

The army soon cleared the streets and 20 locals were imprisoned (the magistrates supporting the marchers). After 2 weeks in Winchester Gaol they were released and the locals gave them a heroes welcome. 11/

They were collected from the gaol in fine carriages and band played HAIL THE CONQUERING HEROES in front of crowds greeting their return. The Corn Exchange was hired, a feast served and the local brewers donated some specially brewed extra-strong “Stingo” beer for the occasion 12/

The marches continued in future weeks but the riots reduced & eventually stopped. The brewers had actually seen beer consumption & their profits GROW since the Sally Army had arrived, and no doubt the locals realised this counter-marching got in the way of valuable drinking. 13/

And as for the local cllrs? At the next local election the Tories backed by the local Anglican church took up the cause of the Massagainians & brewers winning a landslide & wiping out their pious Liberal counterparts. The mayor had the last laugh. Beer won at the ballot box.14/14