Nottingham cheese riot

The Nottingham Goose Fair traces its origins back to the feast of Matthew the Apostle, which was first celebrated in Nottingham during the 11th century. Eventually, the feast became a livestock market where geese were traded, and later became associated with horse trading, but by the 18th century it was most closely associated with foodstuffs including cheese, many tons of which were sold at the fair each year. The cheese manufactured in Nottingham at this time was sold in wheels and is believed to have been similar to Red Leicester. per hundredweight () of cheese, around twice that recorded at Coventry just a week earlier. As a result of food shortages, the English public was anxious to keep foodstuffs in their local area; there were instances of merchants being overpowered and forced to sell their goods at pre-shortage rates. == Riot ==

, which suppressed the riot (David Morier, 1760) A riot broke out on 2 October 1766 after several Lincolnshire merchants purchased a large quantity of cheese with the intention of selling it in their county. Violence eventually broke out over the dispute and rioters proceeded to loot a large quantity of cheese throughout Nottingham; shop windows were broken and hundreds of cheese wheels were thrown and rolled down the streets, including in Wheeler Gate and Peck Lane. The mayor of Nottingham, Robie Swann, attempted to disrupt the riot and restore order, but was knocked over by a rolling cheese wheel. Some locals armed themselves and set up roadblocks on the city streets to prevent merchants from carrying away cheeses. One warehouse was attacked and, although its defenders eventually drove the crowd off with firearms, some of the cheese stored within was looted as well. The warehouse's owner organised a mounted posse to track down the cheese, which had been taken to Castle Donington. The local magistrate refused to sign search warrants for houses in the village. In response, the posse detained several local residents on suspicion of rioting and beat them at the gates of the magistrates' house, demanding justice. The posse was eventually driven away by a mob of women and children throwing stones and withdrew, the cheese having been lost. In Nottingham, the authorities requested military support to help restore order. The city was at the time a garrison town and the British Army's 1st Regiment of Light Dragoons along with infantry and cavalry of the Nottinghamshire Militia were deployed to suppress the riots. Troops fired into the rioting crowds, injuring several and killing one, William Eggleston of Car Colston, who was standing near a pile of cheese. Eggleston was a farmer and it appears he was killed while protecting his own wares, having been mistaken for a looter. Several people were detained and brought before magistrates in a private residence but were freed after the house was attacked by rioters, who gained access to the building by smashing its windows. The unrest continued overnight. == Aftermath and legacy ==

Violence continued in Nottingham for several days until the military restored order. For a while, wagons carrying cheese were formed into convoys and provided with an armed escort. The 250th anniversary of the riot was marked in 2016 by the Lord Mayor of Nottingham, Mohammed Saghir, in conjunction with a local cheese shop. == Notes ==