|
 |
| William Cuffay - 'Drawn in his Cell in Newgate by his fellow sufferer Wm Dowling' |
William Cuffay the entertainer 1842
William Cuffay accuses his prosecutors at the 1848 trial
 |
| Observer 2 October 1848 |
I say you have no right to sentence me. Although the trial has lasted a long time, it has not been a fair trial, and my request to have a fair trial - to be tried by my equals - has not been complied with. Everything has been done to raise a prejudice against me, and the press of this country - and I believe of other countries too - has done all in its power to smother me with ridicule. I ask no pity. I ask no mercy. I expected to be convicted, and I did not think anything else. No, I pity the Government, and I pity the Attorney General for convicting me by means of such base characters. The Attorney General ought to be called the Spy General. I am not anxious for martyrdom, but after what I have endured this week, I feel that I could bear any punishment proudly, even to the scaffold. (Cuffay quoted in the Times, 2 Oct 1848)
…a UK parliamentary reform movement of 1837–48, the principles of which were set out in a manifesto called The People's Charter and called for universal suffrage for men, equal electoral districts, voting by secret ballot, abolition of property qualifications for MPs, and annual general elections…
OED
