1819
The Yeomanry and Hussars open fire on a peaceful reformist meeting at St Peter’s Fields, Manchester, killing an estimated 18 people and wounding hundreds. Local cotton merchant John Edward Taylor witnesses and reports on the incident, which comes to be known as the Peterloo massacre, and is left with a desire to give the liberal reformist voice a better outlet.
Quick GuideWhat was the Peterloo massacre?
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What was the Peterloo Massacre and how many were killed?
On 16 August 1819, up to 60,000 working class people from the towns and villages of what is now Greater Manchester marched to St Peters Fields in central Manchester to demand political representation. Their peaceful protest turned bloody when Manchester magistrates ordered Yeoman – a private militia paid for by rich locals – to storm the crowd with sabres.
Most historians agree that 14 people were definitely killed in the massacre – 15 if you include the unborn child of Elizabeth Gaunt, killed in the womb after she was beaten by constables in custody. A further three named people are believed to have either been stabbed or trampled to death.
Why is it called Peterloo?
The name was first coined five days after the massacre by James Wroe, editor of the Manchester Observer, the city’s first radical newspaper (no relation to the Observer of today). According to historian Robert Poole, Peterloo was “a bitter pun, comparing the cowardly attacks by the Yeomanry and soldiers on unarmed civilians to the brutality suffered at Waterloo.”
What did the protesters want?
They wanted political reform. The years leading up to Peterloo had been tough for working class people and they wanted a voice in parliament to put their needs and wants on the political agenda, inspired by the French Revolution across the Channel. Machines had begun to take jobs in the lucrative cotton industry but periodic trade slumps closed factories at short notice, putting workers out on the street. The Napoleonic Wars, which ended in 1815 with the Battle of Waterloo, had taken a heavy toll on the nation’s finances, and 350,000 ex-servicemen returned home needing jobs and food. Yet those in power seemed more interested in lining their own pockets than helping the poor.
At that point, only the richest landowners could vote, and large swathes of the country were not represented in Westminster. Manchester and Salford, which then had a population of 150,000, had no MP, yet Oxford and Cambridge Universities had their own representation. At the time the extension of the vote to all men, let alone women, was actively opposed by many who thought the vote should be restricted to those of influence and means.
Why is Peterloo important?
It paved the way for parliamentary democracy and particularly the Great Reform Act of 1832 which created new parliamentary seats, particularly in the industrial towns of the north of England. It also led to the establishment two years later of the Manchester Guardian by John Edward Taylor, a 28-year-old English journalist who was present at the massacre and saw how the “establishment” media sought to discredit the protesters.
Helen Pidd, North of England editor
1821
In April, a prospectus is issued explaining the aims and objectives of proposed newspaper, the Manchester Guardian. A month later, on 5 May 1821, John Edward Taylor publishes the first Manchester Guardian as a newspaper in the liberal interest. It appears weekly on a Saturday at a price of 7d.
1836
Reductions in taxes and stamp duty allow the Manchester Guardian to publish twice-weekly; it begins to appear on Wednesdays as well as Saturdays.
1855
Stamp Duty tax on newspapers is abolished allowing the Guardian to publish daily, Monday to Saturday, at a reduced price of 2d.
1872
Charles Prestwich Scott, a liberal thinker with strong principles, becomes editor of the Guardian - a post he holds for 57 years.
1907
Following the death of John Edward Taylor’s son in 1905, CP Scott buys the Guardian. He becomes both owner and editor and the Manchester Guardian becomes a limited company.
1919
On 4 July Guardian Weekly is launched to provide a compact weekly edition of the newspaper, aimed at an international audience.
1921
CP Scott writes a leading article to mark the centenary of the paper in May. The essay, A Hundred Years, is recognised around the world as the blueprint for independent journalism and includes the line “Comment is free, but facts are sacred...The voice of opponents no less than that of friends has a right to be heard.”
1924
John Russell Scott (son of CP Scott and now manager of the Manchester Guardian) buys the Manchester Evening News, bringing both papers under the same ownership.
The company that still exists today as Guardian Media Group is formed: The Manchester Guardian and Evening News Ltd. John Scott is chairman and governing director of the company.
1929
CP Scott retires as editor in favour of his son Ted.
1932
CP Scott’s death in January is followed swiftly by that of his younger son; Ted Scott is killed in a tragic boating accident in April. William Percival Crozier is appointed as editor.
1936
Ownership of the Manchester Guardian is transferred to a trust to protect the newspaper from crippling death duties following Ted Scott’s untimely death. CP Scott’s elder son John creates the Scott Trust to ensure the independence of the newspaper and the continuance of the journalistic principles of his father. John Scott is chair of the Trust until 1948.
1944
Following WP Crozier’s death, Alfred Powell Wadsworth becomes editor.
1948
The Trust is reconstituted in the spirit of the original agreement after legal advice suggests that the Guardian could still be threatened with death duties on the death of John Scott. The beneficiaries of the original Trust hand their shares over to the new trustees. The Scott family’s power to appoint trustees ends and the maintenance of the Trust becomes a collective act. AP Wadsworth becomes chair of the Trust.
1949
John Scott dies and his son Laurence Prestwich Scott becomes chairman and managing director of the company.
1952
News replaces classified ads on the front page of the Manchester Guardian.
1953
On 3 June, the day after the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, David Low’s ‘Morning After’ cartoon appears in the Guardian, sparking controversy. Many critical letters from readers, some asking “how low can Low get?”
1956
Alastair Hetherington becomes editor following Wadsworth’s death.
In contrast to the majority of the British press the Guardian criticises the Government’s military action in Suez. Readership increases by 10%.
1959
On 24 August the newspaper changes its title from the Manchester Guardian to the Guardian, to reflect the growing importance of national and international affairs in the newspaper.
1961
To enable swift delivery of the Guardian to southern England, the Guardian begins printing on Sunday Times presses in Gray’s Inn Road, London, and rents office space in the same building. Difficulties with printing in both London and Manchester earn the newspaper the nickname ‘The Grauniad’.
1964
The editor’s office and major editorial departments relocate from Manchester to London, where they join the existing London staff at Grays Inn Road.
1965-66
Financial difficulties lead to discussion with the Times on a possible merger of the two newspapers. The Scott Trust throw out the proposal.
1967
Guardian Newspapers Ltd and The Manchester Evening News Ltd are formed as wholly owned subsidiary companies of The Manchester Guardian and Evening News Ltd, each with their own board of directors.
1968
The company takes a first step into becoming a broader media group.by acquiring a minority stake in Anglia Television.
1970
On 29 August the Guardian moves from its home in Cross Street, Manchester to new offices in nearby Deansgate. The Guardian had been written and printed from this building since 1886.
1972
The name of the company is changed to The Guardian and Manchester Evening News Ltd (GMEN).
1973
Sir Peter Gibbings becomes chair of the company, succeeding Laurence Scott.
GMEN acquires 10% of Greater Manchester Independent Radio Limited, owners of Piccadilly Radio.
1974
GMEN purchases the Rochdale Observer Series of newspapers.
1975
Peter Preston is appointed editor.
1976
The Guardian moves to its London home at 119 Farringdon Road.
1982
A controlling stake in Northwest Automart (later Northwest Autotrader) is purchased.
1983
Sarah Tisdall, a Foreign and Commonwealth Office clerical officer gives the Guardian documents on the movement of nuclear weapons. The Guardian is taken to court, ordered to reveal their source and Tisdall is imprisoned for six months.
1984
Former Guardian editor Alastair Hetherington succeeds Richard Scott as chair of the Scott Trust.
1988
The Guardian has a radical redesign, splitting the newspaper into two sections and introducing a new masthead. An international edition is launched in Europe.
1989
Automart division is renamed Auto Trader division, and now controls or has an interest in nine Auto Trader magazines. A minority stake is purchased in Broadcast Communications, a TV production company that later grows into GMG Endemol.
1990
Hugo Young, Guardian columnist and senior political commentator, succeeds Alastair Hetherington as chair of the Scott Trust. GMEN acquires a holding in Trafford Park Printers alongside the Daily Telegraph, and printing at the Deansgate complex ceases. The company also acquires the Accrington Observer and a controlling interest in Broadcast Communications.
1991
A collaborative bid for the UK’s independent breakfast TV franchise is successful and GMEN becomes a partner in GMTV (selling its stake in January 2000). The company has been steadily expanding its radio interests over the years and now owns 20% of the radio group Trans World Communications plc.
1992
The Scott Trust formally sets out its central objective for the first time: “To secure the financial and editorial independence of the Guardian in perpetuity: as a quality national newspaper without party affiliation; remaining faithful to its liberal tradition; as a profit-seeking enterprise managed in an efficient and cost-effective manner.”
G2, the daily features tabloid section, is launched.
1993
In June, the Observer, the world’s oldest Sunday newspaper, is purchased from Lonrho plc.
In November, GMEN changes its name to Guardian Media Group (GMG) to reflect the breadth of its media properties.
1994
The Guardian and Observer contributes editorial content relating to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival to the 1994 FringeWeb. This is thought to be the first online publication of any Guardian journalism.
Thames Valley Newspapers (owners of the Reading Evening Post and the Wokingham and Bracknell Times group of newspapers) is purchased by GMG from the Thomson Corporation.
The group’s radio interests are sold to Emap.
Auto Trader National Magazines is launched as a joint venture.
1995
Alan Rusbridger becomes editor.
In September, the Guardian’s New Media Lab is officially established by the board of Guardian Newspapers Ltd (GNL), with instructions ‘to implement the proposed electronic publication of the Guardian and Observer’. Go2 is launched in November as the website for the Guardian’s computer, science and technology supplement OnLine.
GMG becomes the majority shareholder in M&G Media in South Africa. A stake is purchased in Golden Rose Communications, owners of Jazz FM.
1996
In February Eurosoccer.com, a dedicated site for the Euro’96 competition, is launched. In October Shift Control, a weekly webzine sponsored by Whitbread, goes live and in the same month RecruitNet is launched, placing Guardian recruitment advertisements on the internet for the first time.
1997
The Guardian’s investigation into Conservative MP Neil Hamilton wins the Team Reporting Award at the British Press Awards and the Guardian is named Newspaper of the Year by What the Papers Say - an award it also wins in 1998 and 1999.
The Guardian is the first national newspaper to appoint a readers’ editor and publish a daily Corrections and Clarifications column.
The Guardian and Observer election website goes live in February and football.co.uk launches in August.
1999
The Guardian Unlimited (GU) network of websites is launched in January. It consists of News Unlimited, Football Unlimited, Cricket Unlimited and Jobs Unlimited. By March 2001 GU has over 2.4 million unique users, making it the most popular UK newspaper website. The first official ABCe statistics in October identify GU as having 10.2 million page impressions a month.
1999
GMG Radio is established and applies for its first licence in South Wales. In 2000 Real Radio Wales is launched, followed by Real Radio Scotland and Real Radio Yorkshire in 2002.
2000
GU wins best design for an interactive newspaper at the prestigious US Eppy Awards, and best newspaper on the web in the Newspaper Society Awards. News Unlimited is named online news service of the year at the British Press Awards. Observer.co.uk and mediatheguardian.com launched and the network extended with rebranding across all the GU websites. In April the Guardian Weblog is launched – the Guardian’s first blog.
Paul Myners becomes chairman of Guardian Media Group plc, succeeding Bob Gavron.
2001
The Guardian wins widespread acclaim for its coverage of the events of 11 September – it is proclaimed “bold, simple and courageous” at the British Press Awards.
GU’s URL changes from guardianunlimited.co.uk to guardian.co.uk in February. In April its first ever TV advertising campaign is launched.
2002
The Guardian and Observer Archive and Visitor Centre, known as The Newsroom, opens its doors.
GMG Radio acquires Jazz FM, later renamed Smooth FM.
2003
Liz Forgan becomes chair of the Scott Trust following the death of Hugo Young.
GMG becomes the sole owner of Auto Trader publisher Trader Media Group.
2003
Life, a new Thursday science and technology supplement, is launched, plus a daily media business page.
The Guardian launches its first paid-for website services, including a new digital edition of the newspaper and an advertising-free version of the guardian.co.uk site.
2004
In March, digital editions of the papers launched, allowing access to articles, images and adverts as they appeared in print. In July the Soulmates dating service interactive website goes live. The paper also introduces a weekly tabloid edition aimed at students and distributed throughout UK university campuses.
2005
The mid-sized Berliner format newspaper is launched. It becomes the UK’s first full-colour national newspaper and the first to adopt this size. The new design goes on to win numerous awards.
GU wins the best newspaper category at the 9th annual Webby Awards.
2006
Comment is Free is launched with the aim of providing ‘an open-ended space for debate, dispute, argument and agreement and to invite users to comment on everything they read’.
The Guardian switches to a ‘web-first’ approach to foreign and city news – posting it to the web as soon as it has been written, edited and subbed.
Sir Bob Phillis retires and is succeeded as GMG chief executive by Carolyn McCall, formerly chief executive of Guardian Newspapers Ltd. Guardian Newspapers and GMG Regional Newspapers are renamed Guardian News & Media and GMG Regional Media to reflect their multimedia nature.
GMG Radio acquires Century FM and Saga Radio.
2007
GU undergoes a redesign with interactive content, images, graphics and video given greater importance.
In October the Guardian launches guardianamerica.com, a new site designed to meet the needs of the paper’s growing US audience.
GMG sells 49.9% of Trader Media Group to Apax Partners in a deal that values TMG at £1.3 billion.
2008
Guardian News & Media (GNM) moves to its new home at Kings Place.
Guardian Unlimited is rebranded guardian.co.uk. ABCe figures reveal it as the first UK newspaper website to break 20 million unique users a month.
GMG announces the acquisition of Emap’s business-to-business arm (now called Top Right Group) in partnership with Apax.
The Scott Trust becomes a limited company in order to strengthen the protection it offers the Guardian.
Guardian News & Media acquires ContentNext Media, the US business-to-business media company, which publishes the influential paid Content.org website.
2009
GNM launches Open Platform, a service that allows partners to take the entire content of articles and statistics for free and build their own applications.
A Guardian App for iPhone and iPod Touch is launched and environmentguardian.co.uk goes live.
2010
GNM launches Extra – a unique new membership scheme for readers.
In March guardian.co.uk launches a new-look front page; in May theguardian.com/law; in September, global development; and November a new mobile site.
GMG announces the sale of GMG Regional Media, publisher of the Manchester Evening News, to Trinity Mirror. The deal ends more than 80 years of common ownership of the Guardian and the Manchester Evening News.
Andrew Miller is appointed chief executive of GMG, succeeding Carolyn McCall.
2011
The Guardian is named Newspaper of the Year at the Press Awards in April for its partnership with WikiLeaks, which produced the leaked US embassy cables.
In June, GNM reveals plans to become a digital-first organisation, placing open journalism on the web at the heart of its strategy.
As part of the strategy GNM launches a new US homepage, guardiannews.com, from its digital operation in New York.
A new Guardian app for iPhone and iPod Touch is launched in January and the app for Android and Windows phones follows in September and October. the Guardian iPad edition launches in October. In September the Guardian unveils its first Facebook app.
2012
In May the new Guardian Students website is launched.
2013
In April GuardianWitness is launched, allowing readers to contribute to live news and other content.
Guardian Australia is launched in May.
The website moves to theguardian.com in July to reflect its growing global presence.
2014
Their stories on NSA surveillance win the Guardian and Washington Post the Pulitzer prize for public service.
Record traffic exceeding 100 million monthly unique browsers is reported for theguardian.com in September.
The Guardian launches a new membership scheme.
2015
The Guardian unveils a new site for readers in the UK and across the world. (A US version launched in October 2014, Australia in November).
Katharine Viner is appointed Guardian editor-in-chief.
David Pemsel succeeds Andrew Miller as chief executive of GMG.
2016
The Guardian publishes on the Panama Papers – an investigation into an unprecedented leak of 11.5m files from the database of the world’s fourth biggest offshore law firm, Mossack Fonseca.
2017
The Guardian Media Group announces that the Guardian and the Observer print titles will move to tabloid formats in early 2018.
In October the Guardian celebrates a milestone of 500,000 regular paying supporters, made up of members and subscribers across print and digital.
In November The Guardian and 95 media partners worldwide carry out a special investigation into the Paradise Papers – a leak of 13.4m files from two offshore service providers and 19 tax havens’ company registries.
2018
In January, the newspaper is relaunched in a new tabloid format, with a redesign that also covers the mobile, apps and desktop editions of the website. A fuller redesign of the Guardian Weekly as a news magazine followed in October 2018.
2019
On 1 May The Guardian announces that it has successfully completed its three-year turnaround strategy by breaking even for the first time in recent history.
2023
The Scott Trust publishes a comprehensive report on the Guardian’s historical connections with transatlantic slavery, sharing an apology and its restorative justice response.