author
Sir George Nicholls
1781–1865
A key figure in 19th-century British social policy, he helped shape the Poor Law system that transformed how poverty was administered in England and Ireland. He also wrote influential histories of the English, Irish, and Scottish poor laws.
1 Audiobook
A history of the Irish poor law, in connexion with the condition of the people
by Sir George Nicholls
About the author
Born in Cornwall on 31 December 1781, Sir George Nicholls built an unusually varied career before becoming known for public administration. He worked in the East India Company, in banking, and then in local poor relief, where his experience as an overseer of the poor gave him firsthand knowledge of how the old system worked.
Nicholls became one of the central administrators of the new Poor Law after the 1834 reform in Britain. As a Poor Law Commissioner, he played a major part in organizing the new system, and he was later sent to examine and help shape poor-law arrangements in Ireland and Scotland as well. His work made him an important, if sometimes controversial, figure in the history of welfare and state policy.
He was also a substantial writer. His best-known books include histories of the English, Irish, and Scottish poor laws, works that helped define how later generations understood these reforms. Nicholls was knighted and lived until 24 March 1865.