Bridewell Hospital

In 1553 Edward VI gave Bridewell Palace to City authorities and granted a royal charter to found a hospital for housing homeless children and ‘disorderly women’. The institution effectively operated as a house of correction, prison and workhouse, where physical punishment was used to reform the manners of the London poor. It was jointly administered with Bethlem Hospital after 1557. [MB]

Economic Sector: Charity

Region: England

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