Editing Workhouse (section)

===Medieval to Early Modern period===
The [[Statute of Cambridge 1388]] was an attempt to address the labour shortage caused by the [[Black Death]], a devastating [[pandemic]] that killed about one-third of England's population.  The new law fixed wages and restricted the movement of labourers, as it was anticipated that if they were allowed to leave their [[civil parish|parishes]] for higher-paid work elsewhere then wages would inevitably rise.  According to historian Derek Fraser, the fear of social disorder following the plague ultimately resulted in the state, and not a "personal Christian charity", becoming responsible for the support of the poor.  The resulting laws against [[Vagrancy (people)|vagrancy]] were the origins of state-funded relief for the poor. From the 16th century onwards a distinction was legally enshrined between those who were willing to work but could not, and those who were able to work but would not: between "the genuinely unemployed and the idler".  Supporting the destitute was a problem exacerbated by King [[Henry VIII of England|Henry VIII]]'s [[Dissolution of the Monasteries]], which began in 1536.  They had been a significant source of charitable relief, and provided a good deal of direct and indirect employment.{{sfnp|Higginbotham|2006|p=9|ps=none}} The [[Poor Act 1575]] went on to establish the principle that if the able-bodied poor needed support, they had to work for it.{{sfnp|Fraser|2009|p=39|ps=none}}

The [[Act for the Relief of the Poor 1601]] made parishes legally responsible for the care of those within their boundaries who, through age or infirmity, were unable to work.  The Act essentially classified the poor into one of three groups.  It proposed that the able-bodied be offered work in a [[house of correction]] (the precursor of the workhouse), where the "persistent idler" was to be punished.{{sfnp|Fraser|2009|p=40|ps=none}}  It also proposed the construction of housing for the [[Classifications of poor used in the Poor Law system|impotent poor]], the old and the infirm, although most assistance was granted through a form of [[poor relief]] known as [[outdoor relief]]&nbsp;– money, food, or other necessities given to those living in their own homes, funded by a local [[poor rate|tax]] on the property of the wealthiest in the parish.<ref name=HigginbothamIntroduction/>