The Manchester Man traces the fall and rise of Jabez Clegg, a foundling swept away in his cradle by the River Irk in flood in 1799. In this politically significant work the narrative is set against the back-drop of the three decades from the Napoleonic Wars to the 1832 Reform Act, crucial years in Manchester's development as the world's first industrial city. It contains a vivid and highly accurate portrayal of the notorious Peterloo Massacre and...