WORCESTER witnessed a riot on its streets this week 200 years ago as mobs stormed local bakers' shops in protest at a dire shortage of bread.

It came at the peak of public protests and anger over severe nationwide shortages of essential supplies such as bread and potatoes due to a long drought and the high price of wheat after poor crops.

Berrow's Journal of August 1800 explained: "We are concerned to state that a large number of misguided individuals attacked most of the bakers' shops in this city on Monday night and did considerable damage by breaking windows etc.

"A scarcity of bread having been experienced for some days, the populace very erroneously considered the bakers to have been the sole cause of it and therefore vented their fury upon the promises of the latter.

"However, it appears, after a thorough investigation by the Mayor and Magistrates, that the scarcity of bread proceeded from a cause no-one could control. This was the stopping of many of the corn mills for want of water after the long drought of this summer. Not only did this diminish the stock of flour in the hands of our city bakers but also prevented the sellers of bread in neighbouring villages from baking altogether.

"People from the country came into the city to buy bread and added to the clamour for it. The Worcester bakers, though producing twice their normal output, simply could not meet the demand."

The Journal warned that the Mayor and Magistrates would take stern action against any repeat of the mob attacks on local bakers. "They intend to protect to the utmost of their power those upright tradesman from outrage."

The same Journal edition of two centuries ago very much hoped Worcestershire was emerging from two months of drought. "Some fine showers fell yesterday and on this day, and a continuance these for a day or two more will renovate vegetation and prevent a premature scenery of bare and withered branches.

Moving ahead to 100 years ago, the Journal reported on a summer of "intense heat and storms," but stressed that the crop harvests in Worcestershire were better than average, and there was a glut of plums.

Nevertheless, county farmers and growers were unhappy about the high costs they were having to bear in selling their produce.

"Crowquill," in his Journal comment column, stated: "It is at a time like this that the burden of heavy railway rates is particularly felt. Foreigners can send goods thousands of miles across the seas and into the heart of our country for a good deal less money than home producers have to pay to have their produce conveyed from one part to another of this little island of ours.

"It is not surprising that every now and then there is a chorus of complaint about railway charges. The pity is that there is little hope of any satisfactory reduction in the future."

Interestingly, Worcestershire growers aired similar protests about unfair foreign competition 50 years later after a summer of heavy showers, humidity and potato blight.

The Journal of 1950 explained: "County growers are worried about the low prices their crops are fetching, particularly as more than half the produce in the shops of this nation is foreign."

The same week, Berrow's reported on an unusual fire at the Mug House Inn, Claines. "An overheated condenser in a radiogram cause a fire at this public house on Monday night. The licensee Mr John Trow spotted the smoke and called the fire brigade who extinguished the outbreak in 20 minutes using a stirrup pump. There was little damage to the Mug House though the radiogram was ruined.