Brief description: Speech of Charles Dickens delivered at the meeting of the Administrative Reform Association, 1855
Label: Between 1853 and 1856 a war was fought by Britain and France against the Russian Empire in Crimea, which is today part of Ukraine. The war revealed a need for reform in the management of the army and government as soldiers struggled with mismanagement, lack of supplies, and disease. Dickens gave this speech at the third meeting of the Administrative Reform Association, a group advocating for political reform. He had been motivated by his frustration that bureaucratic 'red tape' and what he called "political aristocracy" were neglecting the needs of soldiers. This same war would also result in Florence Nightingale's reforms of the medical treatment for soldiers.
Collection: Library
Object number: [lib]5182
Object type: book
Production person: Dickens, Charles
Production organisation: Administrative Reform Association
Production date: 1855

Speech by Charles Dickens, 1855