Topic summary
Poor relief
Extracted from the Wikipedia article Poor relief in England.
End of the Elizabethan era to 1750
The Poor Relief Act 1597 provided the first complete code of poor relief, established overseers of the poor and was later amended by the Poor Relief Act 1601, which was one of the longest-lasting achievements of her reign, left unaltered until 1834. This law made each parish responsible for supporting the legitimately needy in their community. It taxed wealthier citizens of the country to provide basic shelter, food and clothing, though they were not obligated to provide for those outside of their community.