ECHOES of the Luddite uprising still resonate in the Huddersfield area.
This year is the 200th anniversary of that rebellion by the mill machine breakers.
The Luddites were defeated by thousands of soldiers and many were hanged.
Their deaths marked the start of western industrialisation with its huge ambitions and achievements and its extremes of wealth and poverty.
The poets Byron and Shelley found inspiration in this process – and the organisers of a poetry competition hope that a new generation can find similar inspiration.
Luddites 200 wants readers to try their hand at a verse or two about the Luddites, perhaps with a modern slant. We live in a world dominated by science and technology, but are on the brink of environmental disaster.
The £40 prizes – one for under-16s, the other for over-16s – will be awarded by Middlesbrough community poet Andy Croft at the Luddite 200 festival in Huddersfield on April 28/29.
Poems can be in any style with a maximum length of 40 lines.
There will be second and third prizes of books and/or merchandise, to be confirmed on the day.
There is no entry fee and (previously unpublished) entries must go by email to huddersfieldluddites200@gmail.com or by post to Luddites 200 Organising Forum, c/o Flat 5 The Old Warehouse, Henry Street, Huddersfield, HD1 4AA before the deadline of April 14.
Don’t forget your name, address and contact details.
The poems may, with the authors’ permission, be posted on the Luddites 200 website.
For more information on the festival visit:
