4. Popular Print in a Regional Capital: Street Literature and Public Controversy in Norwich, 1701–1800

The chapter provides a case study of the popular, controversial, and ephemeral items printed and published in Norwich during the century after the establishment of printing there. For three quarters of this period Norwich was either the largest or second largest provincial city in England and enjoyed considerable prosperity. The chapter considers the types and subject matter of street literature and controversial items produced and the individuals and businesses that printed and sold them. It considers such items as controversial sermons and religious works, popular chapbooks, execution broadsides, pamphlets associated with the coming of Methodism, poll books, and literature associated with elections. During the 1790s there was also a growth in popular literature calling for political reform.