In the 1790s Great Britain had undergone naval mutinies, food riots, industrial strikes, as well as rebellion in Ireland. There were also bad harvests as well as 'social dislocations' caused by industrialization. There were also radical groups that had grown up because of the French Revolution, such as the Sheffield Society, the Society of the Friends of the People, the Society for Constitutional Information, and the London Corresponding Society.

Repressive legislation was passed to both 'restrain the radical press' and to 'prohibit seditious meetings.' The writ of habeas corpus was suspended and 'a broader definition of treason was framed to curb criticism of the king, Parliament, and constitution.' Leaders of the radical movement were arrested and tried for treason; some were executed in Scotland or were transported out of the country. Some of the above listed societies were outlawed and budding trade unions were 'stifled.'

The Tories, who controlled the government from 1784 to 1830 with little interruption opposed the giving the vote to the middle and lower classes with the intent to keep themselves in power. One of the partial effects of Napoleon's Continental System was to slow British industrial growth. British exports to the continent almost stopped from July 1807 to June 1808 and from November 1810 to November 1812. Industrial production declined in 1807-1808 and in 1811. In 1812 there was industrial depression and were subject to industrial riots.

The 'commercial war with France caused inflation, high prices as well as bankruptcies. Prime Minister Spencer Percival was assassinated and violence in the country rose 'alarmingly.' Starvation was not an uncommon problem and most of the population 'lived at the subsistence level.'

These facts are seldom brought out or discussed when discussing or criticizing Napoleonic France. It wasn't all rainbows and unicorns in Great Britain during the period.