In the early hours of Wednesday 25th March, Luddites broke into the unguarded finishing shop of Dickinson Carr & Shann in Leeds. They entered the premises through the roof, and whilst no machinery was broken, all of the finished cloth in the shop - around 18 pieces - was cut up or torn to shreds. The damage was later estimated to be between £400 and £500.
The Luddites left the shop by lowering themselves from the upper storey via a piece of cloth.
This has been compiled from a report in the Leeds Mercury of 28th March 1812 and a letter from Colonel Campbell of Leeds dated 25th March 1812, which can be found at HO 42/121.
£500 in 1812 is equivalent to £335,000 in average earnings at 2009 prices.
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