Financial Crisis of the French Monarchy

Financial Crisis of the French Monarchy What was the nature of the financial crisis that faced the monarchy in 1789? The financial crisis of the French Monarchy during the 17th and 18th centuries has been an issue of controversy amongst historians, on one hand some historians do not consider the financial crisis to have been of great influence to the French revolution, whereas others believe that the financial crisis was a significant factor of the French revolution. Of the historians that believe the latter, there remains dispute over the nature of the financial crisis. There is somewhat of a classical interpretation, which maintains that the financial crisis was due to the system of taxation and privilege of France. This interpretation has been widely contested in recent years however, with a number of new factors coming to light. Historians such as Joel Felix, now speculate that the financial crisis was due to a vast number of factors such as, War, the governments policy of borrowing, finance ministers and the system of vested interest. In this essay I will examine each of these factors to deter mine what the nature of the financial crisis was, however it is my argument that despite these factors being important, evidence seems to suggest that it was nature in which the government handled the financing during the war that was the biggest contributing factor to the economic crisis. Firstly it is important to consider the crisis that the monarchy faced. In the 1780s it was suggested that the French government was burdened with a debt of 5 million livre, J. Brewer assessed that between the years of 1753 and 1764 the cost of the debt rose from 30% of ordinary revenue to 60% (Brewer, 1989). This debt was huge, however when considered against the history of the French Monarchy, which J. Bosher does in French Finances, there appears to have been deficits and debt burdens throughout, which did not amount to the financial crisis like that seen in 1789. For example Francois I began his reign with unresolved debt and borrowed heavily from Lyon bankers. Similarly Henri II ended his reign in a grand financial crisis; it seems on examination of the Bourbon monarchy, few had not struggled with finances and all had used emergency measures to control government finances. It is important, then, to understand that the situation that the French monarchy was in during the 17th and 18th century was different to the financial problems faced by previous monarchs but not new in its conception. With this in mind a clear evaluation can be made of the nature of the financial crisis of 1789. Firstly I will start with the classical interpretation that the financial crisis was caused largely by a system of taxation and privilege that drained money from the French people. Crucially the argument focuses upon the great tax burden. It was understood from this interpretation that because the first and second estates were exempt from taxation, the whole burden fell upon the third estate, and that these taxes were unusually high. There are several problems with this theory of tax burden upon the third estate as an explanation for the financial crisis. Firstly the Cahier de Dolances evidences that most complaints about taxation were concerned with the inequalities of the tax system as well as collection, complaints about tax burdens namely concerned seigneurial or feudal dues that did not contribute to the Kings annual revenue. Secondly a study by Peter Mathias and Patrick OBrien, which focused on respective tax rates of Britain and France, found that in fact the British were more heavily taxed then the French (Felix, 2006). This evidence suggests that the financial crisis did not come from a reaction to a tax burden. But what of privilege? It is clear that the system of privilege made the financial system of France unjust; also privilege was a crucial part of the ancien regime. Within this opinion it is argued that the privileged orders of France blocked reform methods that would have enabled the monarchy to receive more revenue and correct its huge deficits. It is true that there was opposition to tax reforms from the nobility, and example of this comes from the Parelments rejection of the third vingtieme, which led to Marion commenting, they only had self-interests at heart'[1]. This view point that the privileged sort to block reform to maintain their lifestyle is one that many classical historians attribute to the fall of the ancien regime, and it does enable one to link the issue of privilege to the issue of tax reform, but it does seem to be lacking in some crucial elements that need to be accounted for when evaluating the financial crisis. Firstly, the issue of privilege confuses taxation with finance as Joel Felix points out, it doesnt account for the lack of financial disclosure which caused the finance ministers difficulty in securing loans'[2]. Secondly, the argument that the privilege blocked reforms for selfish interest is destroyed by the Cahier de Dolances which shows that with rare exceptions the members of the nobility ha d unanimously expressed the desire to give up pecuniary privileges and become full'[3]. Thirdly, and probably the most damning criticism of this classical interpretation is that the clergy and nobility would have only added 32-36 million livres well below what was needed to balance the budget'[4]. It seems obvious then, that neither the tax burden nor the system of privilege can be attributed to the financial crisis of 1789, what needs to be considered is the system of taxation itself? It has been suggested that the labyrinth of taxes, franchises and laws amounted to the most powerful block of Monarchys desire to tax more equitably'[5]. The Crown relied on the service of intermediaries to manage. These agents were largely independent and often engaged in profit making enterprises. The financers controlled the borrowing process and had a vested interest in keeping the French finances the way they were. Not only would they lend money to the King at high interest rates, which I shall deal with later, but they took money away from the Kings revenue by charging to collect taxes. An example of this is the Farmers General, a collection of private entrepreneurs that made profit in collecting taxes, arranging payments and money transfers and lending to the Crown. Typically they made a profit of 10 25% or more of the revenue collected'[6] for the Crown, Darigrand suggested for this reason that there was no need for tax reform, just a means of recovering what was lost from collection'[7], he suggested that from 15,000 livre collected 3,000 was left for the Royal Treasury'[8]. Roussel also made this distinction and suggested that the defect of the current financial system was the inability to close the gap between what people paid in taxes and what the King received'[9]. Collection agents also strongly opposed the idea of French Bank system, The accountants, Farmers General and other financers would not tolerate a Central bank system because it would have cut down their profits'[10], which would have helped the French monarchy secure finance dramatically, I shall assess the consequence of this later on. Here it is necessary to make a comparison between Britain and France in terms of tax collection, which many historians such as White, Riley and Bosher, do when evaluating French finances. In Britain tax collection was in the hands of centrally appointed government officials, instead of the French system using independent tax collectors under the Farmers General, who were largely untrained and did not come under the control of the King. The British system was also largely centralised unlike the French system which varied according to region which made revenue policing and administration difficult (Brewer, 1989). It is clear that the tax system in France did contribute more than any other element considered so far to the financial crisis. Other than what I have considered already one of the most dramatic elements of the taxation system was the affect it had on public opinion. There was a deep sense of hatred for the Farmers General within French society, this coupled with the secrecy over French finances bread an attitude that considered the financial crisis to be a result of lavish spending of the government and poor management of finance, rather than other more important factors, J.Felix comes to this conclusion about the public, public who continually blamed the deficits on poor royal administration and expenditure of court rather than on cost of war and burden on privilege'[11]. Despite the damaging effect the taxation system had on French finances it should be considered that the Farmers General in reality took no greater percentage than any other tax collection agency of this period in history, with this considered it seems necessary to evaluate Louis XVI management of his finances and his contribution to the financial crisis. It was commented that France was not overburdened by taxes, but the political economy constrained the ability to finance state expenditure. By this I am not implying that the reason for the financial crisis was due to the Kings lavish spending at court, however the King did undertake in lavish spending in terms of Wars, and it is this which seems to be the most damaging factor concerning French finances. There are many issues to consider when looking at Frances involvement in wars. Many underestimate the impact of war on a countries economic situation, as war was often fought on foreign soil or at sea and is therefore less directly harmful to a kingdoms domestic economy'[12], however an in depth look at the nature at which the French government financed wars provides many answers in understanding the financial crisis. Some historians have said that the financial crisis was largely attributed to wars. The War of League of Augsburg 1688 91 and the War of Spanish Succession 1701-13 for example both occurred during the first 25 years of a cycle of economic depression which resulted in financial difficulties for the monarchy early on. Later in the 17th and 18th centuries three major wars contributed massively to a strain on the government finances. The war of Austrian Succession 1740-8, The Seven Years War 1756-63 and the American War 1778-83, overall the French were involved in 22 years of war compared with 21years peace'[13]. The costs of these wars were huge and resulted in a huge increase in government expenditure. An example of this is the War of Austrian succession in which expenditure exceeded normal income by 112million by 1748[14]. This resulted, as Joel Felix points out, in 8 years the government had to secure a sum of money that without war it would have taken 12years to collect'[15]. Obvio usly war increased the strain on government finance, but it was the governments handling of this that resulted in real financial crisis. The government relied on borrowing to finance these wars, especially in the 17th and 18th centuries, this resulted in numerous problems. The French system of undisclosed financial records and their lack of bank system meant that securing loans was difficult for financial ministers; the interest rates of loans grew according to the length of the war, accompanied by a general lack of confidence lenders had in the French finances. This meant that finance ministers had to offer higher interest rates and short term loans to lenders in order to generate enough revenue, for example Necker offered loans at rates between 6.5 9% (Felix, 2006). This system of lending meant that peacetime became dangerous territory in terms of French finances as they could no longer revenue higher taxes on the public but had large debts to pay off after the war. In respect of this, another issue comes to light, the French public who were already unsatisfied with the system of taxation were unwilling to an increase in taxes come peacetime, and also the need for immediate credit required to fight a war, meant that an increasing demand was put upon finance ministers to finance the war through credit. This is what finance minister Necker did with the American War. Although this solved the difficulty of increasing taxes it left the impression that it was not necessary to increase taxes to finance a war, which was further compounded when Necker published his Compte Rendu au Roi which showed a balanced budget neglecting to show the deficit caused by the war. The result of these measures taken by the French government to secure money for war was tha t it was increasingly incurring more debt without gaining an increase in revenue. Considering this it is again fitting to compare French finances with British finances, for in the same period of time Britain encountered 5 wars but enjoyed a system of adequate finance due to superior system of credit'[16], despite the fact that they too borrowed in order to finance war. There are several reasons for this; firstly the interest rates the British paid were far less than the French, at 3% (Bosher, 1970). This explains why; when Necker estimated the debt of 3,400,000,000 after the American war was equal to England he was wrong, as France was paying double the interest rate of Britain (Bosher, 1970). Secondly, the British had a different system in terms of administration and government control, and also a Bank, it left parliament in control of finances, giving them the control to raise taxes in order to suppress a deficit providing investment confidence. The same is true of its Bank system; it gave the British an effective way of raising funds. It is therefore understand able that Britain was preferable to France, as in Britain the debt was the states, whereas in France the debt was Royal (Bosher, 1970). By far the war had the most impact on the French finances; it pushed the deficit into a sum so large that it could not be counter-acted by increased taxation. It can therefore be used as an explanation of the financial crisis of 1789, but as I have demonstrated in this essay, it is not merely one factor that caused the financial crisis of 1789 but several. What needs to be considered is that it was not Frances involvement in wars that caused the financial crisis, but more the way the French government handled its finances. As can be seen the combined factors of the French keeping its financial details a secret from the public, the French borrowing at high rates, and the governments commitment to a system of privilege that seems to have formed the nature of the financial crisis. This conclusion of there being several factors that formed the nature of the financial crisis seems to have arisen fairly recently, one that modern historians draw upon more than old. J.C.Riley The Seven Years War and the Old Regime Page 212 Princeton University Press 1986 Joel Felix The Financial Origins of the French Revolution Page 44 Macmillian 2006 Joel Felix The Financial Origins of the French Revolution Page 45- Macmillian 2006 E.N. White The French Revolution and the Politics of Government Finance, 1770 -1815 Page 8 The Journal of Economic History, Vol. 55, No. 2 (Jun., 1995) Joel Felix The Financial Origins of the French Revolution Page 47 Macmillian 2006 J. Bosher French Finances Page 9 Cambridge University Press 1970 J.C.Riley- The Seven Years War and the Old Regime Page 204 Princeton University Press 1986 J.C.Riley The Seven Years War and the Old Regime Page 204 Princeton University Press 1986 J.C.Riley The Seven Years War and the Old Regime Page 194 Princeton University Press 1986 J.Bosher French Finances Page 17 Cambridge University Press 1970 J. Felix The Origins of the French Revolution page 60 Macmillian 2006 J.Felix The Origins of the French Revolution page 40 Macmillian 2006 J.Felix The Origins of the French Revolution page 40 Macmillian 2006 J.Felix The Origins of the French Revolution page 41 Macmillian 2006 J.Felix The Origins of the French Revolution page 41- Macmillian 2006 J.Bosher French Finances page 23 Cambridge University Press 1970

World War One â€Life in the Trenches

World war one –life in the trenches When men volunteered to fight in world war one, on the Western front, little did they know about the conditions they would be living and fighting in the trenches, and for how long this would all go on for. The Great War lasted for four years even though many believed they would be home by Christmas 1914 on till 11/11/1918(today know better as remembrance day). (See source A) Even if the men did know about many of the conditions in the trench they would most likely have still joined as many were pressured by two ways to join. irstly by women as they would press little white feathers into their hand another way was they would walk past with a desecrated look in their faces as described by Rifleman Norman Demuth in source B (see source B) and secondly by propagandas(posters)see sources C,D and E for some examples. Even though the war lasted longer than expected the conditions didn’t get any better for soldiers as the shortage of food got worse, diseases became more common e. g.Trench foot (where your foot rotted off in your boot), more rats moved into the trenches, no way to remove toilet waste from the trenches and corpses lined many of the sides and floors of the trenches helping to spread disease. It got so bad in the trenches many solider turned to shooting themselves so they could be sent home and see their friend and family they had left behind. But if you were found guilty of a self-inflicted wound (SIW) in the British Army the ultimate penalty was capital (death by firing squad. )But 3,894 British soldiers were found guilty of SIW but none were executed but instead sent to prison for lengthy periods.Basic trench and layouts(see sources f and G) The first job of any soldiers getting to the western front who wanted to survive the machine gun fire from the triple alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy) was to dig down, making trenches. Frontline trenches were usually about seven foot deep and six foot wi de. The front of the trench was known as the parapet. The top two or three feet of the parapet and the parados (the rear side of the trench) would consist of a thick line of sandbags to absorb any bullets or shell fragments.In a trench of this depth it was impossible to see over the top, so a two or three-foot ledge known as a fire-step, was added. Trenches were not dug in straight lines. Otherwise, if the enemy had a successive offensive, and got into your trenches, they could shoot straight along the line. Each trench was dug with alternate fire-bays and traverses. Duck-boards were also placed at the bottom of the trenches to protect soldiers from problems such as trench foot. Soldiers also made dugouts and funk holes in the side of the trenches to give them some protection from the weather and enemy fire.The front-line trenches were also protected by barbed-wire entanglements and machine-gun posts. Short trenches called saps were dug from the front-trench into No-Man's Land. The sap-head, usually about 30 yards forward of the front-line, were then used as listening posts. Behind the front-line trenches were support and reserve trenches. The three rows of trenches covered between 200 and 500 yards of ground. Communication trenches, were dug at an angle to the frontline trench and was used to transport men, equipment and food supplies. Food in the trenchesIn the trench food was basic but was for many it was better than what families were eating back at home. Daily rations for a British soldier consisted of 20 ounces of bread or 16 ounces of flour or 4 ounces of oatmeal instead of bread, 3 ounces of cheese, 5/8 ounces of tea, 4 ounces of jam or 4 ounces of dried fruit ,? ounce of salt, 1/36 ounce of pepper, 1/20 ounce of mustard, 8 ounces of fresh vegetables or 1/10 gill lime if vegetables not issued, ? gill of rum or 1 pint of porter , 20 ounces of tobacco, 1/3 ounces of chocolate (optional), 4 ounces of butter/margarine and 2 ounces of dried vegetables.One B ritish soldier said (source H) Tinned bully beef was the usual. we were always hungry. many times we only got one slice of bread,often without butter or jam,for breakfast and hard biscuits for tea. they were so hard that you had to put them on a hard surface and smash them with a stone. Meaning many did not get what they should have. Weapons One thing that played a big part in the war was the weapons They used * Handguns (e. g Webley Revolver, Webley Self-loading, Webley-Fosbery Automatic Revolver, Enfield revolver, Colt M1911 , Colt New Service, Smith ; Wesson M1917 revolver, Smith ; Wesson Model 10, Smith amp; Wesson Triple Lock, Lancaster pistol, Colt Model 1903 Pocket Hammerless, and Mauser C96) * Rifles(e. g. Lee-Enfield, Lee-Metford, Pattern 1914 Enfield, Martini-Enfield, Martini-Henry, Ross rifle , Winchester Model 1894, Winchester Model 1895, Winchester Model 1907, Type 30 rifle, Type 38 rifle, Type 38 cavalry rifle, Mauser-Vergueiro, andPeriscope rifle) * Machine Guns(e. g. Vickers machine gun, Maxim gun, Lewis Gun, Hotchkiss Mark I, M1895 Colt-Browning machine gun and M1917 Browning machine gun) * Shotguns(e. g Sawn-off shotgun and Double-barreled shotgun) * Anti-tank weapons(e. . Elephant gun) * Grenades(e. g Grenade, No 1 Hales; Rifle grenades, 2, 3, 4 Hales; No. s 5, 23, 36 Mills; No. 6 Grenade; No. s 8, 9 Double Cylinder Jam Tin; No. 13 Battye; No. 15 Ball grenade; No. 27 Smoke Grenade and No. 34 Egg grenade) * Mortars(e. g 2 inch Medium Mortar, Newton 6 inch Mortar, Stokes Mortar and Livens Projector) * Support Guns(E. g Vickers-Crayford rocket gun * Swords(e. g 1897 Pattern, 1908 and 1912 Pattern Cavalry Swords and Claymore) * Bayonets(e. g M1907 bayonet) See sources G-L for examples of weapons. DiseasesIn the trenches there was a lot of disease from a common cold to trench foot(foot rotting off). 1. Trench foot- Many soldiers fighting in World War One suffered from severe trench foot. Trench foot is an infection of the feet caused by cold, wet and insanitary conditions. In the trenches soldiers stood fur hours on end in waterlogged trenches without being able to remove wet socks or boots. The soilders feet would gradually go numb and the skin would turn red or blue. If untreated, trench foot could turn gangrenous and the result was amputation. 2. Shell shock-Early symptoms of shell shock included tiredness, irritability, giddiness, lack of concentration and headaches. Eventually the men suffered mental breakdowns making it impossible for them to remain in the front-line. Some came to the conclusion that the soldiers condition was caused by the enemy's heavy artillery. These doctors argued that a bursting shell creates a vacuum, and when the air rushes into this vacuum it disturbs the cerebro-spinal fluid and this can upset the working of the brain. 3. Trench mouth- It was a severe form of gingivitis that causes painful, infected, bleeding gums and ulcerations. . Trench fever is a bacterial infection that causes repeated cycles of high fever. Two different types of bacteria cause Trench fever. Bartonella quintana is carried by body lice and Bartonella henselae is carried by ticks. Symptoms are headaches, skin rashes, inflamed eyes and leg pains. Rats In the trenches Rats gathered in their millions infested everywere in trenches. There were two main types of rats in the trenches the brown and the black rat. Both were despised but the brown rat was especially feared. Gorging themselves on human they could grow to the size of a cat. Toilets Loss of life Conclusion

Informative Speech Essay

A List of Informative Speech Topics: Pick Only Awesome Ideas! Just when you thing you’re way past through the question â€Å"How to write an essay?†, another one comes. That’s the thing students desperately Google like â€Å"What is a informative speech?† – and, believe experts, this is something you’ll definitely need some professional help in. Informative speaking is a speech on completely new issue. Tell your audience something they have never known! Now that you know the answer to the question â€Å"What is informative speaking?†, it’s time to check a great informative essay topics list – check the modern concerns and issues to deal with! A List of Informative Speech Topics: Healthcare and Medicine. First of all, check the informative essay topic ideas on health – that’s the hottest ticket for this season! The Variety of Healthy Lifestyle Choices: It Is Time to Take Care of Yourself; The Connection between Health and Happiness: Playing the â€Å"Glad† Game; Modern Health Care: New Issues, Approaches and Technologies; Mental Hygiene: Taking Proper Care of Your Brain; Healthy Eating vs. Eating Disorders: What Causes Anorexia and Bulimia and How to Fight Both; Healthy Habits and How to Acquire Them: Be Careful What You Eat; Healthy Child Development: New Trends and Theories. Holdd on – there’s a bunch of other topics for informative essay ahead! A List of Informative Speech Topics: Teaching. Education Issues In case you’re looking for a couple of informative topics for presentation of an educational issue, consider the following suggestions: Education in America vs. Education in Europe: The Differences and the Similarities; What Makes Education Important: The Praise of Literacy; Education and Unemployment: The Reasonability of Studying; The Difference between Education and Personality Development; Education Helps to Reach the Career Goals†¦ and Shape Them; Technological Advances in Promoting a Better Quality of Education; Current Issues in Education and the Means to Solve Them; Education in the Groups of ESL-Speakers: Challenges and Solutions. With these informative presentation topics, you are always on top! A List of Informative Speech Topics: in the Rhythm of Waltz. Among the most popular informative speaking topics, the ones concerning music must be really exciting. So why don’t you try some of these ideas: Musical Instruments and Character Peculiarities: The Melancholic Prefer Violins; The Role of Music in Society: A Means to Spur Creativity or Calm People Down? Music Therapy and Its effects: Another Panacea for the Humankind; Music as a Mixture of Art and Industry: the XXI Century Pop Culture; Musical Theater as the Most Unforgettable Experience: Something You Never Knew about It; The Most Notable Person in the Music History: Changing the World in a Moment; The Tendencies in the Music genres Development: XXI Century; Musical Expression: Definition and the Modern Interpretation. A List of Informative Speech Topics: What Makes Your Mouth Water In case you’re looking for the essay topics and ideas concerning nutrition, there’s a plenty of wonderful speeches for you to choose: The Most Exotic Food Ever: A Snapshoot of the World Culture; Food Additives, Their Effects and Threats: Be Careful What You Eat; Food Chains: the Mechanisms, the Efficiency and the Revenues; Providing Food Security: Learning What Meals Consist of; Food Habits in Different Countries: Learning the Peculiarities of Etiquette; Food and Nutrition: The Differences and the Similarities between the Two; Food Resources in Impoverished Countries: Solving the Problem. Follow these informative writing prompts, and you’ll create incredible essay writing topics! A List of Informative Speech Topics: Essay and Thesis Samples. Writing an essay, you’ll need a thesis– one of its most important elements, so take a glance at the thesis statement examples below: Thesis Statement #1 Because of the increasing impact which the R’n’B and Indi genres has on the audience, it can be suggested that the main tendency of the XXI century music is going to be a cross between the two. Thesis Statement #2 Despite the abundance of the information concerning the threat of environmental pollution, it is not the latter, but the lack of resources which is likely to threaten the humankind. Finally, check this excerpt — one of the best informative essay examples you can ever come across! [†¦] In the XXI Century, there is hardly a single sci-fi idea which has not been turned real yet. Even the craziest idea ever, the concept of invisibility was finally put into practice. However, despite the numerous achievements of the humankind, the ability to turn people or things transparent is yet a dream. However, with the help of the recent developments the dream is likely to turn into reality in the nearest future. The first issue which needs clarifying is the difference between invisibility and transparency. [†¦] Congratulations – now you’re ready to write the informative speech of your dream!

Social factors underpinning poor health and how they can be addressed in Hackney, London. - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 9 Words: 2719 Downloads: 7 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Medicine Essay Type Analytical essay Level High school Did you like this example? It is well-established that social factors à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" including education, economic participation and access to health services à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" have a considerable impact on a persons physical and mental health outcomes (World Health Organisation, 2015: np). Addressing these social factors underpins effective responses to poor health (World Health Organisation, 2015: np). This paper provides a critical overview of the social factors which contribute to poor health outcomes in one borough in London, England. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Social factors underpinning poor health and how they can be addressed in Hackney, London." essay for you Create order It then discusses how these social factors can be addressed to improve health outcomes in this borough. The borough selected for analysis in this paper is Hackney. Hackney is located in north London. The borough has a population of approximately 263,150 (Hackney Council, 2015a: p. 1). It is socio-culturally diverse, though the largest ethnic group, comprising 36.2% of the population, is White British and the majority of people speak English (Hackney Council, 2015a: p. 1). Hackney is divided into 137 Lower Super Output Areas (LSOAs), each containing approximately 1,500 people (Hackney Council, 2014b: p. 1); these LSOAs allow for the close monitoring of population health and social data. Hackney consistently reports poor health outcomes in a variety of domains, and it is recognised that these health outcomes are underpinned by a complex interplay of social factors (Hackney Council, 2014b). The first of the social factors contributing to poor health outcomes in Hackney to be explo red in this paper is education. Education is an important social determinant of health because it enables people to be health literate à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" that is, to access, understand and use health information to improve their health (Kilgour, Matthews, Christian, Shire, 2015: p. 487). Currently, the rate of educational attainment in Hackney is high, with the proportion of students obtaining GCSEs, approximately 58%, comparable with the national average (Hackney Council, 2014a: p. 18). However, Hackney has a history of educational disadvantage, and some LSOAs in Hackney are still considered to be in the top 20% of the most educationally-deprived in Britain (Hackney Council, 2014b: p. 9). Indeed, the number of adults in Hackney with no qualifications, approximately 9.1%, is higher than the national average (Hackney Council, 2015a: p. 3). As noted by Kilgour et al. (2015, p. 488), health literacy is directly correlated with positive health attitudes, behaviours and outcomes. Subsequ ently, the attainment of a lower standard of education à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" in the UK, particularly in the primary years à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" and, therefore, lower health literacy increases a persons risk of a range of negative health outcomes (Albert Davia, 2011: p. 163). In the UK, standard of education is directly linked to a persons level of economic participation, including their prospects for employment and level of income à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" all important social determinants of health (Borooah Mangan, 2008: p. 351). Educational disadvantage in Hackney is closely related to economic disadvantage. Rates of unemployment in Hackney are 8.1%, compared with a national average of just 6.2%, and in Hackney another 3% of the population identify as unemployed job-seekers (Hackney Council, 2015a: p. 3). Hackney ranks within the top 10% of the most economically deprived boroughs nationally and, in terms of household income, 13% of its LSOAs rank in the top 5% of the most deprived nationa lly (Hackney Council, 2014c: p. 2). Studies have found that, in the UK and elsewhere, unemployment and job insecurity are directly correlated with health in all domains, including physical health (Puig-Barrachina, Malmusi, Martenez Benach, 2011: p. 459; Hergenrather, Zeglin McGuire-Kuletz, 2015: p. 2). In the UK, there is a strong relationship between economic disadvantage and a lack of access to nutritionally-appropriate foods, and this underpins poor health outcomes (Hamer Mishra, 2010: p. 491). Indeed, many people on low incomes in the UK consume cheap, easily-accessible fast food diets characterised by a high intake of saturated fat, leading to higher rates of obesity in economically disadvantaged regions (Hamer Mishra, 2010: p. 491; Estrade, Dick, Crawford, Jepson, Ellaway McNeill, 2015: p. 793). In Hackney, approximately 23% of adults and 26% of children are overweight or obese; this is slightly below the national average; however Hackney Council still identifies obesi ty as a significant burden on the regions health system (Hackney Council, 2015b: p. 55; Hackney Council, 2015c: p. 67). It is well established that obesity significantly predisposes people to a range of poor health outcomes. Indeed, in Hackney the prevalence of obesity-related diseases such as cancer, diabetes mellitus, stroke, hypertension and cardiovascular disease are either comparable to or above London averages (Hackney Council, 2014f: p. 81-110). Unemployment and lower disposable income also result in reduced access to appropriate housing, and this is another key social determinant of health. Hackney has a greater number of overcrowded households, including those lacking at least one bedroom, more temporary accommodation and higher levels of homelessness than other economically-comparable boroughs in London (Hackney Council, 2014d: p 6; Hackney Council, 2014e: p. 6). Adding to this problem is the fact that housing affordability in Hackney has declined significantly in the p ast five years (Hackney Council, 2014a: p. 20; Hackney Council, 2015a: p. 2). Access to appropriate housing can be considered a social determinant of health in the UK because it is correlated with mental health (Barratt, Green Speed, 2015: p. 107; Lidell Guinea, 2015: p. 191). Though there are complexities in terms of drawing a direct causal relationship between socioeconomic disadvantage and mental illness, it is well-established that mental illness is a considerable problem for socioeconomically disadvantaged people in the UK (Mangalore, Knapp, Jenkins 2007, p. 1037). Some LSOAs in Hackney have rates of serious mental illness, including schizophrenia and bipolar affective disorder, as high as 3% (Hackney Council, 2014e: p. 7). Hackneys young, transient and socio-culturally diverse population contributes to the high rates of mental illness in the borough (Hackney Council, 2014e: p. 5). In Hackney, socioeconomic disadvantage à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" and particularly unemployment and housing instability à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" is strongly correlated with psychiatric admission and suicide (Hackney Council, 2014e: p. 6). Poor mental health also has effects on physical health. As noted by Hackney Council (2014e: p. 60), a person with a mental health disorder in Hackney is more likely to experience comorbidities such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus and other systemic disorders. In addition to mental illness, poverty is strongly correlated with substance misuse in Hackney (Hackney Council, 2014d: p 6). Because it leads to a range of poor physical and mental health outcomes, substance misuse can itself be considered a poor health outcome. Substance misuse is a significant problem in Hackney; indeed, the rates of people claiming medical benefits for alcoholism and attending inpatient treatment programs for the misuse of drugs, particularly opiates, in Hackney is higher than the averages for both London and England (Hackney   Council, 2014d: p . 6). High-risk behaviours associated with substance misuse, such as binge drinking, and rates of hospital admission for substance misuse are higher in Hackney than in London generally (Hackney Council, 2014d: p. 7). Whilst the rate of death from substance misuse in Hackney is decreasing, it is still considerably higher than the national average and poses a significant cost to the health care system (Hackney Council, 2014d: pp. 6-7). Rates of smoking in Hackney, at around 25%, are also higher than national averages (Hackney Council, 2015b: pp. 47-50). It is well-established that smoking, as with substance misuse in general, predisposes people to a range of poor health outcomes; indeed, in Hackney there is a comparatively high prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease linked to smoking (Hackney Council, 2014f: p. 92). There is one final reason why socioeconomic disadvantage may be considered a social determinant of health: both in the UK and elsewhere, socioeconomic disa dvantage reduces a persons capacity to access health services (Hanratty, Zhang Whitehead, 2007, p. 89). Whilst ease of access to health services in Hackney is unknown, 57% of adults using social care services in Hackney report having less access to these services than they would like (Hackney Council, 2014e: p. 6). Reduced access to health care services, including both primary (preventive) and tertiary (treatment) services, logically underpins poor health outcomes. As noted earlier in this paper, responding effectively to poor health outcomes involves addressing the social factors which underpin these outcomes (World Health Organisation, 2015: np). Because education is one of the key social health determinants and is directly related to many other determinants, including economic participation, addressing education must be a focus. Hackney Councils Five Year Vision for Education is centred on Hackneys schools, which are already performing at a standard above the national av erage (Hackney Council, 2012). There is a need to instead, target educational initiatives towards the considerable number of adults in Hackney who lack formal education. In the UK context, self-management education in particular has proven to be effective in improving health outcomes (Lorig, Holman Halsted, 2003: p. 1). In addition to education, improving economic participation is an important consideration in improving health outcomes in Hackney. Hackney Council (2010: p. 5) is critical of the effects of national unemployment welfare programs for people in Hackney, noting rising costs of living in Hackney, including increasing healthcare-associated costs, make welfare benefits appear more attractive than employment to some. Though it is beyond the scope of this paper, the benefits of national welfare reform on rates of economic participation and, subsequently, health should be considered. In the short-term, however, evidence suggests that welfare-to-work programs à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â ‚¬Å" such as Hackneys Pathways to Work program, which supports the unemployed to become job-ready à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" may be effective in increasing economic participation (Hackney Council, 2010: p. 5). In the UK, research indicates that such interventions are most effective when they are delivered in combination with physical and mental health services, thus conclusively breaking the cycle of poor health and economic participation (Hackney Council, 2010: p. 5; Ceolta-Smith, Salway, Tod, 2015: p. 254) Addressing other issues underpinning the complex interplay between socioeconomic disadvantage and poor health outcomes is also important. As obesity underpins many poor health outcomes for people in Hackney, addressing obesity through exercise and nutrition interventions should be a focus. The proportion of people in Hackney taking part in structured physical activity programs is considerably higher than the national average, and this is encouraging (Hackney Council, 2014e: p. 65). H owever, providing safe spaces for exercise is an important consideration in socioeconomically disadvantaged regions; Hackneys Strategy for Parks (Hackney Council, 2008: p. 16) outlines a variety of ways in which this may be achieved. There are also multiple different strategies by which a populations nutritional status may be improved, however research suggests the most effective strategies in the UK context involve the provision of government-funded food vouchers and school meals (Attree, 2005: p. 67; Machell, 2015: p. 14). Hackney Council (2015c: p. 67) estimates that between 34% and 37% of children in Hackney are eligible for free school meals, and so this is a particularly important consideration in this context. In addition to physical health, mental health should also be addressed. Hackney Council (2014d, 2014e) already provides a sophisticated range of services to support people with both mental illness and illness related to substance misuse. However, a number of UK studi es highlight a strong correlation between property regeneration and improvements in participants mental health (Curl, Kearns, Mason, Egan, Tannahill Ellaway, 2015: p. 12; Egan, Lawson, Kearns, Conway Neary, 2015: p. 101). Therefore, housing regeneration initiatives à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" particularly those targeting council housing, where the majority of socioeconomically disadvantaged people in Hackney reside à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" is another important consideration. Research suggests the best housing programs in the UK also address other health factors by ensuring effective water and waste infrastructure, damp and thermal insulation and appropriate social spaces are established (Stewart, 2005: p. 533). 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