The Workhouse was a hallmark of Victorian Britain in an era associated with imperial pomp and industrial revolution, the workhouse represented the vast underbelly of society. An institution that caused misery to millions and evoked shame in even more. For the poor, the homeless, unemployed or even the ill of Victorian Britain there were no welfare benefits and no NHS, they could starve on the streets or turn to the workhouse as a last resort. Astonishingly the workhouse survived well into the modern era until after the second World War, in 100 years it was home to 16 million people caught between poverty and destitution.