**Context: ** The 1766 Nottingham Cheese Riot emerged from the desperation of a local populace facing a poor harvest and predatory price gouging by merchants who sought to export the city’s food supply for higher profits. When residents intervened to keep affordable sustenance within their community, the authorities responded with military force, deploying the British Army to suppress the hungry crowds. The tragedy of the event was cemented when government troops opened fire, killing an innocent farmer and wounding several others who were simply struggling to survive an era of systemic food insecurity.