It’s 1822. In London, England, the city’s population is growing by the thousands. To feed them, sheep and cows from as far away as Scotland are driven through the streets to Smithfield meat market to be slaughtered. To entertain the workers in the new factories, bears, bulls and badgers are baited with dogs, sometimes for weeks.

In Westminster, at the seat of government, a group of politicians is plotting something that has never been done before. These wealthy but compassionate men—women won’t get the vote for another 100 years—have tried and failed in their task many times already. But they are not discouraged. Their goal? To bring about a new, almost unimaginable law. One that will change our understanding of the world.

This is Martin’s Act at 200, an audio documentary about a group of people who couldn’t bear injustice and cruelty to animals—some animals at least—to overturn thousands of years of history in which the law was meant to protect humans only, and make animals property. This is the story of how the first piece of legislation for animals, known as Martin’s Act after its sponsor Richard ‘Humanity Dick’ Martin, came about two hundred years ago this year, and what its legacy means for animals today, around the world, and in our collective future.

This landmark law transformed not just the streets of London, but the very way we think about animals, and about the law as a tool to afford them protection and, perhaps even, rights.

Join us in this series as we talk to activists, artists, academics and experts who have devoted their lives to working for animals. This documentary is part of the Chart2050 project, a two year exploration of the past, present and future of animal advocacy and protection.

Martin’s Act at 200 is coming July 22 and is a production of the Culture and Animals Foundation. Subscribe now at Apple or Google podcasts, or via our website www.chart2050.org.

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