I am currently researching items for my forthcoming talk at the History Centre on Crime and Punishment in Wiltshire (Thursday 14^th April) and come across a wonderful woodcut engraving of the pillory at Marlborough in an article on obsolete punishments by Llewellyn Jewitt in “The Reliquary” Quarterly Journal, January 1861.

The pillory was used for a range of moral and political crimes, most notably for dishonest trading - the modern equivalent of implementing trading standards.  Its use dates back to Anglo-Saxon times where it was known as “Healsfang” or “catch-neck”. In France it was called the pillorie.  It was well established as a use of punishment after the Conquest.  It was considered to be a degrading punishment with offenders standing in the pillory for several hours to be abused by fellow citizens, sometimes being pelted with all manner of organic material such as rotten eggs, mud and filth. If that was not enough, sometimes the offender was drawn to the pillory on a hurdle, accompanied by minstrels and a paper sign hung around his or her head displaying the offence committed.

Comment (0) Read More...

Archive conservation staff are to be reunited with an ‘old friend’ with their latest project.

The letters of John Russell in the Eyre-Matcham archive document his career as a naval administrator at Woolwich, then Deptford, as Consul General in Lisbon and Consul in Morocco.

Comment (0) Read More...

Wiltshire and Swindon Archives has been successful in securing a grant of £22,700 to help open up the historic archives of the Earls of Radnor, including unique letters by George Washington, Horatio Nelson and Queen Elizabeth I.

Writing to Lord Radnor in 1797, former U.S. President Washington was looking forward to retirement: “I am now placed in the shade of my vine and fig tree; and at the age of sixty five, am recommencing my agricultural & rural pursuits; which were always more congenial to my temper and disposition than the noise & bustle of public employment; notwithstanding so small a portion of my life has been engaged in the former.”

Comment (0) Read More...

Bribery, corruption, intrigue, rotten boroughs and riots …oh dear, that will be Wiltshire’s parliamentary elections in eighteenth and nineteenth century! Present events always give us an opportunity to take the long-view and here at the History Centre we have a range of resources on the political history of the county and borough, from excellent accounts published in the Victoria County History for Wiltshire to election squibs, poll books and original documents.

'The Antiquities of Malmesbury', described as 'A parliamentary election, as lampooned in 1792' in VCH Wiltshire Vol. 14, opposite p.221 (our Ref: P41146).

Wiltshire’s early claim to political fame was the impressive size of its parliamentary representation. Until 1832 it elected two Knights of the Shire (representing the whole county), two MPs for Salisbury, and two burgesses for each of its 15 boroughs, a grand total of 34 seats. Only Cornwall had higher. This was especially impressive given that many of the boroughs were the size of a village, and few of their residents could vote.  The most notable, of course, was Old Sarum, which retuned two MPs and in 1768, it is claimed, had an electorate of, er…one, though usually could count on seven. Other small boroughs included Great Bedwyn, Cricklade, Downton, Heytesbury, Hindon, Ludgershall and Wootton Bassett. Yet other towns like Bradford on Avon, Corsham, Trowbridge, and Warminster could not send representatives to parliament. To find out about the great political contest of 1818 and Marlborough making the national news in 1832, please 'read more'...

Comment (1) Read More...

After all the disruption caused by the recent snowfalls, here at the History Centre we were interested to find out how often similar events occurred in our County in the past.

We’ve all heard about the terrible winters of 1813/14 when the River Thames froze and frost fairs were held. Charlote Grove lived at Ferne House, in Donhead St. Mary, and began writing diaries at the age of 18. Her entry for January 11^th, 1814 states ‘It snowed very hard. Charles contrived to walk down to Mrs Cooke’s. January 20^th - ‘A very deep snow. The mail prevented from coming’. January 25^th – ‘I walked with my father to the sheep fold. The icicles on the hedge look like the most beautiful cut glass’.

Men digging out a locomotive stuck near Newton Tony, 1927
To find out about other snowy winters of the 19th century, please 'read more'.

Comment (0) Read More...

Some of you may have heard of Thomas Helliker, the 19 year old woolworker hanged in 1803 for his supposed part in the burning of Litleton Mill, Semington. It is a sad story rising from the growing worries of poverty for workers during the early years of the industrial revolution in England.

 It was thought that labour saving machinery would result in mass unemployment of workers (in Helliker’s case cloth workers). There were only inadequate poor relief schemes and workers thought it would soon lead to poverty and starvation; organised resistance flared into violence. Read on to find out more.....

Comment (0) Read More...