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Database: The Map of Early Modern London
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TY - ELEC
A1 - Drouillard, Tara
ED - Jenstad, Janelle
T1 - Executions
T2 - The Map of Early Modern London
ET - 7.0
PY - 2022
DA - 2022/05/05
CY - Victoria
PB - University of Victoria
LA - English
UR - https://mapoflondon.uvic.ca/edition/7.0/EXEC1.htm
UR - https://mapoflondon.uvic.ca/edition/7.0/xml/standalone/EXEC1.xml
ER -
The city of London, not to be confused with the allegorical character (
Tyburn is best known as the location of the principal gallows where public executions were carried out from the late twelfth century until the eighteenth (Drouillard, Wikipedia). It was a village to the west of the city, near the present-day location of Marble Arch (beyond the boundary of the Agas Map). Its name derives from a stream, and its significance to In the yeare
Cheapside Street, one of the most important streets in early modern London, ran east-west between the Great Conduit at the foot of Old Jewry to the Little Conduit by St. Paul’s churchyard. The terminus of all the northbound streets from the river, the broad expanse of Cheapside Street separated the northern wards from the southern wards. It was lined with buildings three, four, and even five stories tall, whose shopfronts were open to the light and set out with attractive displays of luxury commodities (Weinreb and Hibbert 148). Cheapside Street was the centre of London’s wealth, with many
Fleet Street runs east-west from Temple Bar to Fleet Hill or Ludgate Hill, and is named for the Fleet River. The road has existed since at least the
Smithfield was an open, grassy area located outside the Wall. Because of its location close to the city centre, Smithfield was used as a site for markets, tournaments, and public executions. From
Holborn ran east-west from the junction of Hosier Lane, Cock Lane and Snow Hill to St. Giles High Street, and passed through Farringdon Without Ward and Westminster.
Leadenhall Street ran east-west from Cornhill Street to Aldgate Street. All three form part of the same road from Aldgate to Cheapside Street (Weinreb and Hibbert 462). The street acquired its name from Leadenhall, a onetime house and later a market. The building was reportedly famous for having a leaden roof (Bebbington 197).
The church of St. Magnus the Martyr, believed to be founded some time in the eleventh century, was on the south side of Thames Street just north of London Bridge. According to Stow, in its churchyard haue béene buried many men of good worſhip, whoſe monumentes are now for the moſt part vtterly defaced
, including
One of the public stairs on the Surrey side of the Thames above London Bridge.
St. George Southwark was located adjacent to Suffolk House, just south of the area depicted on the Agas map (Stow 1598, sig. Y8r). While there is no mention of the church in the
Branching off from the south side of Tooley Street, Bermondsey Street (sometimes referred to as Barnaby Street) ran north-south towards Bermondsey Abbey (Stow 1598, sig. Z3v-Z4r). Bermondsey Street is depicted just east of Battle Bridge on the Agas map, although it is mislabeled
Tower Hill was a large area of open ground north and
west of the Tower of London. It is most famous as a place of execution;
there was a permanent scaffold and gallows on the hill for the execution of
such Traytors or Transgressors, as are deliuered out of the Tower, or otherwise to the Shiriffes of
London
(Stow).
Charing Cross was one of twelve memorial crosses erected by builded of stone
and was of old time a fayre péece of work
(Stow 1598, sig. 2B3r). It stood for three and a half centuries, but by the beginning of the 17th century [the cross] had fallen into a very ruinous condition
(Sugden). It, as well as the other crosses, was condemned in
According to Weinreb, Hibbert, Keay, and Keay, Hyde Park was the largest of the royal parks. The land was used as a hunting ground from
The gaol at Newgate, a western gate in the Roman Wall of London, was constructed in the twelfth century specifically to detain fellons and trespassors
awaiting trial by royal judges (Durston 470; O’Donnell 25; Stow 1598, sig. C8r). The gradual centralisation of the English criminal justice system meant that by the
Capital punishment survived in many forms in England for several centuries. The annals are filled with stories of beheading, hanging, boiling to death, and various other practices for such crimes as murder, treason, coin clipping, and theft. According to Foucault, public execution was a necessary political ritual
, because criminals offended law-abiding persons, and personally attacked the sovereign since the law represents the will of the sovereign
(Foucault 47). Because crime threatened the power dynamic between sovereigns and their people, execution was viewed as a necessary means to restore the proper dynamic within a country (Foucault 48).
The Julian calendar, in use in the British Empire until September 1752. This calendar is used for dates where the date of the beginning of the year is ambigious.
The Julian calendar with the calendar year regularized to beginning on 1 January.
The Julian calendar with the calendar year beginning on 25 March. This was the calendar used in the British Empire until September 1752.
The Gregorian calendar, used in the British Empire from September 1752. Sometimes
referred to as
The Anno Mundi (year of the world
) calendar is based on the supposed date of the
creation of the world, which is calculated from Biblical sources. At least two different
creation dates are in common use. See Anno Mundi (Wikipedia).
Regnal dates are given as the number of years into the reign of a particular monarch.
Our practice is to tag such dates with
Project Manager, 2022-present. Research Assistant, 2020-2022. Molly Rothwell was an undergraduate student at the University of Victoria, with a double major in English and History. During her time at MoEML, Molly primarily worked on encoding and transcribing the 1598 and 1633 editions of Stow’s
Project Manager, 2020-2021. Assistant Project Manager, 2019-2020. Research Assistant, 2018-2020. Kate LeBere completed her BA (Hons.) in History and English at the University of Victoria in 2020. She published papers in
Programmer, 2018-present. Junior Programmer, 2015-2017. Research Assistant, 2014-2017. Joey Takeda was a graduate student at the University of British Columbia in the Department of English (Science and Technology research stream). He completed his BA honours in English (with a minor in Women’s Studies) at the University of Victoria in 2016. His primary research interests included diasporic and indigenous Canadian and American literature, critical theory, cultural studies, and the digital humanities.
Data Manager, 2015-2016. Research Assistant, 2013-2015. Tye completed his undergraduate honours degree in English at the University of Victoria in 2015.
Research Assistant, 2000–2002. Hypertext student and Shakespeare student at the University of Windsor in Winter 2000. Tara Drouillard received her MA in English from Queen’s University in 2003 and now works in Communications.
Research Assistant, 2004–2008. BA honours, 2006. MA English, University of Victoria, 2007. Melanie Chernyk went on to work at the Electronic Textual Cultures Lab at the University of Victoria and now manages Talisman Books and Gallery on Pender Island, BC. She also has her own editing business at http://26letters.ca.
Director of Pedagogy and Outreach, 2015–2020. Associate Project Director, 2015. Assistant Project Director, 2013-2014. MoEML Research Fellow, 2013. Kim McLean-Fiander comes to
Janelle Jenstad is Associate Professor of English at the University of Victoria, Director of
Programmer at the University of Victoria Humanities Computing and Media Centre (HCMC). Martin ported the MOL project from its original PHP incarnation to a pure eXist database implementation in the fall of 2011. Since then, he has been lead programmer on the project and has also been responsible for maintaining the project schemas. He was a co-applicant on MoEML’s 2012 SSHRC Insight Grant.
Queen consort of England
King of England, Scotland, and Ireland
King of England
King of England and Ireland
Queen of England and Ireland
Goddess of the moon in Roman mythology.
King of England
Chronicler. Member of the
Queen of Scotland
Queen of England and Ireland
Cartographer.
Courtier, explorer, and author.
Playwright and poet.
Historian and author of
Poet.
Personification of time. Appears as an allegorical character in mayoral
shows and
Soldier and rebel. Son of
King of England
Populist leader of an uprising in
Earl of Northumbria. Executed during the
Member of the
Executed at Tyburn for sedition.
Member of Parliament. Executed at Tyburn for high treason.
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Capital punishment survived in many forms in England for several centuries. The annals are filled with stories of beheading, hanging, boiling to death, and various other practices for such crimes as murder, treason, coin clipping, and theft. According to Foucault, public execution was a necessary political ritual
, because criminals offended law-abiding persons, and personally attacked the sovereign since the law represents the will of the sovereign
(Foucault 47). Because crime threatened the power dynamic between sovereigns and their people, execution was viewed as a necessary means to restore the proper dynamic within a country (Foucault 48).
According to John Laurence,
Hanging was a form of capital punishment that had been practiced for several thousands of years; it is mentioned once in the Mosaic law (see Deuteronomy 21:22–23). In London, the main permanent gallows were located at Tyburn. Sometimes, gallows were set up to supplement those at Tyburn, if there were a large number of hangings that were to occur at the same time. An example of just such an occasion occurred in The xij day of February was mad at evere gate in Lundun a newe payre of galaus and set up, ij payre in Chepesyde, ij payr in Fletstrett, one in Smythfyld, one payre in Holborne, on at Ledyn-hall, one at sant Magnus London [-bridge], on at Peper allay gatt, one at Sant Gorgeus, on in Barunsay [Bermondsey] strett, on on Towr hylle, one payre at Charyngcrosse, on payr besyd Hyd parke corner.
Under the that the traitor is to be taken from prison and laid on a hurdle
Records of executions show variations on this sentence for treason and other offenses. For example, in
The26. of February Willi. Constable alias Fetherstone was arraigned in the Guild hall of London, who had caused letters to bee cast abrode, thatking Edward was aliue, and to some he shewed himselfe to beking Edward , so that many persons both menne and women were troubled by him, for the which sedition the said William had bin once whipped and deliuered, as is aforesaid: But now he was condemned, and thehe was drawne, hanged and quartered at Tyborne. 13. of March
Some men were similarly punished during the
It is unknown when Tyburn Tree, the most famous permanent gallows of London, was established. Alfred Marks conjectures that Tyburn dates from the time of The Elms
, and the elm tree was the Norman tree of justice (Marks 57). The first recorded hanging at Tyburn was that of
According to a
London’s consciousness of what happened at Tyburn is evident in the writings of the Elizabethan and Jacobean eras. Executions at Tyburn were recorded by
Theres one with a lame wit, which will not weare a foure cornerd cap, then let him put on Tiburne, that hath but three corners(qtd. in Marks 64). Another reference to Tyburn appears in
Thou makest the triumviry, the corner-cap of society, / The shape of love’s Tyburn, that hangs up simplicity(Shakespeare 4.3.49–50). These references deal mainly with the triangular shape of the gallows at Tyburn.
I Haue heard sundry men oft times dispute Of trees, that in one yeere will twice beare fruit. But if a man note Tyburne, ’will appeare, That that’s a tree that beares twelue times a yeere. I muse it should so fruitfull be, for why I vnderstand the root of it is dry, It beares no leafe, no blossome, or no bud, The raine that makes it fructifie is bloud. I further note, the fruit which it produces, Doth seldome serue for profitable vses: Except the skillfull Surgions industry Doe make Desection or Anatomy. It blossomes, buds, and beares, all three together, And in one houre, doth liue, and die, and wither. Like SodomApples, they are in conceit,For touch’d, they turne to dust and ashes streight. Besides I find this tree hath neuer bin Like other fruit trees, wall’d or hedged in, But in the high-way standing many a yeere, It neuer yet was rob’d, as I could heare. The reason is apparent to our eyes, That what it beares, are dead commodities:And yet sometimes (such grace to it is giuen) The dying fruit is well prepar’d for heauen, And many times a man may gather thence Remorse, deuotion, and true penitence. And from that tree, I thinke more soules ascend To that Coelestiall ioy, which ne’r shall end : I say, more soules from thence to heau’n doe come, Than from all Church-Yards throughout Christendome. The reason is, the bodies are all dead, And all the soules to ioy or woe are fled. Perhaps a weeke, a day, or two, or three, Before they in the Church-yards buried bee. But at this Tree, in twinkling of an eye, The soule and body part immediatly, There death the fatall parting blow doth strike, And in Church-yards is seldome seene the like. Besides, they are assisted with the almes Of peoples charitable prayers, and Psalmes,Which are the wings that lift the hou’ring spirit, By faith, through grace, true glory to inherit. Concerning this dead fruit, I noted it, In stead of paste it’s put into a pit, And laid vp carefully in any place, Yet worme-eatenit growes in little space.My vnderstanding can by no meanes frame, To giue this Tyburnefruit a fitter name, Than Medlers, for I find that great and small,(To my capacity) are Medlersall.Some say they are Choak’d peares, and some againeDoe call them Hartie Choakes, but ’tis most plain,It is a kinde of Medlerit doth beare,Or else I thinke it neuer would come there. Moreouer where it growes, I find it true, It often turnes the Harke of grace to Rue.Amongst all Pot-herbes growing on the ground, Time is the least respected, I haue found,And most abus’d, and therefore one shall see No branch or bud of it grow neere this Tree:For ’tis occasion of mans greatest crime, To turne the vse, into abuse, of Time .When passions are let loose without a bridle, The precious Time is turnd toLoue and idle:And that’s the chiefest reason I can show, Why fruit so often doth on Tyburne grow. There are inferiour Gallowseswhich beare(According to the season) twice a yeare: And there’s a kinde of watrish TreeatWapping,Wheras Sea-theeues or Piratsare catch’d napping:But Tyburne doth deserue before them all The title and addition capitall, Of Archor great GrandGallowseof our Land,Whilst all the rest like ragged Laqueyes stand ; Ithath (likeLuna )full, andchange, andquarters,It(like a Merchant) monthly trucks and barters ;But all the other Gallowsesare fit,Like Chapmen, or poore Pedlers vnto it.