HISTORY OF NEWGATE PRISON ( with links )
| Newgate prison |
It is not possible to determine when Newgate first became a prison or when exactly the new gatehouse itself was originally built. Newgate was to be London's 5th gate into the city. There are reliable records going back to 1218 of it being used to house criminals. It was finally demolished in 1904 having been rebuilt at least twice along the way.
A new prison at Newgate was begun in 1770 and proceeded slowly. Before it could be finished, the building was badly damaged by fire during the Gordon riots of 1780 and it was not finally completed until 1785. This building was then used in that form until 1856 when it was remodelled internally to reflect the new perceptions of what a prison should be like. London's Millbank and Pentonville prisons had been designed to be the first modern prison and to practice the new "penitentiary system." This rebuild was very short lived as the building was very badly damaged, again by fire in 1877, and had to be largely rebuilt. With the passing of the Prisons Act of that year, Newgate ceased to be an ordinary prison and was used only for those awaiting trial and prisoners sentenced to death awaiting execution. Newgate had the great advantage, from the authorities' point of view at least, of being next door to the Central Criminal Court (Old Bailey) which was the trial venue for all of London's most serious criminals. It saved the cost and security risk of transporting prisoners by horse drawn van from other prisons for their trial. The Central Criminal Court Act of 1856 permitted prisoners from anywhere in the country accused of a very serious offence to be tried at the Old Bailey. The Act was passed to allow for poisoner, William Palmer (from Rugeley in Staffordshire), to get a fair trial free from local prejudice. The advent of an efficient railway system had made it possible to transport prisoners over considerable distances. Palmer was returned to Stafford prison for his execution. Similarly, Maria and Frederick Manning and Kate Webster were kept at Newgate during their trials and then returned to the county prisons for execution.
Newgate closed for good in late May 1902 so that the new Central Criminal Court which opened in 1907 (always known as the Old Bailey) could be built on the site. Here is a picture of Newgate just before demolition. The Debtor's door through which the condemned prisoners exited in the days of public hangings and the site of the gallows at that time are marked.
Up to 1877, in its several incarnations, Newgate was the principal prison for London and Middlesex and housed all manner of prisoners of both sexes, including those remanded in custody and prisoners awaiting transportation or execution and those imprisoned for debt.
When Newgate closed, its male prisoners and indeed its gallows were transferred to Pentonville while the female prisoners were moved to Holloway prison, which had been recently renovated and turned into London's only women's prison.
Conditions in Newgate in the early part of the 19th century were appalling and led to great efforts by early prison reformers such as John Howard and Elizabeth Fry to improve things. Elizabeth Fry was deeply shocked by the conditions that women were detained under, in the Female Quarter as the women's area was known, when she visited the prison in 1816. She found the place crowded with half naked women and their children. The women were typically waiting for transfer to the prison ships that would take them to the Colonies. Women were brought to Newgate from county prisons in the south of England to await transportation and kept there for weeks or months until a ship was available. Many of the ordinary women prisoners were drunk, due to the availability of cheap gin, and some were clearly deranged. They were kept in leg irons if they could not afford to pay the Keeper of Newgate for "easement." Fry formed an "Association for the improvement of the female prisoners in Newgate" and as part of that set up, a school within the prison for the younger children in 1817. The following year, she gave evidence to Parliamentary Committee on her findings. She was able to get a proper Matron appointed to look after the women in 1817 and conditions slowly improved. Prisoners under sentence of death were kept shackled and apart from other prisoners and in the case of murderers, fed on bread and water for the final 2-3 days of their miserable lives before meeting the hangman. Their only permitted visitors were prison staff and the Ordinary (prison chaplain). Conditions improved after 1834, condemned prisoners spending around 3 weeks awaiting execution after the law was changed to allow 3 clear Sundays to pass before they were hanged. They were no longer kept in irons and were given better food than the ordinary prisoners. They were also permitted visits by their families and friends.
As London was the crime capital of England, so it was that Newgate was the execution capital and between 1783 and 1902, a total of 1,169 people were put to death there or nearby (12 or 13 hangings being carried out at other locations prior to 1834). The total comprised 1,120 men and 49 women. The "Bloody Code" as it was known remained largely in force up to 1834. Over 200 felonies were punishable by death in 1800, although in practice people were only executed for about 20 of them. See analysis below. Those convicted of the more minor ones, although sentenced to death, typically had their punishment reduced to transportation. The concept of imprisonment as a punishment only really came in after 1840. Transportation ended around 1888.
Public executions were carried outside Newgate in the lane known as the Old Bailey from the 9th of December 1783 (following the ending of hangings at Tyburn). It is unclear where the gallows was erected before 1809 - contemporary reports talking of “outside Newgate” and “Old Bailey.” After 1809, almost all hangings took place on the portable gallows in front of the Debtors’ Door and continued here up to the 25th of May 1868, when Michael Barrett became the last to hang for the Clerkenwell bomb outrage that killed 7 people. Here is a photographic reconstruction of a typical group hanging.
During this time, 3 women were burned at the stake in the Old Bailey, for the crime of coining which was deemed to be high treason. They were Phoebe Harris, Margaret Sullivan and Catherine Murphy. In all 3 cases, they were first hanged until they were dead and then their bodies burnt. Similarly, the Cato Street conspirators who had also been convicted of high treason were sentenced to be hanged, drawn and quartered there (the male punishment for high treason), but in fact were hanged and then beheaded (see later). There were to be 544 public hangings, including those of 25 women, between January 1800 and May 1868. These drew huge crowds, especially if one of the prisoners was notorious. From 1752 to 1809, the bodies of those executed for murder were taken to Surgeon's Hall in the Old Bailey where they were publicly anatomised. From then to 1834, the bodies could be returned to relatives for a fee. There were only two confirmed executions at Newgate in the years 1834-1836, those of John Smith and James Pratt, who were hanged for buggery on the 27th of November 1835. After 1836, only murderers were to be hanged at Newgate and their bodies were buried in unmarked graves within the walls. One hundred men and 8 women were to suffer for this crime between 1837 and 1902. Of this total, 58 men and 5 women suffered in private between the 8th of September 1868 and the 6th of May 1902 when George Wolfe became the last person to be executed here. There were 4 double hangings, a treble and a quadruple hanging during this period.
Executions and executioners at Newgate.
From around 1771 to September 1786, when he died, Edward Dennis was the official executioner and carried out 201 hangings and the 3 burnings at Newgate. He had previously officiated at Tyburn from 1771. On Tuesday, the 9th of December 1783, he and William Brunskill hanged 9 men and one woman (Francis Warren) side by side on the "New Drop" at Newgate’s first execution (see picture). Note that they all have white nightcaps drawn over their heads.
Sessions, as trials at the Old Bailey were known at that time, were held 8 times a year by then and it was normal to sentence those found guilty of crimes other than murder in groups at the end of the trial day. Murderers were sentenced at the end of their individual trials. Those sentenced to death for felony and not “respited” (commuted to transportation) were also hanged in groups - men and women together. Multiple executions were the norm at this time and took place normally around 6 weeks after the Sessions finished and the Recorder of the Old Bailey had prepared and presented his report indicating which prisoners were recommended for reprieve and which were to be executed. From July 1752 onwards, murderers had to be hanged within two days of their sentence, unless this would have been a Sunday, which meant that they were typically hanged on a Monday and often separately from ordinary felons, this day continuing to be used at Newgate for murderers up to 1880. Ordinary criminals could be hanged on any day of the week, Wednesdays being the most common one. Prisoners were led from the "Condemned hold" into the Press yard where their leg irons were removed and their wrists and arms tied. They were attended by the Ordinary and when they had all been prepared, were led across the yard to the Lodge and out through the Debtor's Door and up a short flight of steps onto the gallows.
John Langley took over from him in 1814 and hanged 37 men and 3 women in his 3 years in office, including Eliza Fenning. Click here for her story. He died in April 1817 and was succeeded by James Botting who was known as Jemmy. Botting hanged 25 men and two women during his two year tenure, during which in 1818, shoplifting was removed from the list of capital crimes at the instigation of Sir Samuel Romilly.
The gallows used by Dennis, Brunskill and Botting had two parallel beams from which a maximum of a dozen criminals could be hanged at once. (see picture) The platform was 10 feet long by 8 feet wide and was released by moving the lever or "pin" acting on a drawbar under the drop. The condemned were given a drop of between one and two feet so death was hardly ever "instantaneous." Occasionally, the mechanism failed and a simple beam and cart was used to get the prisoners suspended, as had been done at Tyburn. This method was used for the execution of Ann Hurle and Methuselah Spalding in February 1804.
In July 1819, James Foxen assumed the position having previously assisted Botting, and hanged 206 men and 6 women over the next 11 years. The 5 Cato Street conspirators became the last to suffer hanging and beheading on Monday, May 1st, 1820, for conspiring to murder several members of the Cabinet. Foxen was assisted by Thomas Cheshire for this high profile execution and an unnamed and secret person who actually cut off the traitor's heads. (see picture). In view of their crime, their bodies were the property of the Crown and were buried within Newgate.
Thomas Cheshire, or Old Cheese as he was known, officiated as principal at a quadruple hanging on the 24th of March 1829 of 3 highway robbers and one man convicted of stealing in a dwelling house. The gallows was now modified, from then on, having only one beam with capacity for 6 persons. (see picture)
William Calcraft took over from April 1829, his first job being the hanging of the hated child murderer, Ester Hibner, on the 13th of that month. Prior to taking up the position, he had sold pies at hangings and had got to know Foxen and Cheshire. Calcraft was to go on to hang a total of 86 people, including 6 women at Newgate, before he was retired in 1872. One of his most famous cases was Francis Courvoisier, who had murdered his master, Lord William Russell. Another was Britain's first railway murderer, Franz Muller, who he publicly hanged on the 14th of November 1864 for killing Mr. Thomas Briggs. Calcraft carried out both the last public hanging at Newgate (Michael Barrett) and the first private one 4 months later, that of Alexander Mackay on the 8th of September 1868. Mackay was 18 years old and had been convicted of the murder of Emma Goldsmith, his employer. The gallows had been erected in an enclosed yard near the Chapel, and the execution was attended by representatives of the Press. A little before 9.00 a.m., Mackay was led into the yard supported by the Chaplain, the Rev. Mr. Jones, and ascended a few steps onto the platform where he joined in with Mr. Jones' prayers. Calcraft pulled the lever and Mackay dropped a few inches and took several minutes to become still, according to contemporary reports. The black flag was raised over the prison after the trap had opened. His body was left hanging for an hour before being taken down and prepared for the formal inquest, which took place that afternoon. Mackay was then buried within the prison in an unmarked grave.
Like his predecessors, Calcraft was also responsible for carrying out floggings at Newgate and was paid a salary with additional monies for hangings and floggings. With the advent of a comprehensive railway network, he was able to work over most of the country in his later years and became Britain's principal hangman. During Calcraft's time, the number of executions fell dramatically (see below). Proper condemned cells had been constructed in Newgate during the early 1830's, created by knocking two ordinary cells into one (see picture) thus ending the use of the appalling "Condemned Hold" which was little more than a dark, feted dungeon. From 1848, condemned prisoners were guarded round the clock by two or three warders to prevent suicide. They took their exercise in a covered walkway known as Birdcage Walk or Dead Man's Walk, their cell being at the far end of this (the doorway visible in the photo).
William Marwood was Britain's next No. 1 hangman and officiated at 17 executions, including that of 45 year old Francis Stewart, for killing her grandson. Assisted by George Incher, he hanged the 4 Lennie Mutineers for murder and mutiny on the 23rd of May 1876 in Newgate's only quadruple private execution. This hanging was widely reported in the press. In 1881, a purpose built execution shed pictured here, containing a new gallows, was erected in one of the yards. This facility remained in use until closure in 1902, being then moved to Pentonville prison and first used there for the execution of John MacDonald on the 30th of September 1902. My friend, Aaron Bougourd, has kindly lent me this rare picture of the gallows and interior of the execution shed, one of the very few photos of a British gallows. This picture is copyright and may not be copied or reproduced without permission. You can see the metal bracket and chain hanging from the centre of the beam. Up to 4 brackets could be set up for multiple hangings. The lever is behind the right hand upright and there are pulleys for raising the trapdoors on each upright. A ladder is in the foreground leaning against the wall.
Bartholomew Bins carried out one hanging after Marwood, that of Patrick O'Donnell, before handing it over to James Berry who performed 12 executions here between 1884 and 1890. Berry was to hang Mary Eleanor Wheeler in 1890. Click here for her story.
He was replaced by James Billington who hanged 24 men and 3 women up to 1901, including Louisa Masset, the first person to be executed in Britain in the 20th century. Click here for her story. He also executed the infamous baby farmer, Amelia Dyer who at 57, became the oldest woman to be hanged in modern times. Click here for more on baby farmers. Another of his famous customers was Thomas Neill Cream who, in December 1892, standing hooded and noosed on the trap said, "I am Jack the.... " just as the drop fell. In reality, it is extremely unlikely that he was Jack the Ripper. Billington carried out the last triple execution at Newgate when he hanged Henry Fowler, Albert Milsom and William Seaman (for two different murders) on the 9th of June 1896.
The last hanging at Newgate was carried out by Billington's son, William, on the 6th of May 1902. The prisoner was 21 year old George Wolfe, who had beaten and stabbed his girlfriend, Charlotte Cheeseman, to death.
Analysis of executions between 1783 and 1902 and the crimes for which people were put to death.
1783-1799561 people were put to death in this short period of just over 16 years, an average of 35 per year. 542 men and 16 women were hanged for a wide variety of crimes and 3 women were burnt for coining. (Women accounting for 3.57% of the executions) (A small number of these executions took place at or near where the crime was committed.) 1800-1899.
There were 598 hangings at Newgate of which 27 were of women (4.5%), 543 were in public including those of 24 women. During this period in London, a further 131 men and 4 women were hanged at Horsemonger Lane Gaol in the County of Surrey and 23 men were hanged at Execution Dock at Wapping under Admiralty jurisdiction between 1802 and 1830.
1800-1835.There were 523 executions, all by hanging in public, comprising of 501 men and 22 women. Only 44 of these executions were for murder, the rest being for various other felonies, particularly burglary and forgery. See analysis below.
1835 - 2 executions at Newgate when John Smith and John Pratt became the last to hang for sodomy in England on the 27th of November of this year.
1834, 1836 & 1838.
No executions at all at Newgate, possibly for political reasons, as the laws had changed dramatically over the previous 2 to 3 years. However, there were hangings for rape, murder and sodomy at Horsemonger Lane Gaol. There have been other periods where every prisoner has been reprieved.
1837-1868 (public hangings).
A further 42 men and 3 women were hanged in public up to the 25th of May 1868, all for murder (including 5 men who were executed for murder and piracy – “The Flowery Land” pirates.)
1868-1899 (private hangings).
51 men and 3 women were executed for murder, including 4 men for murder and mutiny on a ship called the “Lennie” (the Lennie Mutineers).
1900-1902.
7 men and 2 women were hanged for murder in the 20th century prior to the closure of Newgate.
Analysis of the principal crimes for which people were executed for
between 1800 and 1833
between 1800 and 1833
| between 1800 and 1833 | ||||||||||
| Arson | Attempted murder | Burglary | Coining | Forgery | Highway Robbery | High Treason | Horse Stealing | Murder | Rape | Robbery |
| 4 | 5 | 100 | 6 | 87 | 66 | 5 | 34 | 44 | 7 | 32 |
| 0.80% | 1% | 20% | 1.20% | 17.50% | 13.20% | 1% | 6.80% | 8.30% | 1.40% | 6.40% |
| Sheep Stealing | Sodomy | Theft * | Uttering ** | Other crimes | ||||||
| 7 | 14 | 41 | 32 | 18 | ||||||
| 1.40% | 2.80% | 8.20% | 6.40% | |||||||
* including from letters, on the river and from dwelling houses.** Uttering is the crime of passing forgeries, e.g. counterfeit coins and notes.
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