A part of the present building stands on the site of the medieval Newgate Gaol, on Old Bailey Road. The road follows the line of London's fortified wall (bailey.)
My patio is walled. I wonder if just any wall can be called a bailey? But then I wonder about a lot of things that come to very little.
The court was rebuilt and reopened in 1674, following the Fire of London. Hangings in the street outside were a public spectacle until 1868. Typical of the genteel and reserved British, riotous crowds would gather to pelt the condemned with rotten fruit and vegetables and rocks as the unfortunate made his way to the gallows. In 1807, 28 people were crushed to death after a pie-sellers stall overturned. Gosh, those were the days, eh?
I wonder if it existed very long before the fire? If so, perhaps it was here where Guy Fawkes took his swan dive off the gallows, splattering his head like a ripe melon on the cobbles to rob the hangman. Boy, that sure showed him, wot? But no head left to pike. I don't remember if he was still quartered or if they all just went home after that. Ah, gentle Albion. (I recently learned of Albion from this rather unusual blog.)
Today, the Old Bailey has it's own website complete with searchable records of trial proceedings through the ages, currently available for your voyeuristic pleasure, 1674-1913, should you be one of the people who can read the English of that era which called walls baileys.
Newgate where Charles Dickens dad was jailed for debt.
ReplyDeleteI knew Dickens. He still owes my family money. Didn't know he had a son, though. Did anything good come of him? Charles, you say?
DeleteGuido was not executed at the Old Bailey, but at Old Palace Yard in Westminster, close to the Houses of Parliament. I thought you knew all about him?
ReplyDeleteAs for the definition of a bailey, no, it's not the wall of a city, its the name given to an area enclosed by fortified walls. But not really to something as big as a city. So the Old Bailey was a fortified enclosure within the city. Castles often had a large area, the Outer Bailey, which was used for all manner of purposes, market stalls, jousting etc, and an Inner Bailey reserved for the castle's rulers, defenders, and their servants.
Of course I know all there is to know about Guido. I even know what recusant means. I was just testing you.
DeleteI think they said 1585 was when OB first opened for business, before the fire, though the gaol was older. I love spelling it that way. They had taken up a collection, ostensibly to use to better the conditions of the prisoners, but instead used the money to build a courthouse. That's why God let it burn in my opinion. Lying lawyers.
Well, thank you for the information about a bailey being an area enclosed by walls. Fortified walls. I once knew a girl named Bobbie Bailey who certainly fit that description.
Over here we would call it a stadium. (As we have no royalty save athletes.)
Lady Justice hasn't been blindfolded... She looks like the Statue of Liberty; except when you weigh too much you'll be beheaded.
ReplyDeleteJustice is not blind in England. She liked to watch back then. :)
DeleteI would have too.
Goodness, can I go to that Old Bailey website and see how many of my ancestors are mentioned in court procedings? No, best not.
ReplyDeleteDickens , the girl named Bailey...too funny!
Hi Kay G. :) Well, I looked at a few of the cases and didn't see your name mentioned. But then, I don't know your name, so maybe it WAS mentioned. Mostly about highway-MEN and female pick pockets. But they hanged them all. The punishments got more serious after simple hanging.
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