Item #22594 Newgate Calendars, an annotated group of these records of Criminal Cases in London & Middlesex in 1814, most likely a Gaoler's or Clerk of the Court's copy, dating from January 12, 1814 to November 30, 1814, with many prisoners transported to Australia. Australia, Convicts.
Newgate Calendars, an annotated group of these records of Criminal Cases in London & Middlesex in 1814, most likely a Gaoler's or Clerk of the Court's copy, dating from January 12, 1814 to November 30, 1814, with many prisoners transported to Australia.
Newgate Calendars, an annotated group of these records of Criminal Cases in London & Middlesex in 1814, most likely a Gaoler's or Clerk of the Court's copy, dating from January 12, 1814 to November 30, 1814, with many prisoners transported to Australia.
Newgate Calendars, an annotated group of these records of Criminal Cases in London & Middlesex in 1814, most likely a Gaoler's or Clerk of the Court's copy, dating from January 12, 1814 to November 30, 1814, with many prisoners transported to Australia.
Newgate Calendars, an annotated group of these records of Criminal Cases in London & Middlesex in 1814, most likely a Gaoler's or Clerk of the Court's copy, dating from January 12, 1814 to November 30, 1814, with many prisoners transported to Australia.
Newgate Calendars, an annotated group of these records of Criminal Cases in London & Middlesex in 1814, most likely a Gaoler's or Clerk of the Court's copy, dating from January 12, 1814 to November 30, 1814, with many prisoners transported to Australia.
Newgate Calendars, an annotated group of these records of Criminal Cases in London & Middlesex in 1814, most likely a Gaoler's or Clerk of the Court's copy, dating from January 12, 1814 to November 30, 1814, with many prisoners transported to Australia.
Newgate Calendars, an annotated group of these records of Criminal Cases in London & Middlesex in 1814, most likely a Gaoler's or Clerk of the Court's copy, dating from January 12, 1814 to November 30, 1814, with many prisoners transported to Australia.
Newgate Calendars, an annotated group of these records of Criminal Cases in London & Middlesex in 1814, most likely a Gaoler's or Clerk of the Court's copy, dating from January 12, 1814 to November 30, 1814, with many prisoners transported to Australia.
Newgate Calendars, an annotated group of these records of Criminal Cases in London & Middlesex in 1814, most likely a Gaoler's or Clerk of the Court's copy, dating from January 12, 1814 to November 30, 1814, with many prisoners transported to Australia.
Newgate Calendars, an annotated group of these records of Criminal Cases in London & Middlesex in 1814, most likely a Gaoler's or Clerk of the Court's copy, dating from January 12, 1814 to November 30, 1814, with many prisoners transported to Australia.
Newgate Calendars, an annotated group of these records of Criminal Cases in London & Middlesex in 1814, most likely a Gaoler's or Clerk of the Court's copy, dating from January 12, 1814 to November 30, 1814, with many prisoners transported to Australia.
Newgate Calendars, an annotated group of these records of Criminal Cases in London & Middlesex in 1814, most likely a Gaoler's or Clerk of the Court's copy, dating from January 12, 1814 to November 30, 1814, with many prisoners transported to Australia.
Newgate Calendars, an annotated group of these records of Criminal Cases in London & Middlesex in 1814, most likely a Gaoler's or Clerk of the Court's copy, dating from January 12, 1814 to November 30, 1814, with many prisoners transported to Australia.
Newgate Calendars, an annotated group of these records of Criminal Cases in London & Middlesex in 1814, most likely a Gaoler's or Clerk of the Court's copy, dating from January 12, 1814 to November 30, 1814, with many prisoners transported to Australia.
Newgate Calendars, an annotated group of these records of Criminal Cases in London & Middlesex in 1814, most likely a Gaoler's or Clerk of the Court's copy, dating from January 12, 1814 to November 30, 1814, with many prisoners transported to Australia.

Newgate Calendars, an annotated group of these records of Criminal Cases in London & Middlesex in 1814, most likely a Gaoler's or Clerk of the Court's copy, dating from January 12, 1814 to November 30, 1814, with many prisoners transported to Australia.

London: 1814. The Calendars are a combination of printed and manuscript material, recording the court cases for the London and Middlesex courts. They follow roughly this composition; a title page "Newgate Calendar" with the date, 'Stokes, Printer, 5, Hind Court, Fleet Street, London " (later the address changed to No 9, Lombard St). On the verso is printed an alphabetical grid with printed names of prisoners and manuscript entries for other prisoners. There follows a printed numbered list of case, noting the name of the defendant, their age, address, their accuser, their crime and the date. Further cases are entered entirely in manuscript. In the margins are manuscript entries for the sentence; "NG" meaning not guilty, "trans." meaning transported, which in this time period, meant to Australia, "G Death" meaning Guilty Death, and other abbreviated notations relating to continuances of their case, most likely. There follows several numbered pages of "Prisoners upon Orders", a printed list of prisoners and sentences, organized by court.

The calendars appear more or less monthly for 1814, but between the January and December, there are no calendars for March, June, August, September or December. These were never bound into this volume; whether court sat that month is not known.

The calendars are most compelling because they illustrate just how little it took by way of malfeasance to be transported to Australia, or sentenced to death. For example, in January 1814, No. 50, Thomas Raven, 22, was one of 300 convicts transported on the Baring, April 1815 on the suspicion of having stolen one live pig. No. 55, Robert Johnson, was one of 219 convicts transported on the Ocean, August 1815 for stealing 20 yards of velveteen. And appallingly, Thomas Smith, age 51, Case No. 64, broke into a dwelling house and stole a piece of cheese valued at 3 d. He was judged Guilty and received a death sentence.

In April, Case No. 49 involves Sir Joseph Banks, Bart. James Butcher 23 and George Harding,19, were accused of breaking into the "dwelling-house of Sir Joseph Banks, Bart. And stealing therein seven coach glasses, and two cloth box coats," for which they were found Not Guilty. One wonders if Sir Joseph intervened for them, knowing how little a crime it was to suffer such an exile, to a place he knew personally to be so severe.

In July, Case No.4 charges 4 mariners, Caeden, Panjang, Moodie and Sootoo with piracy, attempting to hijack the ship the "Governor Raffles" and violently wounding Robert King, the Commander. Their case is delayed.

In September, George Gilkes & John Radley were convicted in the London court of stealing copper valued at one pound sterling. Gilkes waited almost two years to be transported with with another 144 souls on the Mariner in May 1816.

In October 1814, No. 122, William Priest for stealing 26 lbs of lead, value 5s. He was transported on the Baring, April 1815. No. 100, Richard Holloway, 21, for his crime of stealing 4 geese, was one of 175 convicts transported on the Morley, November 1816. Case No. 106, James Lacey, was one of 219 convicts transported on the Ocean, August 1815. No. 174, James Luby, was one of 300 convicts transported on the Baring, April 1815, for stealing a silver watch worth 30 s.

In November 1814, No. 96, Catherine Riley, one of 89 convicts transported on the Brothers, 20 November 1823, for stealing "on the oath of Thomas Quinlin" one pound, 3 s and 7 1/2 d. No. 104, Elizabeth Green, 18 and Ann Walker 17, were transported on the Maryanne, July 1815 to Sydney, for stealing 4 cotton waistcoats.

Lge 8vo, (9 3/4 x 8"), 8 monthly issues, printed on varying size sheets. January 12; (18pp), 4pp manuscript, 10pp; February 16; (17pp), 5pp manuscript, 9pp; April 20; (27pp), 6pp manuscript, 9pp; May 25; (16pp), 5pp manuscript, 7pp; July 6; (20pp), 6pp manuscript, 5pp; September 14; (30pp), 4pp manuscript, 8pp; October 26; (24pp), 4pp manuscript, 7pp; November 30; (22pp), 5pp manuscript, 7pp. A little light foxing early in the September issue; the text overall is very crisp.

The calendars are bound into a brown cloth and marbled boards with a label on the spine describing it as "Newgate Calendar" with the dates. The binding is a bit rubbed and worn, the spine tips and label rubbed with some loss. There is a gap in the case numbering in October 1814, between case 127 and 135. It's possible that there is a page missing here. Research for the transportation records was obtained from the very fine site convictrecords.com.au, which is made possible by the State Library of Queensland.

Even printed copies of the Newgate Calendar are rare. There are only two copies on COPAC; ESTC N62467 is a Newgate Calendar for January 9, 1782, (20pp, 4to.) The only other is a Gale microfilm of the October 17, 1750 issue (12pp, 4to), recorded as ESTC T226233. (Libraries Australia ID 41457128 references the same Gale microfilm.) The State Library of New South Wales also cites T226233 as well as another entry whose listing is unclear as to whether it is an original or an electronic resource.

What is indisputable is that this is extremely rare in the trade, and here annotated by someone who was an integral part of the prison/court system of London in 1814. This record gives an incomparable view into the British criminal justice system at a time when transportation to Australia could mean a death sentence, or the release from grinding poverty in Britain and eventually, the opportunity to start again in a new country. Item #22594

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