Aldington was the stronghold of The Aldington Gang, a band of

smuggler Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations. There are various ...

s roaming the

Romney Marsh Romney Marsh is a sparsely populated wetland area in the counties of Kent and East Sussex in the south-east of England. It covers about . The Marsh has been in use for centuries, though its inhabitants commonly suffered from malaria until the ...

es and

shore A shore or a shoreline is the fringe of land at the edge of a large body of water, such as an ocean, sea, or lake. In physical oceanography, a shore is the wider fringe that is geologically modified by the action of the body of water pas ...

s of

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it fac ...

. The gang's leaders, made the local

inn Inns are generally establishments or buildings where travelers can seek lodging, and usually, food and drink. Inns are typically located in the country or along a highway; before the advent of motorized transportation they also provided accommo ...

, ''The Walnut Tree Inn'', their headquarters and drop for their

contraband Contraband (from Medieval French ''contrebande'' "smuggling") refers to any item that, relating to its nature, is illegal to be possessed or sold. It is used for goods that by their nature are considered too dangerous or offensive in the eyes o ...

. The Inn was often used when they waited for others of their group to bring in goods from across the Marshes. High up on the southern side of the inn is a small window through which the gang would shine a signal light to their partners up on ''Aldington Knoll'' when the way was clear for them. They were probably the last 'major' gang that existed in Kent and it is believed that they were known as ''The Blues'' from the colour of the clothing that they wore or from blue

flare A flare, also sometimes called a fusée, fusee, or bengala in some Latin-speaking countries, is a type of pyrotechnic that produces a bright light or intense heat without an explosion. Flares are used for distress signaling, illumination, ...

s used for signalling.Whitstable Scene
/ref>

The Gang's activities

The gang was probably founded in or around 1817, as gang-based smuggling returned, but the first mention of the Aldington Gang was in November 1820, after the men had returned home from the

Napoleonic War The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fre ...

s and found little to do to make any money. It is believed that they were active well before this date and were responsible for incidents in

Deal A deal, or deals may refer to: Places United States * Deal, New Jersey, a borough * Deal, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * Deal Lake, New Jersey Elsewhere * Deal Island (Tasmania), Australia * Deal, Kent, a town in England * Deal, a ...

, St. Margaret's Bay, north of Dover.Kent Resources
The gang carried out a landing near Sandgate with 250 men taking part, unloading a galley laden with spirits, tobacco and salt that had been rowed across the Channel from Boulogne and pulled up onto the shingle beach. Three groups of smugglers had gathered: one to unload and transport the cargo and two groups of "Batmen", to protect the first. They were spotted by a few local blockade men, as the main blockade force had been lured away by the smugglers. "Batmen" stood guard when a run was taking place to fight off anyone who tried to interfere; they gained their name from the long clubs, or ‘bats’ they carried. Some smugglers used guns, although the shooting of the Revenue officer often roused the authorities to step up their efforts against smuggling. In February 1821 the ''Battle of Brookland'' took place between the Customs and Excise men and the Aldington Gang. The smugglers had sent 250 men down to the coast between Camber and

Dungeness Dungeness () is a headland on the coast of Kent, England, formed largely of a shingle beach in the form of a cuspate foreland. It shelters a large area of low-lying land, Romney Marsh. Dungeness spans Dungeness Nuclear Power Station, the ha ...

but the party was seen by the Watch House at Camber and a fight took place over

Walland Marsh Walland Marsh is a part of Romney Marsh, mostly in Kent with part in East Sussex. The name means ''wall-land'': its north-eastern border, separating it from the rest of Romney Marsh, is the Rhee Wall.Brookland, where the Gang turned on the blockade force. Five men were killed in the fighting and there were more than twenty wounded.VillageNet
Their leader at that time was

Cephas Quested Brookland is a village and civil parish in the Folkestone and Hythe district of Kent, England, about west of New Romney. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 453, increasing to 479 at the 2011 Census. It is located on the ...

who, in the confusion of the Battle, turned to a man close by him, handed him a musket and instructed him to "blow an Officer's brains out." Unfortunately for Quested, in the confusion of the fight and being somewhat intoxicated, the man that he had turned to was a

Midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada (Naval Cadet), Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Afr ...

of the blockade force, who immediately turned the gun on Quested and arrested him. After being sentenced, Quested was taken to Newgate and hanged for his activities on 4 July 1821. In 1792 George Ransley was born at Ruckinge, and started work as a ploughman then a carter. The story goes that he found a stash of

spirits Spirit or spirits may refer to: Liquor and other volatile liquids * Spirits, a.k.a. liquor, distilled alcoholic drinks * Spirit or tincture, an extract of plant or animal material dissolved in ethanol * Volatile (especially flammable) liquids, ...

hidden by the smugglers and with the proceeds of the sale bought his house ''The Bourne Tap'', from where he frequently sold spirits that he had landed. Another location frequented by the Gang at this time was an

Augustine Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Afri ...

Priory A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or nuns (such as the Dominicans, Augustinians, Franciscans, and Carmelites), or monasteries of monk ...

, at

Bilsington Bilsington is a village and civil parish in the Ashford district of Kent, England. The village is about south of Ashford, on the B2067 road, Hamstreet to Hythe road north of the Royal Military Canal. About of a quarter of the parish is woo ...

which was used as a farm house and they would use as a store house. Ransley took over the gang of smugglers after the Battle of Brookland, and employed a doctor, with an allowance paid to a man's family if he was ill, a policy that avoided the capture of injured men by the revenue forces and helped to ensure loyalty. The gang became stronger and landed goods along the coast from Rye to

. In July 1826 they were caught on the beach at

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidsto ...

and a

, Richard Morgan, was killed. In October 1826 Ransley was arrested at Aldington by the

Bow Street Runners The Bow Street Runners were the law enforcement officers of the Bow Street Magistrates' Court in the City of Westminster. They have been called London's first professional police force. The force originally numbered six men and was founded in 1 ...

on suspicion of murder, but as it took place in the dark, the death sentence was converted to deportation along with his brother-in-law Samuel Bailey as was fellow gang members Thomas Gillham and James Hogben.George Ransley (b. 1821 Ruckinge, Kent)
/ref> Ransley was sent to work on a farm in

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

where his knowledge of farming was a great benefit to him. Two years later his wife Elizabeth followed with their ten children - only nine survived the journey. He was assigned to his wife in 1833. He was finally granted a pardon in 1838 and farmed at River Plenty,

Hobart Hobart ( ; Nuennonne/Palawa kani: ''nipaluna'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Home to almost half of all Tasmanians, it is the least-populated Australian state capital city, and second-smalle ...

. He died in 1856 and is buried in River Plenty, New Norfolk, along with his wife.

Downfall

The success of smuggling gangs is dependent upon the goodwill of the local people. The gang began to lose this special relationship as they extended their ruthless behaviour beyond that of the publicly acceptable crime of smuggling and turned on the rural communities. Some of the members of the Gang started resorting to breaking into local residences. The problems were compounded when Richard Morgan, a member of the blockade forces at Dover, was shot and killed. Morgan, who was a quartermaster with the blockade, was well liked in Dover and spotted the Gang trying to run a cargo ashore on Dover Beach. After firing a warning shot the Gang turned on him, resulting in his death and the wounding of a seaman who was with him. A reward was offered for information after this incident which was claimed by several people and as a consequence, in October, 1826 the blockade forces together with two

raided ''The Bourne Tap'' and captured George Ransley and seven other members of the Gang. Eventually a total of nineteen men were captured and stood

trial In law, a trial is a coming together of parties to a dispute, to present information (in the form of evidence) in a tribunal, a formal setting with the authority to adjudicate claims or disputes. One form of tribunal is a court. The tribunal ...

Maidstone Maidstone is the largest town in Kent, England, of which it is the county town. Maidstone is historically important and lies 32 miles (51 km) east-south-east of London. The River Medway runs through the centre of the town, linking it with ...

Assizes The courts of assize, or assizes (), were periodic courts held around England and Wales until 1972, when together with the quarter sessions they were abolished by the Courts Act 1971 and replaced by a single permanent Crown Court. The assizes ...

in January 1827. They were all found guilty of charges that carried the death penalty but their

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solicitor ...

, a local gentleman from Maidstone, managed to get their sentences commuted to transportation.

Stories

*There is a story that as a result of a fight between the Gang members one night, one of the smugglers' number was murdered and the body disposed of down a well at the side of the Inn. It is said that on some nights the sounds of scuffling and a body being dragged outside can still be heard. *Although the Gang had a brutal reputation, they were not without a sense of humour. One officer who was blindfolded and had his legs bound was told he was to be thrown over a cliff. He managed to cling on to tufts of grass as he fell and hung with his legs dangling for some time. It was not until his blindfold slipped that he realised his feet were a matter of inches above the ground. The 'cliff' was only seven feet (2 m) high. *Ransley lived at a ''The Bourne Tap'' and stories were circulated about there being a ghost which manifested itself as a floating severed head in the old building which served well to keep the curious away. *Ransley was known for his organisational abilities but stories differ about the man. Some said he was a giant of over six feet, others said he was hardly more than five feet tall, some said he was a likeable rogue, others lived in absolute fear of him. Whatever was the truth, there was no doubt that he could be as ruthless as the situation demanded.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aldington Gang, The Gangs in England History of Kent History of Ashford, Kent Former gangs People from Kent