John Nevison (1639 – 4 May 1684), also known as William Nevison or Nevinson, was one of England's most notorious

highwaymen A highwayman was a robber who stole from travellers. This type of thief usually travelled and robbed by horse as compared to a footpad who travelled and robbed on foot; mounted highwaymen were widely considered to be socially superior to foo ...

, a gentleman rogue supposedly nicknamed ''Swift Nick'' by King Charles II after a renowned dash from

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

to establish an

alibi An alibi (, from the Latin, '' alibī'', meaning "somewhere else") is a statement by a person under suspicion in a crime that they were in a different place when the offence was committed. During a police investigation, all suspects are usually a ...

for a robbery he had committed earlier that day. The story inspired

William Harrison Ainsworth William Harrison Ainsworth (4 February 18053 January 1882) was an English historical novelist born at King Street in Manchester. He trained as a lawyer, but the legal profession held no attraction for him. While completing his legal studies in ...

to include a modified version in his novel '' Rookwood'', in which he attributed the feat to

Dick Turpin Richard Turpin (bapt. 21 September 1705 – 7 April 1739) was an English highwayman whose exploits were romanticised following his execution in York for horse theft. Turpin may have followed his father's trade as a butcher ear ...

. There are suggestions that the feat was actually undertaken by Samuel Nicks. The TV series ''

'' had an accomplice of the highwayman, Nick, who earned the nickname "Swiftnick".

History

Nevison was born in 1639, probably in Wortley,

West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire was one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the riding was an administrative county named County of York, West Riding. The Lord Lieutenant of the West Riding of Yorkshire, lieu ...

(present-day

South Yorkshire South Yorkshire is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the north, the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north-east, Lincolnshire ...

). He ran away from home at the age of 13 or 14 and may have ended up in London. Forced to flee to Holland to evade the authorities he enrolled in the

Duke of York Duke of York is a title of nobility in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Since the 15th century, it has, when granted, usually been given to the second son of List of English monarchs, English (later List of British monarchs, British) monarchs ...

's army and took part in the 1658

Battle of Dunkirk The Battle of Dunkirk () was fought around the French Third Republic, French port of Dunkirk, Dunkirk (Dunkerque) during the Second World War, between the Allies of World War II, Allies and Nazi Germany. As the Allies were losing the Battle ...

. After his discharge he returned to England and took care of his father for several years before adopting the same profession as many of his contemporary ex-soldiers, that of a highwayman. Basing himself around

Newark-on-Trent Newark-on-Trent () or Newark is a market town and civil parish in the Newark and Sherwood district in Nottinghamshire, England. It is on the River Trent, and was historically a major inland port. The A1 road (Great Britain), A1 road bypasses th ...

, he targeted those travelling along the Great North Road between

Huntingdon Huntingdon is a market town in the Huntingdonshire district of Cambridgeshire, England. The town was given its town charter by John, King of England, King John in 1205. It was the county town of the historic county of Huntingdonshire. Oliver C ...

in the south and York to the north. In the mid-1670s his activities were under investigation and he was associated with men named Edmund Bracy, Thomas Wilbore, Thomas Tankerd, John Bromett, and William (or Robert) Everson and John Brace or Bracy, which may have been his alias. The robbers used safe houses at

Tuxford Tuxford is a historic market town and a civil parish in the Bassetlaw District, Bassetlaw district of Nottinghamshire, England. It had a population of 2,809 in the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 census. Geography Its nearby towns are Oll ...

and

Wentbridge Wentbridge is a village and civil parish in the Wakefield district of West Yorkshire, England. It lies around southeast of its nearest town of size, Pontefract, close to the A1 road. The village contains one of the largest viaducts in Europe ...

and divided their spoils at the Talbot Inn at Newark. Nevison developed a reputation as a gentleman highwayman, never using violence against his victims, always polite, and only robbing the rich. The famous ride from Kent to York took place in 1676, after Nevison had robbed a traveller at Gad's Hill, near

Rochester, Kent Rochester ( ) is a town in the unitary authority of Medway, in Kent, England. It is at the lowest bridging point of the River Medway, about east-southeast of London. The town forms a conurbation with neighbouring towns Chatham, Kent, Chatham, ...

. Nevison escaped, using a ferry to cross the

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after th ...

and galloped via

Chelmsford Chelmsford () is a city in the City of Chelmsford district in the county of Essex, England. It is the county town of Essex and one of three cities in the county, along with Colchester and Southend-on-Sea. It is located north-east of London ...

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

and Huntingdon to York some from the scene of the crime. He arrived at sunset and ensured he met the city's

Lord Mayor Lord mayor is a title of a mayor of what is usually a major city in a Commonwealth realm, with special recognition bestowed by the sovereign. However, the title or an equivalent is present in other countries, including forms such as "high mayor". A ...

, entering into a wager on a

bowls Bowls, also known as lawn bowls or lawn bowling, is a sport in which players try to roll their ball (called a bowl) closest to a smaller ball (known as a "jack" or sometimes a "kitty"). The bowls are shaped (biased), so that they follow a curve ...

match. When he was arrested and tried for the Gad's Hill robbery, he produced the Lord Mayor to support his alibi and was found not guilty. Nevison was tried and convicted for the theft of a horse and highway robbery at York assizes in 1677. He was imprisoned in

York Castle York Castle is a fortified complex in the city of York, England. It consists of a sequence of castles, prisons, court, law courts and other buildings, which were built over the last nine centuries on the north-west side of the River Foss.Coop ...

but, on offering to inform against his accomplices was pardoned and was to be transported. In 1681 he was taken from gaol to be enlisted in a company of soldiers bound for

Tangier Tangier ( ; , , ) is a city in northwestern Morocco, on the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. The city is the capital city, capital of the Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima region, as well as the Tangier-Assilah Prefecture of Moroc ...

but escaped. A reward of £20 was offered for his recapture. He was arrested on 6 March 1684 at the Three Houses Inn in

Sandal Magna Sandal Magna or Sandal is a suburb of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England with a population in 2001 of 5,432. An ancient settlement, it is the site of Sandal Castle and is mentioned in the Domesday Book. It is south from Wakefield, north of ...

near

Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 109,766 in the 2021 census, up from 99,251 in the 2011 census. The city is the administrative centre of the wider Metropolit ...

and tried for the murder of Darcy Fletcher, a constable who had tried to arrest him near Howley Hall at Soothill in

Batley Batley is a market town in the Kirklees district, in West Yorkshire, England, south-west of Leeds, north-west of Wakefield and Dewsbury, south-east of Bradford and north-east of Huddersfield, in the Heavy Woollen District. In 2011, the popu ...

. He was taken to York where, because he had breached his pardon, the judge "told him he must dye, for he was a terrour to the country". Nevison was hanged at the

Knavesmire The Knavesmire is one of a number of large, marshy undeveloped areas within the city of York in North Yorkshire, England, which are collectively known as ''Strays of York, Strays''. Knavesmire, together with Hob Moor, comprises Micklegate Str ...

on 4 May 1684 and buried in an unmarked grave in St Mary's Church, Castlegate.

Legacy

Nevison was idolised by the public, and ballads about his deeds were popular centuries after in the form of a folk song "Bold Nevison the Highwayman" (

Roud The Roud Folk Song Index is a database of around 250,000 references to nearly 25,000 songs collected from oral tradition in the English language from all over the world. It is compiled by Steve Roud. Roud's Index is a combination of the Broadsid ...

1082 Year 1082 ( MLXXXII) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Spring – The Normans under Duke Robert Guiscard take Dyrrhachium (modern-day Durrës) in Illyria and advanc ...

). The

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (), abbreviated ''Lincs'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber regions of England. It is bordered by the East Riding of Yorkshire across the Humber estuary to th ...

folk singer Joseph Taylor knew three verses of a song about Nevison.

Percy Grainger Percy Aldridge Grainger (born George Percy Grainger; 8 July 188220 February 1961) was an Australian-born composer, arranger and pianist who moved to the United States in 1914 and became an American citizen in 1918. In the course of a long and ...

recorded Taylor singing the song on a phonograph in 1908; the original recording is available on the

British Library Sound Archive The British Library Sound Archive, formerly the British Institute of Recorded Sound; also known as the National Sound Archive (NSA), in London, England is among the largest collections of recorded sound in the world, including music, spoken word ...

website.

I've now robb'd a gentleman of two-pence, I've neither done murder, nor killed, But guilty I've been all my life time, So gentlemen do as you will I's when that I rode on the highway, I've always had money in great store; And whatever I look from the rich I freely gave it to the poor.

(Lyrics taken from 1850s broadside printed in

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

.) In the 1913 novel ''Swift Nick of the York Road'' by George Edgar, Nevison is a gentleman who is cheated out of his fortune when gambling, wins several duels and finally profits from

King Charles King Charles may refer to: Kings A number of kings of Albania, Alençon, Anjou, Austria, Bohemia, Croatia, England, France, Holy Roman Empire, Hungary, Ireland, Jerusalem, Naples, Navarre, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Sardinia, Scotland, Sicily, S ...

's clemency.

Hubert Clifford __NOTOC__ Hubert John Clifford (31 May 1904 – 4 September 1959) was an Australian-born British composer, conductor and musical director for films. Education and early career A native of Bairnsdale in rural Victoria, he studied chemistry befor ...

's 1935 ''Kentish Suite'' for orchestra has as its fourth movement "Swift Nicks of Gad's Hill", with the comment that "Nicholas Nevinson was a highwayman of the period who plied his business at Gad’s Hill near Gravesend. His famous ride to York, usually associated with the name of Dick Turpin, earned his title to fame, and King Charles, on hearing of his exploits, granted him a free pardon and dubbed him 'Swift Nicks'". The Gad's Hill reference and the pardon both appear in Defoe's account.

References

Citations

Bibliography

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External links