Maria Barrell née Weylar (died 1803) was a poet, playwright and writer of periodicals. Whilst confined in

debtors' prison A debtors' prison is a prison for people who are unable to pay debt. Until the mid-19th century, debtors' prisons (usually similar in form to locked workhouses) were a common way to deal with unpaid debt in Western Europe Western Europe is ...

she wrote about the plight of bankruptcy and campaigned to Parliament for legislative reform. Having faced financial issues for much of her life, she died in

Newgate Prison Newgate Prison was a prison at the corner of Newgate Street and Old Bailey Street just inside the City of London, England, originally at the site of Newgate, a gate in the Roman London Wall. Built in the 12th century and demolished in 1904, ...

awaiting deportation to Australia.

Biography

Maria Barrell claimed to have been born in the West Indies but appears to have spent her early life in England. She moved to Grenada in 1763 and ten years later married Theodore Barrell. Together they had a son, William, and a daughter, whose name is unknown. In 1777, Maria and Theodore were in America and were accused of having loyalist sympathies during the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of ...

. They were forced to separate when Maria was allowed to leave Boston to see her daughter in England, but was not allowed to return. In 1782, Barrell was living in London. Whilst in the city, she contributed to periodicals as 'Maria'. Barrell was imprisoned for debt in the 1780s. She submitted compensation claims in 1784 and 1790 for losses due to the American War, but these were unsuccessful. ''British Liberty Vindicated'' is a prose tract written in 1788 whilst Barrell was a prisoner in the

King's Bench The King's Bench (), or, during the reign of a female monarch, the Queen's Bench ('), refers to several contemporary and historical courts in some Commonwealth jurisdictions. * Court of King's Bench (England), a historic court court of common ...

. In an introduction preceding the poem she describes herself as an "unfortunate loyalist" facing "perpetual imprisonment". The poem praises British liberty but appeals to the right of debtors and explores the futility of imprisoning them. Barrell's play ''The Captive'' was written in 1790 and is dedicated to the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rule ...

. Her address was again given as the Kings Bench, and in the preface she states that she is writing from "the gloomy walls of a prison". Barrell compares the

Storming of the Bastille The Storming of the Bastille (french: Prise de la Bastille ) occurred in Paris, France, on 14 July 1789, when revolutionary insurgents stormed and seized control of the medieval armoury, fortress, and political prison known as the Bastille. A ...

to how she feels like a captive in her own country. She encourages readers to petition Parliament for reform so that debtors can work to repay their debt. She also condemns long-term imprisonment, claiming a person will find it hard to work after such a confinement. The plot focusses on a soldier starving to death in prison and his wife on the outside who cannot help. The play explores how bankruptcy is treated as the worst of crimes, despite it arising from bad luck. The play was never performed, but it demonstrates how play-writing was a potential method of income for women in desperate need of money, or as a way to attract a patron. Barrell married James Makitterick Adair in 1791, but the marriage was short-lived and Adair remarried the following year. In 1801, Barrell was convicted of passing counterfeit coin in

Fleet Street Fleet Street is a major street mostly in the City of London. It runs west to east from Temple Bar at the boundary with the City of Westminster to Ludgate Circus at the site of the London Wall and the River Fleet from which the street was n ...

and was sentenced to one year in prison. She was convicted of counterfeit again in 1803 and faced the death penalty, but received a royal pardon. Her punishment was reduced to

transportation Transport (in British English), or transportation (in American English), is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land ( rail and road), water, cable, pipel ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

. Barrell died in

before she could leave.

Works

* ''Reveries du Coeur: Or, Feelings of the Heart. Attempted in Verse'' (1770) * ''British Liberty Vindicated; or, a Delineation of the King's Bench'' (1788) * ''The Captive'' (1790)

References

External links

*
The Captive
–'' via

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Barrell, Maria 1803 deaths 18th-century British women writers British women dramatists and playwrights 18th-century British dramatists and playwrights 18th-century British poets Prisoners and detainees of England and Wales