Richard Plunkett (beadle)
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Richard Plunkett (1788–1832) was a Parish Officer of the Law, variously described as a
headborough In English law, the term headborough, head-borough, borough-head, borrowhead, or chief pledge, referred historically to the head of the legal, administrative, and territorial unit known as a tithing, which sometimes, particularly in Kent, Surrey a ...
,
beadle A beadle, sometimes spelled bedel, is an official who may usher, keep order, make reports, and assist in religious functions; or a minor official who carries out various civil, educational or ceremonial duties on the manor. The term has pre- ...
or night-
constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. ''Constable'' is commonly the rank of an officer within a police service. Other peo ...
, in
Whitechapel Whitechapel () is an area in London, England, and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in east London and part of the East End of London, East End. It is the location of Tower Hamlets Town Hall and therefore the borough tow ...
, in the East End of London, between 1817 and 1826. His duties were centred upon the Whitechapel watch-house, from which he and his
watchmen ''Watchmen'' is a comic book Limited series (comics), limited series by the British creative team of writer Alan Moore, artist Dave Gibbons, and colorist John Higgins (comics), John Higgins. It was published monthly by DC Comics in 1986 and 19 ...
had to deal with nocturnal criminality in an area of rapidly increasing population, crowded conditions with poor sanitation, and much urban poverty and squalor. Plunkett's term of office just preceded the
Metropolitan Police Act 1829 The Metropolitan Police Act 1829 ( 10 Geo. 4. c. 44) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, and ...
, by which a new system of policing was introduced. Plunkett was often called upon to give evidence at the
Old Bailey The Central Criminal Court of England and Wales, commonly referred to as the Old Bailey after the street on which it stands, is a criminal court building in central London, one of several that house the Crown Court of England and Wales. The s ...
, the cases being scheduled for hearings two or three times a year. His testimony and that of his officers in these more serious cases show his relations with the population at large, his investigations, pursuits and arrests, often based on personal knowledge of the offenders. The majority of these cases resulted in convictions leading to
penal transportation Penal transportation (or simply transportation) was the relocation of convicted criminals, or other persons regarded as undesirable, to a distant place, often a colony, for a specified term; later, specifically established penal colonies bec ...
. His work illustrates the real activities of the parish police of Whitechapel just over a decade before the writing of ''
Oliver Twist ''Oliver Twist; or, The Parish Boy's Progress'', is the second novel by English author Charles Dickens. It was originally published as a serial from 1837 to 1839 and as a three-volume book in 1838. The story follows the titular orphan, who, ...
''.


Background and family

Richard Plunkett was born, lived and died in Whitechapel. He was a son of Luke Plunkett and Margaret Read, who were married at
Christ Church, Spitalfields Christ Church Spitalfields is an Anglican church built between 1714 and 1729 to a design by Nicholas Hawksmoor. On Commercial Street (London), Commercial Street in the East End and in today's Central London it is in the London Borough of Tower H ...
in January 1772. From various different homes in the neighbourhood, Luke and Margaret christened their children at
St Mary Matfelon St Mary Matfelon church, popularly known as St Mary's, Whitechapel, was a Catholic then after the English Reformation a Church of England parish church on Whitechapel Road, Whitechapel, London (in the county of Middlesex until 1889). It is repea ...
, Whitechapel between 1776 (as of Bell Yard) and 1790 (as of Rosemary Lane, now Royal Mint Street). Richard was christened in April 1788 as of George Yard in Gunthorpe Street. Not much is known about Richard's childhood, but in February 1808, at Christchurch Spitalfields, he married Ann Haffner, the middle of three daughters of Thomas Haffner and his wife Elizabeth Hunt. Haffner lived at No. 2 Union Court, Fashion Street, and Richard Plunkett and his wife lived at No. 3 soon after their marriage. Fashion Street was just north of Keate Street and Thrawl Street, between
Brick Lane Brick Lane () is a street in the East End of London, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, borough of Tower Hamlets. It runs from Swanfield Street in Bethnal Green in the north, crosses the Bethnal Green Road before reaching the busiest, mo ...
and Commercial Street. Plunkett was at that time clerk of a benefit society based at the Black Dog Inn in Church Street,
Bethnal Green Bethnal Green is an area in London, England, and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in east London and part of the East End of London, East End. The area emerged from the small settlement which developed around the common la ...
, under management of Mr Stokes: Haffner, a member of the society, made Plunkett sole executor of his will (dividing his property between his three daughters), proved in June 1811. Richard and Ann had four children, Richard James (1810), William (1812), Ann (1815) and Caroline (1817), all of whom were christened at St Mary's and survived infancy. Between 1812 and 1817 they were resident in Fieldgate Street, south of the
Whitechapel Road Whitechapel Road is a major arterial road in Whitechapel, Tower Hamlets, in the East End of London. It is named after a small chapel of ease dedicated to St Mary and connects Whitechapel High Street to the west with Mile End Road to the east ...
. In the same period his sister Mary had her own family. She married William Crowder, a stationer-bookbinder of
Stepney Stepney is an area in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in the East End of London. Stepney is no longer officially defined, and is usually used to refer to a relatively small area. However, for much of its history the place name was applied to ...
, at Christ Church Spitalfields in May 1810, and their first two daughters were christened from an address on
London Wall The London Wall is a defensive wall first built by the Ancient Rome, Romans around the strategically important port town of Londinium in AD 200, as well as the name of a #modern, modern street in the City of London, England. Roman London was ...
. The next two, Elizabeth (1815) and Sarah (1817), were christened at St Mary Whitechapel as from Fieldgate Street; later children were christened at the newly-rebuilt
St Dunstan-in-the-East St Dunstan-in-the-East was a Church of England parish church on St Dunstan's Hill, halfway between London Bridge and the Tower of London in the City of London. The church was largely destroyed in the Second World War and the ruins are now a publi ...
, as from Mile End Old Town, or from
Ratcliff Ratcliff or Ratcliffe is a locality in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames between Limehouse (to the east), and Shadwell (to the west). The place name is no longer commonly used. History Etymol ...
. All lived to be married.


Plunkett's early cases

1817 seems to mark the completion of Richard's family-making intentions for the time being, and his first appearance as 'constable of the night' at the
Old Bailey The Central Criminal Court of England and Wales, commonly referred to as the Old Bailey after the street on which it stands, is a criminal court building in central London, one of several that house the Crown Court of England and Wales. The s ...
relates to an incident just a month before his youngest daughter's christening. As he stood at the corner of Whitechapel church a 19-year-old man ran past an unemployed servant-girl and snatched the shawl (value 2 shillings) from her shoulders. Plunkett took him in charge, and the miscreant got 7 years' transportation. As keeper of the watch-house Plunkett received whatever prisoners the watchmen brought in, and a charge of
grand larceny Larceny is a crime involving the unlawful taking or theft of the personal property of another person or business. It was an offence under the common law of England and became an offence in jurisdictions which incorporated the common law of Eng ...
, with the same sentence, was successfully laid against Robert Miles the following April, when apprehended by two watchmen with a quantity of linen stolen from a carrier's wagon. A month later Plunkett made his own arrest of a carpenter's lad carrying home a plank of wood from his workplace at 3.30 a.m. Searching the house, Plunkett found two doors which he had also taken. Here a verdict of Not Guilty was returned, the master having made no complaint. But in September 1818, following the wholesale theft of provisions (casks of butter and honey and a sackful of hams) from a warehouse in Goodman's Fields (an area around Leman Street and Alie Street), Plunkett, having taken one of the thieves prisoner, got information and went to his residence, where he recovered the goods from the man's wife and mother. About the same time a 15-year-old boy who had stolen a tablecloth and 11 shillings in copper coins from his master, proprietor of an eating-house in Wentworth Street, was made by his father to give himself up to Plunkett. Both criminals were transported for 7 years. In a classic sting two years later, a young woman invited a printer of
Coleman Street Coleman Street is one of the Wards of the City of London, 25 ancient wards of the City of London, England, and lies on the City's northern boundary with the London Borough of Islington. The ward, which includes land lying on either side of the ...
, who frequented Whitechapel, back to her house. When he had got into bed and put his
pocket watch A pocket watch is a watch that is made to be carried in a pocket, as opposed to a wristwatch, which is strapped to the wrist. They were the most common type of watch from their development in the 16th century until wristwatches became popula ...
under the pillow, she extinguished the light and ran off, and two people came in and ordered him out of the house. Missing his watch the man made Plunkett arrest the girl, but nothing was found. In court Plunkett said he thought the complainant was drunk, and remarked that the man had accused him of stealing a pound from him when held in charge two nights previously for drunkenness. The girl was found Not Guilty. By contrast, in November 1820, a man was invited in by a girl in George Yard, Wentworth Street: once he had paid her something to fetch gin, first the women and then the men of the house robbed his money and possessions and forcibly ejected him, padlocking the door. The man called an officer, who arrested one of the girls (aged 17). Further complaint was made to Plunkett, who (having been born in George Yard) knew the man responsible and arrested him. Both were transported for life.


A dangerous occupation

Soon afterwards, on 16 January 1821, Plunkett faced a personal challenge. Now living at No. 5 Baker's Row (on the north side of Whitechapel High Street, just east of the
Workhouse In Britain and Ireland, a workhouse (, lit. "poor-house") was a total institution where those unable to support themselves financially were offered accommodation and employment. In Scotland, they were usually known as Scottish poorhouse, poorh ...
: now Vallance Road), his two sons usually closed the outer shutters of the windows on their return from school, but were delayed. Soon after 5 pm, while taking tea in his back room, he heard a noise and found that two men had broken into his house via the front window, and were moving about in the dark. Discovered, one jumped onto a table and out through the upper part of the sash. The other followed, his
gaiter Gaiters are garments worn over the shoe and bottom of the pant or trouser leg and used primarily as personal protective equipment, in particular against snakebite. They are also commonly used to keep the bottom of the pant-leg dry when hiking ...
slipping from Plunkett's grasp. But Plunkett jumped after him, caught him, and gave him into charge of George Brock, who was standing by. He then chased the other, whom he recognised, up Baker's Row and round the corner into Church Street, where the man appeared nonchalantly in the doorway of a public house. A fight ensued, and Plunkett took him. The two were found guilty of
burglary Burglary, also called breaking and entering (B&E) or housebreaking, is a property crime involving the illegal entry into a building or other area without permission, typically with the intention of committing a further criminal offence. Usually ...
and sentenced to death, but a special verdict was returned pending a decision as to whether the window had been secured. (This case established that the pulling down of the sash of a window, though unfastened, constituted a breaking within the definition of "breaking and entering".) William Haynes and William Harrison were transported for life on the second convict voyage of the ''
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'' on 1 April 1822. Mary Crowder, Plunkett's sister, also found herself in the Old Bailey in the winter of 1820–21. She was still living at Greenfield Street, and in mid-February her lodger, who had been with her since mid-December, disappeared owing her 24 shillings. Some spoons and a pair of ear-rings went missing at the same time. She had not threatened to arrest him for the money owing: the apparent theft came to court, but was not proved against the defendant. In June 1821 Plunkett testified in two cases of pocket-picking, one of which had taken him back to George Yard. In September two women who had accosted a man walking home at 2 a.m. and had taken 27 shillings from him were sentenced to transportation for life. A year later Plunkett and his colleague John Clark went after two women known to them who were accused of stealing a coat and 35 sovereigns from a retired excise-officer in the street, but although the coat was found the court had doubt of their guilt. On the same day he gave evidence in a case of street robbery (classed as
highway robbery 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 ...
with violence, though the work of a footpad) which led to a death sentence. Between December 1822 (when on one occasion he held an identification parade) and February 1825 Plunkett testified in nine other serious cases, mostly resulting in transportation.


His last cases, and retirement

It happened that near to his house in Baker's Row stood the premises of Messrs.
Brocks Fireworks Brock's Fireworks Ltd is a manufacturer of fireworks, founded in London and subsequently based in Hemel Hempstead, Dumfriesshire and Norfolk. History Brock's was founded in 1698 in Islington by John Brock, and is the oldest British firework man ...
factory. On 4 September 1825 two boys were engaged in ramming gunpowder into squibs when a spark ignited and the boys ran out in fright, throwing the firework aside. Fifty pounds of gunpowder and a large amount of
saltpetre Potassium nitrate is a chemical compound with a sharp, salty, bitter taste and the chemical formula . It is a potassium salt of nitric acid. This salt consists of potassium cations and nitrate anions , and is therefore an alkali metal nitrate ...
suddenly exploded, blowing the roof off, setting fire to the building, and smashing every pane of glass in most of the adjoining streets. "Females were frightened into hysterics" (runs the report), but the only serious injury was to Richard Plunkett's sister. In November 1825 a respectable lady, Mrs Byrne, stopped at a house in Leman Street and remonstrated with the owner, an undertaker, who was beating his wife. The man then produced a constable's baton and had Mrs Byrne sent to the watch-house as a common prostitute. Plunkett kept her there for two hours among some rough company, and was about to lock her in a cell when her husband and brother arrived to rescue her. She was vindicated in court, severe criticism was levelled against the watch-houses, and the wife-beating constable was arrested and charged. In the same week a respectable-looking young man was found lying drunk on Whitechapel Road. The watchman took him to the watch-house to sleep it off, but when Plunkett looked in on him at about 4 a.m. he found him weltering in blood, having stabbed himself in the neck with a penknife. With immediate attention he was able to explain that he wished to end his life, and when further recovered was sent home in a cab under medical supervision. These events doubtless contributed to Plunkett's retirement as beadle, and the evidence he gave leading to two further convictions in 1826 are his last recorded in the Proceedings of the Old Bailey. At the time of the firework explosion his occupation is given as "writing ink maker", and in that capacity he took out insurance in December 1825. By March 1827 he had become the publican of the Green Man in Castle Street, Whitechapel. He was buried as from Castle Street at St Mary's Whitechapel on 10 June 1832, aged 44, perhaps a victim of the
cholera epidemic Seven cholera pandemics have occurred in the past 200 years, with the first pandemic originating in India in 1817. The seventh cholera pandemic is officially a current pandemic and has been ongoing since 1961, according to a World Health Organi ...
. At her marriage in 1838 his daughter Ann recorded her late father's occupation as "publican".28 April 1838: Holy Trinity Minories, Register of Marriages, 1837–1860, P69/TRI2/A/01/Ms 9246/4 (Guildhall/LMA).


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Plunkett, Richard (beadle) 1788 births 1832 deaths 19th-century English people People from Whitechapel English parish constables