Old and New London, A Narrative of its History, its People and its Places. Illustrated with Numerous Engravings from the Most Authentic Sources. vol I
Thornbury, Walter
1872-78
The Lord Mayors Of London (Continued).
The Lord Mayors Of London (Continued).
In that clever rascal, [extra_illustrations.1.410.1] , ascended the civic throne. We shall also often meet this unscrupulous demagogue about London, that we will not dwell upon him here at much length. Wilkes was born in Clerkenwell, . His father, Israel Wilkes, was a rich distiller (as his father and grandfather had been), who kept a coach and , and whose house was a resort of persons of rank, merchants, and men of letters. Young Wilkes grew up a man of pleasure, squandered his wife's fortune in gambling and other fashionable vices, and became a notorious member of the Hell Fire Club at Medmenham Abbey. He now eagerly strove for place, asking Mr. Pitt to find him a post in the Board of Trade, or to send him as ambassador to Constantinople. Finding his efforts useless, he boldly avowed his intention of becoming notorious by assailing Government. In , in his scurrilous paper, the , he violently abused the Princess Dowager and her favourite Lord Bute, who were supposed to influence the young king, and in the celebrated No. he accused the ministers of putting a lie in the king's mouth. The Government illegally arresting him by an arbitrary he was committed to the Tower, and at once became the martyr of the people and the idol of the City. Released by Chief-Justice Pratt, he was next proceeded against for an obscene poem, the He fought a duel with Samuel Martin, a brother M.P., who had insulted him, and was expelled the House in . He then went to France in the height of his popularity, having just obtained a verdict in his favour upon the question of the warrant. On his return to England, he daringly stood for the representation of London, and was elected for Middlesex. Riots took place, a man was shot by the soldiers, and Wilkes was committed to the . After a long contest with the Commons, Wilkes was expelled the House, and being re-elected for Middlesex, the election was declared void. | |
Eventually Wilkes became Chamberlain of the City, lectured refractory apprentices like a father, and tamed down to an ordinary man of the world, still shameless, ribald, irreligious, but, as Gibbon says, He quietly took his seat for Middlesex in , and years afterwards the resolutions against him were erased from the Journals of the House. He died in , at his house in . Wilkes' sallow face, sardonic squint, and projecting jaw, are familiar to us from Hogarth's terrible caricature. He generally wore the dress of a colonel of the militia-scarlet and buff, with a cocked hat and rosette, bag wig, and military boots, and O'Keefe describes seeing him walking in from his house at , disdaining all offers of a coach. Dr. Franklin, when in England, describes the mob stopping carriages, and compelling their inmates to shout For the miles out of London on the Winchester road, he says, and on nearly every door or window-shutter, was chalked. By many Tory writers Wilkes is considered latterly to have turned his coat, but he seems to us to have been perfectly consistent to the end. He was always a Whig with aristocratic tastes. When oppression ceased he ceased to protest. Most men grow more Conservative as their minds weaken, but Wilkes was always resolute for liberty. | |
A few anecdotes of Wilkes are necessary for seasoning to our chapter. | |
[extra_illustrations.1.410.2] having challenged Wilkes, who was then sheriff of London and Middlesex, received the following laconic reply: This is of the bitterest retorts ever uttered. Wilkes's notoriety led to his head being painted as a public-house sign, which, however, did not invariably raise the original in estimation. An old lady, in passing a public-house distinguished as above, her companion called her attention to the sign. replied she, Wilkes's squint was proverbial; yet even this natural obliquity he turned to humorous account. When Wilkes challenged Lord Townshend, he said,
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Once, when the house seemed resolved not to hear him, and a friend urged him to desist- he said, Fortunately for him, he was gifted with a coolness and effrontery which were only equalled by his intrepidity, all of which qualities constantly served his turn in the hour of need. As an instance of his audacity, it may be stated that on occasion he and another person put forth, from a private room in a tavern, a proclamation commencing-- & c., and concluding-- Another amusing instance of his effrontery occurred on the hustings at Brentford, when he and Colonel Luttrell were standing there together as rival candidates for the representation of Middlesex in Parliament. Looking down with great apparent apathy on the sea of human beings, consisting chiefly of his own votaries and friends, which stretched beneath him-- he whispered to his opponent,
replied the astonished Luttrell, Perceiving that Wilkes treated the threat with the most perfect indifference-- he added,
replied Wilkes;
inquired Luttrell. said Wilkes,
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During his latter days Wilkes not only became a courtier, but was a frequent attendant at the levees of George III. On of these occasions the King happened to inquire after his old friend who had been Wilkes's counsel during his former seditious proceedings. replied Wilkes;
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He once dined with George IV. when Prince of Wales, when overhearing the Prince speak in rather disparaging language of his father, with whom he was then notoriously on bad terms, he seized an opportunity of proposing the health of the King. said the Prince,
was the reply,
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Alderman Sawbridge (Framework Knitter), mayor in , on his return from a state visit to Kew with all his retinue, was stopped and stripped by a single highwayman. The sword-bearer did not even attempt to hew down the robber. | |
In , Alderman Kennet (Vintner) was mayor during the Gordon riots. He had been a waiter and then a wine merchant, was a coarse and ignorant man, and displayed great incompetence during the week the rioters literally held London. When he was summoned to the House, to be examined about the riots, of the members observed, On being asked why he did not at the outset send for the , he replied he did not know where the fellow lived, or else he would. evening at the Alderman's Club, he was sitting at whist, next Mr. Alderman Pugh, a soap-boiler. said Kennet. replied Pugh; There is no disgrace in having been a soap-boiler or a wine merchant; the true disgrace is to be ashamed of having carried on an honest business. | |
Alderman Clarke (Joiner), mayor in , succeeded Wilkes as Chamberlain in , and died aged , in . This City patriarch was, when a mere boy, introduced to Dr. Johnson by that insufferable man, Sir John Hawkins. He met r. Percy, Goldsmith, and Hawkesworth, with the Polyphemus of letters, at the He was a member of the Essex Head Club. says Mr. Timbs, The portrait of Chamberlain Clarke, in the Court of Common Council in , is by Sir Thomas Lawrence, and cost guineas. There is also a bust of Mr. Clarke, by Sievier, at the , which was paid for by a subscription of the City officers. | |
[extra_illustrations.1.411.1] in , we have described fully elsewhere. He presided over Cheap Ward for years. Nearly opposite his house, , , is No. , which, before the present was built, was used occasionally as the Lord Mayor's residence. | |
Sir James Saunderson (Draper), from whose curious book of official expenses we quote in our chapter on the , was mayor in . It was this mayor who sent a posse of officers to disperse a radical meeting held at that Founders' Hall, and among the persons expelled was a young orator named Waithman, afterwards himself a mayor. | |
- was made pleasant to the Londoners by the abounding hospitality of Sir William Curtis, | |
412 | a portly baronet, who, while he delighted in a liberal feast and a cheerful glass, evidently thought them of small value unless shared by his friends. Many years afterwards, during the reign of George IV., whose good graces he had secured, he went to Scotland with the king, and made Edinburgh merry by wearing a kilt in public. The wits laughed at his costume, complete even to the little dagger in the stocking, but told him he had forgotten important thing--the spoon. |
In , Sir Benjamin Hamet was fined for refusing to serve as mayor. | |
. Alderman Combe, mayor, the brewer, whom some saucy citizens nicknamed But he loved gay company. Among the members at Brookes's who indulged in high play was Combe, who is said to have made as much money in this way as he did by brewing. evening, whilst he filled the office of Lord Mayor, he was busy at a full hazard table at Brookes's, where the wit and dice-box circulated together with great glee, and where [extra_illustrations.1.412.1] was of the party. said Brummel, who was the ,
answered the alderman. returned the beau, ( guineas). The beau continued to throw until he drove home the brewer's ponies running, and then getting up and making him a low bow whilst pocketing the cash, he said,
replied the brewer, Combe was succeeded in the mayoralty by Sir William Staines. They were both smokers, and were seen night at the lighting their pipes at the same taper; which reminds us of the kings of Brentford smelling at nosegay. (Timbs.) | |
. Sir William Staines, mayor. He began life as a bricklayer's labourer, and by persevering steadily in the pursuit of object, accumulated a large fortune, and rose to the state coach and the . te was Alderman of Cripplegate Ward, where his memory is much respected. In Jacob's Well Passage, in , he built houses for the reception of his aged and indigent friends. They are erected on both sides of the court, with nothing to distinguish them from the other dwelling-houses, and without ostentatious display of stone or other inscription to denote the poverty of the inhabitants. The early tenants were aged workmen, tradesmen, & c., several of whom Staines had personally esteemed as his neighbours. , a peruke-maker, had shaved the worthy alderman during years. Staines also built Chapel, and rebuilt the public-house, noted for dramatic representations. The alderman was an illiterate man) and was a sort of butt amongst his brethren. At of the dinners, after a sumptuous repast of turtle and venison, Sir William was eating a great quantity of butter with his cheese. said Wilkes, A son of Sir William Staines, who worked at his father's business (a builder), fell from a lofty ladder, and was killed; when the father, on being fetched to the spot, broke through the crowd, exclaiming, His manners may be judged from the following anecdote. At a City feast, when sheriff, sitting by General Tarleton, he thus addressed him,
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In , Sir James Shaw (Scrivener), afterwards Chamberlain, was a native of Kilmarnock, where a marble statue of him has been erected. He was of the humblest birth, but amassed a fortune as a merchant, and sat in parliaments for the City. He was extremely charitable, and was of the to assist the children of Burns. At of his mayoralty dinners, sons of George III. were guests. | |
Sir William Domville (Stationer), mayor in , gave the great banquet to the Prince Regent and the Allied Sovereigns during the short and fallacious peace before Waterloo. The dinner was served on plate valued at , and the entire entertainment cost nearly . The mayor was made baronet for this. | |
In reigned [extra_illustrations.1.412.2] , the celebrated confectioner. The business at No. , was established by Mr. Horton, in the reign of George I. Samuel Birch, born in , was for many years a member of the Common Council, a City orator, an Alderman of the Ward of Candlewick, a poet, a dramatic writer, and Colonel of the City Militia. His pastry was, after all, the best thing he did, though he laid the stone of the , and wrote the inscription to Chantrey's statue of George III., now in the Council Chamber, . was Birch's nickname. | |
Theodore Hook, or some clever versifier of the day, wrote an amusing skit on the vain, fussy, goodnatured Jack-of-all-trades, beginning-
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413 [extra_illustrations.1.413.1] [extra_illustrations.1.413.2] |
Wherever this inquisitive foreigner goes he find Monsieur Birch--
He meets him again as militia colonel, poet, & c. & c., till he returns to France believing Birch Emperor of London. |
Birch possessed considerable literary taste, and wrote poems and musical dramas, of which remained a stock piece to our own time. The alderman used annually to send, as a present, a Twelfth-cake to the . The upper portion of the, house in has been rebuilt, but the ground-floor remains intact, a curious specimen of the decorated shop-front of the last century; and here are preserved doorplates, inscribed which are years old. Alderman Birch died in , having been succeeded in the business in in , by Ring and Brymer. | |
In -, we come to a mayor of great notoriety, [extra_illustrations.1.413.3] , a druggist in . He was a Devonshire man, who began life as a druggist's traveller, and distinguished himself by his exertions for poor persecuted Queen Caroline. He served as Lord Mayor successive years, and represented the City in parliaments. His baronetcy was the title conferred by Queen Victoria, in , as a reward for his political exertions. As a namesake of the miser banker of Gloucester, he received a princely legacy. The Vice-Chancellor Page Wood (Lord Hatherley) was the mayor's son. | |
The following sonnet was contributed by Charles and Mary Lamb to Thelwall's newspaper, . Lamb's extreme opinions, as here enunciated, were merely assumed to please his friend Thelwall, but there seems a genuine tone in his abuse of Canning. Perhaps it dated from the time when the had ridiculed Southey and Coleridge:--
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In - Alderman [extra_illustrations.1.413.4] was host at the . In early life he had been a Customs' tide-waiter, and was not remarkable for polished manners; but he was a shrewd and worthy man, filling the seat of justice with impartiality, and dispensing the hospitality of the City with an open hand. | |
In John Thomas Thorpe (Draper), mayor, officiated as chief butler at the coronation feast of George IV. He and assistants presented the king wine in a golden cup, which the king returned as the cupbearer's fees. Being, however, a violent partisan of Queen Caroline, he was not created a baronet. | |
In we come to another determined reformer, [extra_illustrations.1.413.5] whom we have already noticed in the chapter on . As a poor lad, he was adopted by his uncle, a Bath linendraper. e began to appear as a politician in . When sheriff in , in quelling a tumult at , he was in danger from a Life-guardsman's carbine, and at the funeral of Queen Caroline, a carbine bullet passed through his carriage in Hyde ark. Many of his resolutions in the Common Council were, says Mr. Timbs, written by Sir Richard Phillips, the bookseller. | |
Alderman Garratt (Goldsmith), mayor in , laid the stone of , accompanied by the Duke of York. At the banquet at the , guests were entertained in the Egyptian Hall, and nearly of the Artillery Company in the saloon. The Monument was illuminated the same night. | |
In , Alderman Key, mayor, roused great indignation in the City, by frightening William IV., and preventing his coming to the dinner. he show and inauguration dinner were in consequence omitted. In Key was again mayor, and on the opening of was created a baronet. | |
Sir Peter Laurie, in -, though certainly possessing a decided opinion on most political questions, which he steadily, and no doubt honestly carried out, frequently incurred criticism on account of his extreme views, and a passion for what he imagined social grievances. He lived to a green old age. In manners open, easy, and unassuming; in disposition, friendly and liberal; kind as a master, and unaffectedly hospitable as a host, he gained, as he deserved, dying lamented and honoured, as he had lived, respected and beloved. (Aleph.) [extra_illustrations.1.413.6] | |
414 | |
When Sir Peter Laurie, as Lord Mayor of London, entertained the judges and leaders of the bar, he exclaimed to his guests, in an after-dinner oration:-- | |
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Although Lord Tenterden possessed too much natural dignity and truthfulness to blush for his humble origin, he winced at hearing his excellent mother and her worthy husband, the Canterbury wig-maker, thus described as belonging to
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. Alderman Kelly, Lord Mayor at the accession of her Majesty, was born at Chevening, in Kent, and lived, when a youth, with Alexander Hogg, the publisher, in , for a year wages. He slept under the shop-counter for the security of the premises. He was reported by his master to be for the situation. Mr. Hogg, however, thought him and he remained. This incident shows upon what apparently trifling circumstances sometimes a man's future prospects depend. Mr. Kelly succeeded | |
| Mr. Hogg in the business, became Alderman of the Ward of Farringdon Within, and served as sheriff and mayor, the cost of which exceeded the fees and allowances by the sum of . He lived upon the same spot years, and died in his year. He was a man of active benevolence, and reminded of the pious Lord Mayor, Sir Thomas Abney. He composed some prayers for his own use, which were subsequently printed for private distribution. (Timbs.) | |
Sir John Cowan (Wax Chandler), mayor in , was created a baronet after having entertained the Queen at his mayoralty dinner. | |
. Sir Chapman Marshall, mayor. He received knighthood when sheriff, in ; and at a public dinner of the friends and supporters of the Metropolitan Charity Schools, he addressed the company as follows :-- Self-made men are too fond of such glorifications, and forget how much wealth depends on good fortune and opportunity. | |
. Alderman Wilson, mayor, signalised his year of office by giving, in the Egyptian Hall, a banquet to connections of the Wilson family being above the age of years. At this family festival, the usual civic state and ceremonial were maintained, the sword and mace borne, & c.; but after the loving cup had been passed round, the attendants were dismissed, in order that the free family intercourse might not be restricted during the remainder of the evening. A large number of the Wilson family, including the alderman himself, have grown rich in the silk trade. (Timbs.) | |
In , Sir John Pirie, mayor, the was commenced. Baronetcy received on the christening of the Prince of Wales. At his inauguration dinner at , Sir John said: In his mayoralty show, Pirie, being a shipowner, added to the procession a model of a large East Indiaman, fully rigged and manned, and drawn in a car by horses. (Aleph.) | |
Alderman Farncomb (Tallow-chandler), mayor in , was of the great promoters of the Great Exhibition of , that Fair of all Nations which was to bring about universal peace, and wrap the globe in English cotton. He gave a grand banquet at the to Prince Albert and a host of provincial mayors; and Prince Albert explained his views about his hobby in his usual calm and sensible way. | |
In Sir John Musgrove (Clothworker), at the suggestion of Mr. G. Godwin, arranged a show on more than usually aesthetic principles. There was Peace with her olive-branch, the quarters of the world, with camels, deer, elephants, negroes, beehives, a ship in full sail, an allegorical car, drawn by horses, with Britannia on a throne and Happiness at her feet; and great was the delight of the mob at the gratuitous splendour. | |
Alderman Salomons () was the Jewish Lord Mayor--a laudable proof of the increased toleration of our age. This mayor proved a liberal and active magistrate, who repressed the mischievous and unmeaning Guy Fawkes rejoicings, and through the exertions of the City Solicitor, persuaded the Common Council to at last erase the absurd inscription on the Monument, which attributed the Fire of London to a Roman Catholic conspiracy. | |
[extra_illustrations.1.416.2] , mayor in (Spectaclemaker), an active encourager of the useful and manly volunteer movement, had the honour of entertaining the Prince of Wales and his beautiful Danish bride at a banquet, soon after their marriage. The festivities (including for a diamond necklace) cost the Corporation some . The alderman was knighted in . e was (says Mr. Timbs) Alderman of , living in the same row where mayors of our time have resided. | |
Alderman Lawrence, mayor in -. His father and brother were both aldermen, and all were in turns Sheriff of London and Middlesex. Alderman Phillips (Spectacle-maker), mayor in , was the Jewish Lord Mayor, and the Jew admitted into the municipality of London. This gentleman, of Prussian descent, had the honour of entertaining, at the , the Prince of Wales and the King and Queen of the Belgians, and was knighted at the close of his mayoralty. | |
Footnotes: [extra_illustrations.1.410.1] John Wilkes [extra_illustrations.1.410.2] Henry Tooke [extra_illustrations.1.411.1] Alderman Boydell, mayor [extra_illustrations.1.412.1] Beau Brummel [extra_illustrations.1.412.2] Alderman Birch [extra_illustrations.1.413.1] Wood Election Papers 1818 [extra_illustrations.1.413.2] Atkins Election Papers 1818 [extra_illustrations.1.413.3] Sir Matthew Wood [extra_illustrations.1.413.4] John Atkins [extra_illustrations.1.413.5] Alderman Waithman [extra_illustrations.1.413.6] An Election Squib (Cruickshank) [extra_illustrations.1.416.2] Alderman Rose |
