What other sorts of crimes were Herefordians charged with?

A fascinating case involves slavery and the West Indies. A John Seaborne of Canon Pyon was accused of abducting children for slavery in 1670 (Herefordshire Quarter Sessions, Q/SO/1, F171 B, Hereford Record Office). The accuser, a Thomas Blythe of the parish of Weobley, asserted that the said John Seaborne had inveigled and carried away poor children, including his own child, to be sold for slaves into Barbados. Note: The sugar cane (and to a lesser extent the tobacco and cotton) plantations in the West Indies required a large number of workers and, especially in the years before the introduction of slaves from Africa, white people from Britain were transported to the colony of Barbados, either as prisoners or indentured servants. For example, nearly 7,000 Irish people were transported during the Cromwellian period (for details visit the Slavery and economy in Barbados page of the BBC History website). As our court case proves, kidnapping was also a source of forced labour. "Descendants of the white slaves and indentured labour (referred to as Red Legs) still live in Barbados, they live amongst the black population in St. Martin's River and other east coast regions. At one time they lived in caves in this region." (for details visit the Barbados.org website) Perhaps descendants of those original kidnapped Herefordian children are among these "Red Legs"?

The historian John P. Dwyer has collated charges brought in Hereford for each decade from 1470 to 1600 according to category of crime or public order offence. For the period 1540 to 1550, for example (during the reigns of Henry VIII and Edward VI), he recorded 170 charges of violence against people, 95 cases of traders overcharging, 105 drinking offences, 439 offences against civic cleanliness and 251 gaming (gambling) offences. Fifty years later, for the period 1590 to 1600 (during the reign of Elizabeth I), there were only 69 charges of violence to people, 73 price offences, 270 offences against civic cleanliness and 166 gaming offences, but 313 drinking offences were recorded! (John Patrick Dwyer, "As wee May Live in Peace and Quiettnes": Regulation in the Age of Reformation, Hereford 1470-1610, PhD thesis, 2001, copy in Hereford Record Office)

Some offences were of a minor nature. In 1573 several people were charged with wearing hats instead of caps (Hereford City Records, Miscellaneous Papers, 1573, III, 35-37, Hereford Record Office). To encourage the woollen trade, Queen Elizabeth I had signed a statute enforcing the wearing of woollen caps on Sundays. For such minor offences people were usually fined.

The following case is the Tudor equivalent of abandoning a vehicle: a John Bullock was fined 3s 4d for placing a "certain dead mare in the high way leading from Kingsland aforesaid towards Leominster to the damage of the king's subjects" (Frankpledge and Court Baron Kingsland, The Township of Longford, April 8th. Hereford Record Office).

All the inhabitants of the township of Westowne were fined 3s 4d "because they did not practice with bows and arrows after the manner of the statute." The fine did not really provide sufficient incentive for the men to turn out for practice, because they were fined again six months later. (1640 Frankpledge and Court Baron Kingsland, The Township of Longford, October 8th. Hereford Record Office)

More often than not people were charged with more than one offence. In 1664 an Elizabeth Prees brought information against her husband, Edward Prees, for drunkenness, swearing, abusing and beating her, threatening her with a knife and also threatening to have her dragged through the Wye as a witch. There are many women today who suffer the same sort of domestic violence, however the threat of being branded a witch is unfamiliar to most women today. But up until the 18th century accusing someone of witchcraft was a serious matter, as it was considered a crime punishable with death. You may find the original wording of the deposition difficult to read:

"... the said Edward did since your peticioners intermarriadge with him contrary to his Covenant made in Matrimoney beinge greately given to drinking, swearinge, damninge and Curseinge hath most uncindly both day and night abused your poore peticioner not onely in base and unbeseemeing words; but allsoe in deeds, as by callinge your peticioner whore and witch; saying hee would have her dragd through Wye for a witch; Whereas tis Well knowne to the whole Citty That your peticioner hath lived here all daies of her life in good and honest demeane repute and Carriadge; and allsoe with a naked knife in his hand hat diverse tymes of late run at your peticioner sweareing damming and threatning to ripp upp her gutts brateing dragging her diverse tymes out of her bed in the night threaning still to kill and mischief your peticioner and hath nowe not onely beaten your peticioner blacke and blewe but turned her out of her own dwellingehouse soe that your peticioner cannot live with him without dainger of her life." (Boxed Volume 1651-1847, BG 11/17/5, #9, 1654, Hereford Record Office, transcription by Hereford Record Office)

It seems that Edward Prees only married the widow Elizabeth for her money, as at the time of their marriage Edward was "worth nothinge but the Cloathes upon his backe, the goods and houshouldstuffe beinge then and yet your peticioners owne proper goods". Elizabeth argued that she was well known in Hereford and that her character was above reproach.

A woman whose character was far from faultless was Mary Hodges. She was charged not only with being a common quarreller and curser of her neighbours, a swearer and blasphemer of God's word, but also with keeping a disorderly alehouse where she let "outcommers" (outsiders) and "idle lewd suspected persons" stay, as well as having an affair with a married man for three years. It is difficult to tell if Mary Hodges really was such a terrible person or if the accusations were just part of an ongoing feud with her neighbours, Phillipp Benny and his son Richard, who brought the information against her.

They accuse her of cursing Richard Benny and bewitching their cattle, and describe the way in which she is supposed to have practised her witchcraft:

"... for at night when her household is gone to bedd and shee as is conceaved goeinge to bedd shee is observed to take the Andirons [iron bars to support the ends of a log in a fire] out of the chimney, and putt them crosse one an other and then shee falles downe uppon her knees and useth some prayers of witchcraft and (which reverence to the courte be it spoken) shee then makes water in a dish and throwes it uppon the said Andirons and then takes her iourney into her garden this is her usuall custome night after night, which doeth occation feare that shee intendes mischiefe against him and against others of her neighbors, and especially against the said Phillipp or his catell for that he had such misfortune with losse of his horse aforesaid." (Boxed Volume 1651-1847, BG 11/17/5, #38, 1662, Hereford Record Office, transcription by Hereford Record Office)

It was common practice during this period to blame someone for cursing your cattle if one or more of your livestock died without an obvious reason. Witchcraft was considered a serious offence and it is a pity that we do not know what the outcome of this case was. Written sources for witchcraft trials are scarce in the county of Herefordshire, but this does not mean that such trials did not take place.

[Original author: Toria Forsyth-Moser, 2003]