Outlaws And Highwaymen: The Cult of the Robber in England from the Middle Ages to the Nineteenth Century

by Gillian Spraggs

In the modern imagination, the highwayman is a figure on horseback in a three-cornered hat who holds up a mail-coach with pistols. But England has a long legendary history of robber heroes, that goes back well before Dick Turpin, even before the earliest ballads of Robin Hood. Eighteenth-century highwaymen like Turpin were absorbed into an already rich tradition of stories and ideas about robbery and robbers. In this lively and informative book, Gillian Spraggs argues for the existence of a distinctively English 'cult of the robber'. Englishmen took pride in the belief that there were more robbers in England than anywhere else in Europe. This was felt to be a credit to the nation, because it demonstrated English toughness and daring. Robbery possessed a potent mystique. For one thing, it was a gentleman's crime. The penniless young gentleman who took a purse on the highway was felt to be showing the courage that he had inherited from his ancestors. As for the lad of common stock who was drawn to the life of a highwayman, he often saw it as a way of rising in the world, by becoming a 'knight of the road'.This is the first authoritative full-length study entirely devoted to the English robbers of history and legend.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

320 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2001

Reviews

[hh · Rating 5 out of 5]

engagingly written history with clear analyses and thorough documentation. this book was a joy to read on an exciting topic. spraggs covers a lot of historical and cultural ground with a sure hand - everything from hereward to noyes is here. ballads, plays, novels, pamphlets, and other historical documents provide the backbone for this fine survey of english attitudes towards outlaws and highwaymen and the changing roles of this subculture in society. this is history at its elegant best.

a serious contender for book of the year for me.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Detailed work taking the 'linguistic turn', and thus looking at the culture and popular beliefs of highwaymen, rather than providing any full analysis of highwaymen themselves. As such, it is not particularly useful for anyone wanting to find out hard biographical facts, etc. However, I had to mark it well as it is an enjoyable read, written in a rather informal, conversational style and provides a well-considered approach to the myth(s) of the highwayman.

[Emilia Knevett · Rating 4 out of 5]

So many helpful directions to take my study of Turpin

[Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great, in-depth read and one I'll instantly come back to whenever I need detail on the subject. Spraggs adopts an academic tone in this historical book that covers medieval robbers, outlaws and highwaymen right through to their heyday in the 16th to 18th century. She describes how they came about, how they acted, looks at their moral code and behaviour and then explains how they died out (a mix of reasons). I loved the fact that the book was primarily about highwayman, trotting out the usual figures - Dick Turpin, Claude Duval - but also looks at their origins in the likes of Robin Hood and other legendary figures of old. Very useful and often spellbinding.

[Kris · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought a copy of this book at the British Museum when I was in London 9 years ago and just got around to reading it. Wish I'd done so sooner, I really enjoyed it.