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Mansions of Misery: A Biography of the Marshalsea Debtors’ Prison
For Londoners of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, debt was a part of everyday life. But when your creditors lost their patience, you might be thrown into one of the capital’s most notorious jails: the Marshalsea Debtors’ Prison.
The Marshalsea became a byword for misery; in the words of one of its inmates, it was ‘hell in epitome’. But the prison was also a microcosm of London life and it housed a colourful range of characters, including Charles Dickens’s father. The experience haunted the writer, who went on to immortalise the Marshalsea in his work, most memorably in Little Dorrit.
In Mansions of Misery, acclaimed chronicler of the capital Jerry White introduces us to the Marshalsea’s unfortunate prisoners – rich and poor; men and women; spongers, fraudsters and innocents. We get to know the trumpeter John Grano who wined and dined with the prison governor and continued to compose music whilst other prisoners were tortured and starved to death. We meet the bare-knuckle fighter known as the Bold Smuggler, who fell on hard times after being beaten by the Chelsea Snob. And then there’s Joshua Reeve Lowe, who saved Queen Victoria from assassination in Hyde Park in 1820, but whose heroism couldn’t save him from the Marshalsea.
Told through these extraordinary lives, Mansions of Misery gives us a fascinating and unforgettable cross-section of London life from the early 1700s to the 1840s.
The Marshalsea became a byword for misery; in the words of one of its inmates, it was ‘hell in epitome’. But the prison was also a microcosm of London life and it housed a colourful range of characters, including Charles Dickens’s father. The experience haunted the writer, who went on to immortalise the Marshalsea in his work, most memorably in Little Dorrit.
In Mansions of Misery, acclaimed chronicler of the capital Jerry White introduces us to the Marshalsea’s unfortunate prisoners – rich and poor; men and women; spongers, fraudsters and innocents. We get to know the trumpeter John Grano who wined and dined with the prison governor and continued to compose music whilst other prisoners were tortured and starved to death. We meet the bare-knuckle fighter known as the Bold Smuggler, who fell on hard times after being beaten by the Chelsea Snob. And then there’s Joshua Reeve Lowe, who saved Queen Victoria from assassination in Hyde Park in 1820, but whose heroism couldn’t save him from the Marshalsea.
Told through these extraordinary lives, Mansions of Misery gives us a fascinating and unforgettable cross-section of London life from the early 1700s to the 1840s.
- GenresNonfictionHistory
421 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 6, 2016
7 people are currently reading
94 people want to read
About the author
Jerry White
115 books9 followersThis is the disambiguation profile for otherwise undifferentiated authors publishing as Jerry White
See also:
Jerry White, historian
Jerry E. White, author of The Joseph Road: Choices That Determine Your Destiny
Jerry P. White, author of Aboriginal Education: Current Crisis and Future Alternatives
Jerry M. White, author of Until Today: Stories and Poems on Life as I Know It
Jerry A. White, author of U.S. Army Infantry
Jerry White, author of The 5 Keys to the Great Life
Jerry C. White, author of Let There Be No Doubt! What the Bible Says..
Jerry S. White, author of Turnaround: The Canadian Guide t Rescuing Your Company From Creditors, Predators And Competitors
See also:
Jerry White, historian
Jerry E. White, author of The Joseph Road: Choices That Determine Your Destiny
Jerry P. White, author of Aboriginal Education: Current Crisis and Future Alternatives
Jerry M. White, author of Until Today: Stories and Poems on Life as I Know It
Jerry A. White, author of U.S. Army Infantry
Jerry White, author of The 5 Keys to the Great Life
Jerry C. White, author of Let There Be No Doubt! What the Bible Says..
Jerry S. White, author of Turnaround: The Canadian Guide t Rescuing Your Company From Creditors, Predators And Competitors
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
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July 17, 2018Pretty horrifying deep dive into the history of a debtor's prison. The lawlessness of both the men who farmed it for profit and the men who ran it from the inside as a Lord of the Flies society is fairly grim, as is the whole framework of imprisonment for debt in chaotic society. A dark look at London as prison city, with a lot of individual stories to bring the history to life.
October 27, 2017
Jerry White starts and ends this fascinating history of the Marshalsea Debtors Prison with accounts from the man who has ensured that it will never be forgotten, namely Charles Dickens who had personal experience of it and featured it in several of his novels, most notably 'Little Dorrit'.
Debt is just as much a part of our lives now as it was in the 18th and 19th centuries. The difference is that now it is somewhat more regulated through the large financial institutions (although the sub-prime mortgage scandal suggests we're not that far removed from the Victorian era).
The difference is that in the time of the Marchalsea debt was mostly owed to individuals and it was not uncommon to be imprisoned for owing quite small amounts. For the more middle class debtors, the Marshalsea was more like a boardinghouse where they lived with their family. However, for the poorest debtors, it was often a death sentence with appalling living conditions rife with diseases.
The other way in which modern society is aping this era is that the Marshalsea was run by individuals for profit much as many modern prisons are by large corporations and, inevitably, that led to even poorer conditions as corners were cut to make money.
Debt is just as much a part of our lives now as it was in the 18th and 19th centuries. The difference is that now it is somewhat more regulated through the large financial institutions (although the sub-prime mortgage scandal suggests we're not that far removed from the Victorian era).
The difference is that in the time of the Marchalsea debt was mostly owed to individuals and it was not uncommon to be imprisoned for owing quite small amounts. For the more middle class debtors, the Marshalsea was more like a boardinghouse where they lived with their family. However, for the poorest debtors, it was often a death sentence with appalling living conditions rife with diseases.
The other way in which modern society is aping this era is that the Marshalsea was run by individuals for profit much as many modern prisons are by large corporations and, inevitably, that led to even poorer conditions as corners were cut to make money.
January 12, 2018
I don't make a practice of reviewing books I read for historical research, partly because I read so many of them, and partly because I prefer to relax a little by looking at fiction for a change! However, I couldn't resist writing about this book which I think is absolutely brilliant - as is to be expected from Jerry White, whose work on the eighteenth century I love. Mansions of Misery is a marvellous book, but what I particularly liked were the stories of the people of the Marshalsea, along with the chapter on the Marshalsea in fiction. After all, anyone who writes so lovingly about Charles Dickens's novels is bound to get my support! A fantastic read.
January 30, 2018
I learned about the Marshalsea in a roundabout way from my home in 21st century Sacramento.
I had read The Autobiography of Austin Reid, and he discussed Jack Sheppard in his book. So I read that one next. And in that Newgate novel, the Marshalsea was referred to. After a Google search I found this book and after looking up James White's bibliography I decided that this looked acceptable. MAN what a thorough and concise look at an old prison.
White paints a picture of everyone and everything that he possibly can. You learn about many prisoners, how they were extorted and tortured, the guards and how they were extorted and the literature from the times of Marshalsea that doesn't come leaping out of basic Internet searches.
I've already ordered three more novels listed in this book and will at some point find another history book by White.
I had read The Autobiography of Austin Reid, and he discussed Jack Sheppard in his book. So I read that one next. And in that Newgate novel, the Marshalsea was referred to. After a Google search I found this book and after looking up James White's bibliography I decided that this looked acceptable. MAN what a thorough and concise look at an old prison.
White paints a picture of everyone and everything that he possibly can. You learn about many prisoners, how they were extorted and tortured, the guards and how they were extorted and the literature from the times of Marshalsea that doesn't come leaping out of basic Internet searches.
I've already ordered three more novels listed in this book and will at some point find another history book by White.
May 7, 2017
Mansions of Misery – A Wonderful & Informative Account of the Marshalsea
To many modern readers, the Marshalsea Debtors Prison is something that appears in the writings of Charles Dickens, fresh off the pages of books such as Little Dorrit. What one needs to understand the shame of the debtor’s prison was all very real to the young Dickens, as it was to many in the eighteenth and nineteenth century.
Mansions of Misery, written and researched by the excellent London historian and Professor, Jerry White, an expert on London from 1700 to the modern day. He has taken a forensic insight of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and applied it to a prison that would have feature large as a dark shadow over London for all those who were in debt.
White explains that the Marshalsea while being a prison, unlike its criminal gaols, was more like a lodging house to debtors who until they had repaid their debt would reside within its walls. To describe the old Marshalsea, White, uses the diary of a former inmate who was a well-known musician of the time, John Grano.
While White effortlessly describes life and the machinations of life in the Marshalsea, something that does register with the reader, is the reality of debt, how debt seemed inescapable and would grind down the debtor. What I felt is that while reading this excellent history the crushing hopelessness of debt and for many it would be a reoccurring theme throughout their lives.
What the diary of John Grano does do is show the distinct difference between the two halves of the prison, there was the comfortable side, and those on the poorer side. How some could live in relative comfort while in the Marshalsea, while others really did suffer, so much so that a jailer was brought before the courts for the deaths of four inmates.
The way White has written this book, is as if the Marshalsea, is a microcosm of life outside the walls in the London area. Showing that there was a complete mixture of inmates, rich and poor, fraudsters and hucksters, and many other colourful characters filled the prison. I found this to be a fascinating and engaging read about a place that people often forget was a dark shadow over many lives.
Jerry White has written an engaging and very readable account of life in the Marshalsea and of London in the eighteenth and nineteenth century. I am sure it will be a must read for all those interested in the social history of London for many years to come.
To many modern readers, the Marshalsea Debtors Prison is something that appears in the writings of Charles Dickens, fresh off the pages of books such as Little Dorrit. What one needs to understand the shame of the debtor’s prison was all very real to the young Dickens, as it was to many in the eighteenth and nineteenth century.
Mansions of Misery, written and researched by the excellent London historian and Professor, Jerry White, an expert on London from 1700 to the modern day. He has taken a forensic insight of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and applied it to a prison that would have feature large as a dark shadow over London for all those who were in debt.
White explains that the Marshalsea while being a prison, unlike its criminal gaols, was more like a lodging house to debtors who until they had repaid their debt would reside within its walls. To describe the old Marshalsea, White, uses the diary of a former inmate who was a well-known musician of the time, John Grano.
While White effortlessly describes life and the machinations of life in the Marshalsea, something that does register with the reader, is the reality of debt, how debt seemed inescapable and would grind down the debtor. What I felt is that while reading this excellent history the crushing hopelessness of debt and for many it would be a reoccurring theme throughout their lives.
What the diary of John Grano does do is show the distinct difference between the two halves of the prison, there was the comfortable side, and those on the poorer side. How some could live in relative comfort while in the Marshalsea, while others really did suffer, so much so that a jailer was brought before the courts for the deaths of four inmates.
The way White has written this book, is as if the Marshalsea, is a microcosm of life outside the walls in the London area. Showing that there was a complete mixture of inmates, rich and poor, fraudsters and hucksters, and many other colourful characters filled the prison. I found this to be a fascinating and engaging read about a place that people often forget was a dark shadow over many lives.
Jerry White has written an engaging and very readable account of life in the Marshalsea and of London in the eighteenth and nineteenth century. I am sure it will be a must read for all those interested in the social history of London for many years to come.
July 21, 2020
Jerry White really wanted to write a book on the Marshalsea and I really wanted to read it. There is not a lot out there for the Marshalsea in terms of sit with a brew, readable history. Jerry White is the best in this regard.
However, I do feel that due to the limited amount of sources regarding the Marshalsea that this book struggled to meet the word count. It reads more like a dissertation than a book. I think it is the classic academic problem in which you know so much, and find the smallest little things interesting, but forget about the audience who even in history, want a narrative.
However, I do feel that due to the limited amount of sources regarding the Marshalsea that this book struggled to meet the word count. It reads more like a dissertation than a book. I think it is the classic academic problem in which you know so much, and find the smallest little things interesting, but forget about the audience who even in history, want a narrative.
November 3, 2019
I’m absolutely sure this is a terrific academic achievement for the writer and if you’re a specialist, invaluable and impressive.
But for a dedicated reader of fiction, apart from the personal stories of life in the dreaded Marshalsea, and descriptions of the living conditions, I missed the whole human interest/story side achieved by Dickens et al. Historical fiction may be a problematic genre but there are some damn good yarns and opportunities for social comment and campaigning.
But for a dedicated reader of fiction, apart from the personal stories of life in the dreaded Marshalsea, and descriptions of the living conditions, I missed the whole human interest/story side achieved by Dickens et al. Historical fiction may be a problematic genre but there are some damn good yarns and opportunities for social comment and campaigning.
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January 14, 2018Really interesting.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews