SMUGGLERS' BATTLES PART 6 - ...and Smugglers To A Man, 1790 to 1799.

 

SMUGGLERS' BATTLES PART 6

...and Smugglers To A Man, 1790 to 1799.

A history of the skirmishes seen across Britain during the "golden age" of smuggling, gleaned from newspaper accounts from the time it shows how far both side would go to gain success.

March 1790;

    Some few days since a smuggling cutter was chased by one of the Shoreham custom house cutters, quite to the coast of France, where the smugglers found themselves so hard pressed, they run the vessel ashore and with so much violence that she was dashed to pieces. The customs house cutter, in the eagerness of her chase, shared the same fate.

    A very considerable seizure was made on the coast of Cornwall, of soap, which had been exported and relanded, consisting of 4500lb weight.

September 1791;

Penzance.

    In consequence of an information, Mr Miller, exciseman of Helston and several other officers were proceeding to board a smuggling cutter, which lay off Land’s End and supposed to belong to a person at Penzance.

    As the boat drew near they were hailed by the people on board the cutter who defied them to keep off, as they were determined not to be searched. But the officers persevered in their intention, the crew of the cutter fired upon them by which Mr Miller was shot through the head, another person in the breast, both of whom instantly expired. A third died this morning of his wounds and a fourth his arm is broken. The smuggling cutter escaped.

November 1791;

    The cook of the Badger excise cutter, which lately had an action with a large smuggling lugger, has been obliged to undergo an amputation of both his legs. The smuggler is said to belong to Ruth, in Ireland.

    Last week, at Truro, in Cornwall, Robert Smith, a private in the 34th Regiment, and two men belonging to the town, for a trifling wager tried which could drink the greatest quantity of brandy, which was won by the former who drank nearly a pint more than either of his competitors; he presently fell into a sleep, from which he never more awoke. He was buried on Saturday last. Not a smuggling tale but an interesting tale nonetheless.

December 1793;

    Last Monday a Row Galley, belonging to Shoreham customs house, fell in with a smuggling cutter off the above place, and attempted to board her. Upon which one of the cutter's men appeared on deck, declared he would not be boarded and warned the boat's crew against the folly and peril of making such an attempt, but in vain. 

Shoreham Customs House

    When the more effectually to intimidate them, without having recourse to more desperate means, several musket shots were fired from the cutter over the heads of the boatmen, but with little effect. For the cockswain being a man of greater resolution than judgement, he persisted in his design, 'till he had so provoked the smugglers that they fired into his boat and killed one man.

    When the rest tacked about and sheered off, 'tis said, without obtaining the least knowledge of any of the persons who had, though reluctantly committed the murder, and would afterwards have sunk the boat, but from some accidental miscarriage in the discharge of their stern guns.

October 1794;

25^th October, 

Mutton Cove, Cornwall

    Last night an affray happened between cutter boat’s crew and some smugglers at Mutton Cove, in which the former were much beat and a man was killed, his body was found floating in Mutton Cove.

May 1796;

    The Hound revenue cutter, Capt Hawke, has captured and sent into Shoreham a French row boat privateer, from Havre; he had been out one day and had taken nothing but was in chase of a loaded vessel bound from London to Bristol.

May 1796;

Bodmin Gaol, the home of many a smuggler.

    Isabella Williams, a woman, genteelly and even fashionably dressed, was yesterday brought into the Court of King's Bench to receive judgement for the extraordinary offence of having sallied out, at the head of 20 men, armed with pistols and other offensive weapons, to attack a party of customs house officers in Cornwall.

    Her council pleaded her sex in mitigation of punishment, but Justice Ashurst observed, that such a plea, if fully admitted, would he believed, presently transfer the business of such assaults from male into female hands. She was sentenced to be imprisoned 12 months in a Cornwall jail.

May 1796;

Custom House London.

    Whereas it has been represented to the commissioners of His Majesty's Customs, that in the morning of the 8th of March last Wm Vernon Simpson Sitter, together with Matthew Hindes, Henry Warren and Thomas Warren, boatmen, belonging to a boat employed in the service of the customs, then stationed in the port of Woodbridge, in the County of Suffolk.

Woodbridge Harbour

    Being upon duty at Bawdsey Ferry, within the said port, observed a smuggling vessel coming into the Woodbridge Harbour, upon which they immediately took their said boat and pursued her and after some time got alongside of the said vessel they boarded her.

    That as soon as the said officers had got on board of the said vessel a number of the crew came upon deck and compelled the said officers to go under the hatches, where they confined them from about eleven o'clock in the forenoon, until nine o'clock in the evening of the same day. 

    During which time the smugglers got their vessel near the shore and there landed a great quantity of uncustomed goods, after which the smugglers released the officers and permitted them to depart in their boat and then proceeded to sea with their said vessel, which appeared to said officers to be about 25 tons burthen.

March 1797;

Saltdean Gap

    Last Monday night the Stag cutter, Captain Haddock, belonging to Rye, seized from a smuggling cutter off Saltdean Gap, upwards of 900 tubs of contraband spirits, just as the smugglers were about to land them.

    Capt Haddock the same night fell in with a smuggling boat off Beachy Head, from which he took 100 bales of muslin and several bags of tobacco.

June 1798;

The dramatic coast at Wick.

   Last Friday night a smuggling cutter, in danger of being taken by a Revenue cutter, run a boat load of cargo near Wick, which the Captain in the service of the customs observing, ordered some of his men on shore in the jolly boat.

  

    Who on their landing attacked the smugglers and made a Seizure of all the goods they had landed but not till they had fired upon the contraband traders one of whom it is said was so terribly wounded that he is since dead.

March 1799;

Customs House London.

The Fencibles, a kind of home guard

    Whereas it has been represented to the commissioners of His Majesty's Customs, that in the evening of the 19th Jan. last, William Woodward and Benjamin Lowsey, two boatmen in the service of the customs at the port of Southwold in Suffolk, having reason to suspect that some cutters would arrive on that coast, with smuggled goods, went upon his duty, accompanied by some Fencibles stationed in that neighbourhood. That about one or two o'clock in the morning of Sunday the 20th of the said month, having before fallen in with about 20 carts near Dunwich, all of which were empty and appeared to be waiting for the arrival of such goods.

    They were violently attacked by a large gang of smugglers armed with loaded whips, sticks and other offensive weapons, who beat said officers of the customs and the Fencibles in a violent manner, and threw one of the Fencibles into the sea and took away from the officer Woodward his cutlass and from the Fencibles a blunderbuss, a cutlass and a pike and otherwise behaved in a very outrageous manner.

November 1799;

Customs House London.

    Whereas it has been humbly represented to His Majesty, that on the 24th July last, a smuggling lugger being observed by some officers of the Revenue in Cricketh Bay, in the County of Carnarvon, then landing her goods, Richard Bridgewater, Supervisor of Excise, Maurice Williams, Tide Surveyor of the customs at Pwllhely, together with two tide waiters and some other officers in the service of the customs, went in a boat in pursuit of her.

Criccieth Bay.

    That when they came within three or four hundred yards of the said smuggling vessel (the customs house colours being then flying in the boat) the officers hailed her, upon which the smugglers asked what boat it was, and upon being told the King's Boat, they ordered the officers to keep off, or abide by the consequences. But being told by the officers that they should not, the smugglers immediately fired a musket, the ball from which came very near the King's Boat.

    

    The smugglers then fired eight other muskets, a ball from one of which passed between the fore and main mast of the King's Boat and another close behind the officer Bridgewater, and upon the smugglers threatening to drive the officers into the water if they did not keep off, they returned without being able to board the said smuggling vessel.