Cassell's History of England, Vol. 5 (of 8): From the Peninsular War to the Death of Sir Robert PeelAnonymous
History
Cassell's History of England, Vol. 5 (of 8): From the Peninsular War to the Death of Sir Robert Peel
Anonymous
Great Britain -- History
demanded her men and arms, and when she stoutly refused him, he put
the gun through the window and shot one of her men dead. As the
day dawned, Brandreth and his infatuated troop appeared before the
gates of Butterley Foundry, and demanded the men; but Mr. Goodwin,
the manager, had been apprised of their approach, and had closed the
gates. Brandreth had planned to take Butterley Foundry, and carry away
not only the men but a small cannon kept there; but Mr. Goodwin went
out and told Brandreth he should not have a man for any such insane
purpose, and seeing an old man that he well knew, Isaac Ludlam, who
bore a good character, and had been a local preacher amongst the
Methodists, he seized him by the collar and pushed him into the foundry
court, telling him not to be a fool, but stay at home. Ludlam, however,
replied, "he was as bad as he could be," rushed out, and went on--to
his death; for he was one of those that were executed.
All this time it was raining heavily, and Brandreth, daunted by the
weather, or by the courageous conduct of the manager, gave the word to
march. The manager calculated that there were only about a hundred of
them at this point; but they were soon after joined by another troop
from Ripley, and they took two roads, which united about three miles
farther on, collecting fresh men by the most direful threats. When they
reached Eastwood, a village three or four miles farther on the road
to Nottingham, they were said to amount to three hundred, but ragged,
famished, drenched with the rain, and not half of them armed, even
with rude pikes. Near Eastwood they were met by a troop of horse from
Nottingham, which had been summoned by Mr. Rolleston, a magistrate, and
at the sight they fled in confusion. About forty guns and a number of
pikes were picked up, and a considerable number of prisoners were made,
amongst them Brandreth. These prisoners were afterwards tried at a
special assize at Derby. They were defended by Thomas (afterwards Lord)
Denman, whose eloquence on the occasion raised him at once into notice,
and whose generous, gratuitous, and indefatigable exertions on behalf
of these simple, ignorant victims of Government instigation, showed
him to be a man of the noblest nature. Notwithstanding his efforts,
twenty of these unhappy dupes were transported for different terms, and
three--Brandreth, Ludlam, and Turner--were hanged and then beheaded as
traitors.
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