The Chronicles of Crime or The New Newgate Calendar. v. 2/2: being a series of memoirs and anecdotes of notorious characters who have outraged the laws of Great Britain from the earliest period to 1841Pelham, Camden
History
The Chronicles of Crime or The New Newgate Calendar. v. 2/2: being a series of memoirs and anecdotes of notorious characters who have outraged the laws of Great Britain from the earliest period to 1841
Pelham, Camden
Crime -- Great Britain; Criminals -- Great Britain; Newgate (Prison : London, England)
their avenues; one object being to see how many entrances there were in
order to guide us in ascertaining how much combustibles would be
necessary to set the whole on fire, so that the soldiers should not
escape. A general meeting was appointed at Greystoke-place, to arrange
the whole of the business, and how it was to be conducted in each way,
and we met on Sunday, previous to which I paid part of the money to
Bentley for the 250 pikes, and ordered them to be made off-hand as soon
as possible. When we met, Thistlewood produced a map of London. It was
marked out which were the best roads to take; and we arranged the number
of men who were to be collected together at the different barracks and
places to be attacked. The whole of the committee were to act as
generals; to have their several stations; and were to attack the
separate barracks at one given time and moment. Watson proposed
Thistlewood as the head general. Thistlewood and young Watson were to
take the guns and two field-pieces that were in the artillery-ground in
Gray's Inn-lane; Preston was to attack the Tower; Harrison the
artillery-barracks near the Regent's Park; and I was to set fire to the
King-street barracks, and either to take the men prisoners, or kill
those that might attempt to escape; the elder Watson was to set fire to
the Portland-street barracks. We were to attack the whole of those
places at a given hour, and set them on fire at one in the morning; we
were to take any person we met, and make them join us--such as
gentlemen's servants; and coachmen were to be taken from their
carriages, and those who could ride were to have the horses, which were
to form a cavalry, and the coaches and carriages were to be used to
barricade the entrances. After I had set fire to the King-street
barracks, and after we had seen that all were in flames, and that none
had made their escape, I was to meet the elder Watson at the top of
Oxford-street. Harrison was to join us with the artillery, which he was
to bring from the barracks by the Regent's Park, and as soon as that was
done, there was to be a volley fired, to let the remainder know we had
got possession of the artillery. Piccadilly gate was to be fastened and
chained, and a party stationed there to fire upon the horse if they
attempted to come from the barracks, and then others were to proceed
towards Charing Cross and Westminster Bridge, and barricade there all
the avenues upon that side, to prevent them coming round by Chelsea and
that way, and then young Watson and Thistlewood, after getting
possession of the guns, were to break open all the oil-shops and
gunsmiths'-shops, in which they could find either combustibles or arms.
They were then to blockade Chancery-lane, and Gray's Inn-lane to St.
Giles's, where Thistlewood was to make his grand stand. One gun was to
be pointed up Tottenham Court-road, and the other up Oxford-street.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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