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Fleet Prison and Rules of the Fleet, London EnglandBy Ken LindsayIn earlier times, "Fleet Prison stood outside the city walls on the eastern bank of the Fleet River. The prison burned during London's Great Fire of 1666, but rebuilt much as before the fire. Fleet Prison consisted of several long four-storey buildings with cellars." Prisoners paid for their food and lodging. There were fees for turning keys, for putting on of irons and fees for taking them off again. Even visitors had to pay fees and the Fleet Prison had the highest fees of all the prisons in England. Prisoners with a trade such as tailoring continued to ply their trade and earn money while imprisoned; however, those without trades became beggars. An enclosure was built into the wall on the Farringdon street side of the prison, so that prisoners could beg from people passing by the prison.
The poorest prisoners suffered in the cellar dungeons, known as Bartholomew Fair, while those with greater influence could be lodged in large comfortable quarters on the Master's Side. The Fleet Prison management also supplemented the prison's income by the providing a tap room and coffee shop open to the public. Not all prisoners of the Fleet lived within the prison. Some took quarters close to the prison. They could do this as long as they paid the keeper for his loss of income. The area in which prisoners could exercise this privilege was known as the "Liberty of the Fleet" or the "Rules of the Fleet". Armed with this knowledge we know that SAMUELL LINSEY, in November 1733 where he married ELIZABETH HEATH that month and year. We learned this from examination of Nov 1733 Fleet Prison and Rules of the Fleet, London, England. (See Latter Day Saints Library microfilm: Batch No. M140055, Dates 1729-1735, Source Call No.: 0813819 RG7 V. 107-10 Film.) There were so many debtors that many lived in the area outside the prison. The are is reported to have been a lawless area. Disgraced clergymen lived there and carried on their trade and clerks who made money recording the ceremonies.
The earliest recorded date of a Fleet Marriage is said to have been in1613, while the earliest recorded in a Fleet Register took place in 1674. As a prison, the Fleet was claimed to be outside the jurisdiction of the church. The prison warders took a share of the profit, even though a statute of 1711 imposed fines upon them for doing so: it only moved the clandestine marriage trade outside the prison. It was reported to me, "During the 1740s up to 6000 marriages a year were taking place in the Fleet area, compared with the 47 000 in England. One estimate suggests that there were between 70 and 100 clergymen working in the Fleet area between 1700 and 1753. It was not merely a marriage centre for the criminals and poor, however: both rich and poor availed themselves of the opportunity to marry in secret." We do not know if this Samuell LINSEY is the same Samuel LINDSAY who is our ancestor, nor can we tell if this Samuell LINSEY was a prisoner, rich, poor or availed themselves of the opportunity to marry in scret. We need more information and hope someone reading this article can provide it. |
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