Marshalsea Prison

The first Marshalsea prison - South Bank - Southwark - 1329-1842 - this site until 1811

Held men for court martial for crimes at sea - including 'unnatural' behaviour, politicians and intellectuals accused of sedition - plus London's debts - held there at the pleasure of their creditors

Run privately for profit - for those who could afford the fees - bar, shop, restaurant - also the ability to leave the prison during the day so that they could work to pay off their creditors

Others crammed into rooms until they could pay off their debts - which would increase with prison fees

1729 - 300 inmates had starved to death within a three month period over winter and 8-10 prisoners were dying every 24 hours during the summer

Situated in Southwark - the southern entrance to the city - became a place of travellers, inns and criminal haunts

1796 - five prisons in the area - The Clink, King's Bench, White Lion, The Borough Compter and the Marshalsea

Bankruptcy Act 1869 - prior to this debts would live in prisons along with their families who prefered to do this than live on charity outside.

When the Fleet prison closed in 1842 some prisoners where found to have been there for 30 years - the law offered no protection for people who had assets tied up by inheritance laws or for those who had payed their creditors as much as they could.

Prisons were privately managed and whole economies were built up around the system - prison keepers charging rent - the 'jailers fee', baliffs charging for food and clothing, attorneys charging for legal fees in their fruitless attempt to get them out - and creditors - usually tradesmen increasing the debt - the whole family - including children were sent to work to pay off the debt

Under George III new legistration was brought in to stop people with debts under 40s (£563 2009) from being sent to prison.

Most of the Marshalsea was given over to debtors - 1773 debtors within 12 miles of Westminster owing 40s or more would fiond themselves here - along with prisoners waiting to appear at the Old Bailey charged with crimes at sea

The prison was technically under the contol of the Knight Marshal but was let out to private individuals who ran it for profit

The prison was seperated into two classes of prisoner - The Masters side - 50 rooms for rent and the Common side - nine small rooms - 300 prisoners locked up from dusk-dawn

1772 - Master's Side - rates 10s week

Turreted lodge with a side room called the Pound where new prisoners would wait for a room - courtyard leading off from the lodge was where the prisoners from the Common side would spend their daylight hours

There was a bar run by the governor's wife and a chandler's shop - candles, soap and a little food - in 1720s run by a couple of prisoners - there was a coffee shop and a chop house and prisoners on the Master side could hire those on the Common side as servants

The practice of 'garnish' was in place with new prisoners being bullied into giving money to older prisoners

There was a beer room - and beer was also brought in from nearby taverns - another of the jailor's money making schemes - drunkeness was usual

Wives, daughters and lovers of male prisoners could live there - as long as they were paid forwomen prisoners who could afford the fee would be moved to 'The oak'

Common side - horrific conditions - over-crowding and torture - The Strong Room - use of a windowless shed as punishment were corpses were stored before they were buried - those left there died from disease and were then attacked by rats

Those who were ill had to pay to enter the sick room