Gibbet or Hanging in Chains

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Steve Jones
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Re: Gibbet or Hanging in Chains

Post by Steve Jones »

This article on the subject might be of interest:
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10. ... 15.1044284
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jihfadiuh
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Re: Gibbet or Hanging in Chains

Post by jihfadiuh »

Further to this post ive been reading about a murder that happened where the Southleighs are now at a cottage named Scurrs House , marked on 1846 map of Beeston, then Parkside Cottages. Photo on Leodis 20171115_176359 shows two brothers in 1930 standing outside the house but can see only a bit of the actual house unfortunately.

Anyway this house was the scene of a murder -

The house, which was demolished in the 1960s to make way for the Southleigh estate, had been the scene of a horrific crime in the 17th century, when Leonard Scurr, the occupier of the house, was brutally murdered along with his elderly mother and a maidservant, by a gang led by two men named Holroyd and Littlewood. The men were eventually caught and Holroyd was executed on Holbeck Moor in 1682.

Theres more to the story online but I cant copy and paste these for some reason, the story says Leonard came downstairs during the commotion with his rapier, put up a fight but his arm was cut off with an axe, when he tried to escape through a trapdoor was hacked to death, the maidservant had her head cut off at the suggestion of a woman who was with the party and then the house was set on fire in the hope it would be found they had died following a fire and not following a burglary as Leonard was known to have an amount of money in the home as he was a business man, coal pit owner I think, but when the bodies were found when the fire had died they had found the girls head detached from the body and Leonard missing an arm, so obviously something abit shady was going on.

My question is, one of these men was executed on Holbeck Moor and his body was hung in chains on the site of the execution which I think it said was attended by 30,000 people, I know where Holbeck Moor is and realise a lot has changed in the years since 1682 but could anyone visualise or have a good idea where the execution would likely have taken place, the reason I ask is that not far from the Holbeck Moor that I know there is Stocks Hill where I presume were located some stocks, so started thinking if there would have been a site for these types of punishments to be carried out within holbeck and is where people were put in stocks, and could Stocks Hill be where this execution may have taken place?

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tilly
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Re: Gibbet or Hanging in Chains

Post by tilly »

Great post jihfadiuh it would be interesting to see if any one knows the answer.
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tyke bhoy
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Re: Gibbet or Hanging in Chains

Post by tyke bhoy »

Stocks Hill LS11 9PB is currently a continuation of Nineveh Road between said and the T junction that also includes Pleasant Street and St Mathews Road. On an 1850's map it is shown in a similar position. Bearing in mind we are post industrial revolution there is a fair bit of housing between Stocks Hill and Holbeck Moor but I don't think its a massive stretch to think that 170 years earlier and pre any industrialisation in Holbeck that the Moor stretched that far. Other than that I can't really offer any proof. Maybe some of our contributors have access to older maps which may prove or disprove that Stocks Hill was on the Moor.
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uncle mick
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Re: Gibbet or Hanging in Chains

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This mentions the hanging taking place on Holbeck Green, is this Holbeck Moor or another place ??
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uncle mick
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Re: Gibbet or Hanging in Chains

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uncle mick
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Re: Gibbet or Hanging in Chains

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uncle mick
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Re: Gibbet or Hanging in Chains

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blackprince
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Re: Gibbet or Hanging in Chains

Post by blackprince »

It was interesting that even in 1680 villains were using arson to obscure their crimes. Despite being "forensically aware" the murderers didn't fool CSI Leeds :) . I am amazed that they were apprehended after making their escape to Ireland. How could they do that with no police force , no communications apart from letters , no transport faster than a horse etc. ?
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jihfadiuh
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Re: Gibbet or Hanging in Chains

Post by jihfadiuh »

very interesting bit of information prince thank you, so Holbeck-Green is where it took place, im sure I saw on an old map that Holbeck-Green was the moor to which we know, on Leodis under photo 2011411_171994 of the Kings arms someone says there was a police station opposite situated on Stocks Hill, I would presume then that there would be stocks located in this particular area but now sadly gone and would possibly hint at people being punished there. There is surprisingly very little information regarding early or medieval Holbeck.

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