A pinch of History: London’s oldest prison
London is famous for numerous aspects, but for those who like to see like how was back in the days around the 12th Century what a prison was, you can go and discover the oldest and awarded prison museum in London “The Clink”, next to the London Bridge tube station and also from the beautiful Tower Bridge, tickets are not that expensive, so you can have a different day just for £7 and enjoy history at its finest!
The story starts in 1129, Henry of Blois, brother to King Stephen (and grandson to William the Conqueror) was invested Bishop of Winchester, and became second in power only to the King himself. His Thames fronted residence, Winchester Palace (of which The Rose Window of the Great Hall is still visible today), was completed in 1144 and contained two prisons within the palace grounds: one for men, and one for women. This bank side became subject to the laws of ‘The Liberty (or jurisdiction) of the Bishop of Winchester’ (later the ‘Liberty of The Clink’) and was governed accordingly.
The name ‘Clink’ seems to have been attached to the prison in the 14th century. One of the most commonly argued derivatives is that of the sound of the blacksmith’s hammer closing the irons around the wrists or ankles of the prisoners, although the Flemish word ‘klink’ meaning ‘latch’ (perhaps referring to the latch on the gaol door) could also have influenced its attachment. Whatever the etymology, the prison subsequently bequeathed this name to all others, resulting in the development of the expression, “to be thrown in The Clink.”
Throughout this long existence, The Clink did not remain unscathed however; several attempts to destroy the prison were enacted through rebellion, such as during the Peasant’s Revolt in 1381, or during Jack Cade’s rebellion of 1450, both of which resulted in the rebuilding of The Clink, with the latter resulting in a new, two-storey men’s prison on the site of what is now The Clink Prison Museum. It endured until 1780, when Lord George Gordon, dissatisfied with the favours granted upon Catholics during the ‘Papists Act’ as a result of the American War of Independence, assembled The Protestant Association and broke into The Clink, releasing all of the prisoners and burning the building to the ground.
The Clink was never rebuilt, and as somewhat of a happy postscript, none of the prisoners seem to have ever been recaptured. Today, all that remains of Bankside’s once most notorious prison is the stonework of Winchester Palace, the passage ‘Clink Street’ and that which has been preserved within The Clink Prison Museum, including an original wall.
Cover photo source: Britain From Above