Charles Handley of Leeds. - York Assizes

[bolttail]

Can anyone supply me with any information relating to the family, life, death, or origin of Charles Handley of Leeds, who appeared at York Assizes on the 15th March 1794 on a charge of dispersing a seditious handbill. He was sentenced to two years in York Castle Jail.

I know absolutely nothing about this man, so even the smallest snippet is welcome.

[WestYorks]

Can anyone supply me with any information relating to the family, life, death, or origin of Charles Handley of Leeds, who appeared at York Assizes on the 15th March 1794 on a charge of dispersing a seditious handbill. He was sentenced to two years in York Castle Jail.

I know absolutely nothing about this man, so even the smallest snippet is welcome.

Hello,

I came across this article on the British Library newspapers database:

The Lancaster Gazetteer: and General Advertiser, for Lancashire, Westmorland.

Saturday, October 24, 1801.

See attachment.

Mick.

[bolttail]

Thanks Mick, that's absolutely brilliant. This gives me a starting point to look for other information, though I'm thinking that this conviction and imprisonment would have cost him his job and probably his home, so on release he could have gone anywhere.

Has anyone else any information regarding this man? It might help if I indicated where I am looking to go with this.

I have traced my ancestry to the marriage of Benjamin Handley and Mary Simpson at Dronfield, Derbyshire, in 1812. Benjamin named his first born Charles, and when this son died in infancy he named a second child Charles. Also in Dronfield, in 1808, a Charles Handley son of John was baptized. Neither Benjamin nor John appear to have had a local connection to the Dronfield area.
The naming suggests the possibility that Benjamin and John were brothers with a father named Charles. The above described Charles Handley of Leeds (and later Knottingley) is the only candidate I have. Benjamin is stated in the 1841 census to have been born in Yorkshire sometime between 1781 and 1786.

[sallyyorks]

At this time the government was in fear of a popular uprising similar to France . There were various trials for sediton of radicals (who were not unpopular) eg Thomas Paine .
Charles Handley was "a prominent Leeds radical " . He seems to have been tried and convicted for publishing handbills  that advertised a play mocking the King , who had ordered a "fast day" and prayers for the defeat of the French . The "play" seems to have been  a satire of the King .
If you google search > Sedition 1794 Handley < some info should come up and also >1794 treason trials < for some background info

 (sorry can't link to it  , replying on a phone at mo)

[bolttail]

Many thanks 'sallyyorks' for your efforts. The treason trials were my starting point for this enquiry.
I need a father and mother for my Yorkshire born 3g grandfather, Benjamin Handley. As stated above, he named two of his sons Charles. I am assuming that there must have been a reason for this. The Charles Handley described above fits the bill time wise and I can't find an alternative. However, I have no baptism for Benjamin.

[margeyorkshire]

Hi
you could try York Library for more info on the Charles Handley Trial.  They have  copies of some the trials, not sure if you will be able to get a copy as they have been laminated to preserve them.
pam   

[bolttail]

Hi Pam. Many thanks for the suggestion, but I can't see that this is likely to take me where I want to go. I'm trying to obtain personal information regarding this Charles Handley. Who was he, where did he live, how old was he, was he married, did he have a family,what happened to him, etc? At the moment I have absolutely nothing except that he appears to have been the secretary of the Leeds Constitutional Society in the early 1790's. I may be wrong, but I am thinking that any summary of the trial isn't going to provide the sort of detail that I am seeking.

For anyone else reading this, I would be interested to hear about ANY Charles Handley who might have fathered children in Yorkshire in the 1780's or 90's. At present, he's the only one that I can find, and I can't find a baptism, marriage, or burial record for him. He just appears and disappears.
He must have been buried somewhere, so presumably there's a burial record.

[Pinetree]

Charles Handley of Meadow Lane, Leeds had a son Richard baptised at St Peter Leeds on 22 Nov 1786 (Richard b. 5 Nov 1786).

Pinetree

[bolttail]

Many thanks Pinetree for that. Can I take it that Meadow Lane address is taken from the baptism record of Richard and that apart from the father's name the entry includes no further information?
This at least gives me something to work on, I'm off to see what Google can produce.

Is there anyone out there descended from this Richard Handley? If so, please get in touch.