The Bloody Assizes of 1685 - are many of the victims' names known?

[Keith Sherwood]

Hi, Everyone,
I have recently been trying to discover what happened to an individual who seems to disappear after 1683...I know he was a native of the West Country, and, feel that he could have been involved in the Monmouth Rebellion of 1685.
I believe that the terrible retribution visited on "The Rebels" in the aftermath of the Battle of Sedgemoor was well documented.  Can anyone tell me whether any list or databank of the names of those who stood trial and who were either brutally executed or transported to the West Indies has ever been published.  Or are these records still tucked away somewhere at The National Archives?
Any help or pointers gratefully accepted!
Many thanks, Keith

[stanmapstone]

The Monmouth Rebels 1685 Compiled by W. MACDONALD WIGFIELD, M. A. Published by Somerset Record Society, 1985. The book includes information about the rebellion itself, the general pardon, the purchasers of the Rebels in Barbados, and an index of rebels by surname and  by place of origin. http://www.merriottfamiliesgenealogy.net/books.htm
The book is available from second hand booksellers.

Stan

[Keith Sherwood]

Hi again, Stan,
You're a gem! You always appear to have the relevant details at your fingertips.  I'll now have a look at how much Amazon want to charge me...
Regards, Keith

[Mary Crane]

Hi Keith
I've just come across your post so don't know if it's still relevant.  I would appreciate it if you could check the name Azariah Pinney for me please.  I have a note with Wigfield as the source but I would like to confirm it.  It concerns Azariah leaving Bristol on the Rose Pink.  (He had been pardoned)
Many thanks
Mary

[Keith Sherwood]

Hi, Mary,
It's your lucky day, unless you already have this info!
So the book states that Azariah PINNEY, a yeoman, a young married man from Axminster, reached London after the Battle of Sedgemoor, was then arrested and sent to Dorchester for trial.  Sentenced at first to be hanged at Bridport., but then commuted to be transported to Nipho.  His sister Hester apparently paid £65 "for a ransom".  He was then taken out of custody and sent away to Bristol.  His brother Nathaniel paid £5 for his passage to Nevis. His clothes and other equipment, including a Bible came to a sum of £15, and he was given a further £15 to start himself up in Nevis, where he became a factor.
He became a Lieutenant there.  And his pardon was approved on 31st May 1687.  Became a member of the defence force, a Member of the Assembly, and Treasurer of the island.  He visited England twice , dying in London in 1719.  It says that "he had been presented at Exeter and misreported at large"

Not quite sure what the last sentence means, and I'm afraid this entry doesn't confirm that he sailed from Bristol on the Rose Pink.  And obviously his family were well to do, as £100 was quite a sum of money in those days, surely?
A fascinating character, your Azariah,  Mary...
Very best wishes,
Keith

[Mary Crane]

Hi Keith

Thank you very much for your reply.  I am currently writing the story of Azariah for my family so have most information but  a couple of the points were new to me, so very helpful.

His father was a non conformist minister and the family had a lace making and trading business in Dorset,  His sister Hester was a successful and astute business woman in London - very unusual for that time - and then his brother Nathaniel, who was based in Bristol, was, as far as I can gather, trading with the West Indies.  So yes, fascinating characters.  Just wish Azariah hadn't got involved in slave plantations though.
Kind Regards
Mary

[Keith Sherwood]

Mary,
So glad I could at least supply a couple of new possible insights into Azariah's Pinney's life.  There were just over 100 individuals listed amongst the rebels as being from Axminster.  And there were 6 more with the PINNEY surname in the overall list of 2,611.
I've also since googled your man and read all about The Rose Pink now.  And yes, the recent online register that lists those slave owners who received monetary compensation from the British  government is a bit of an eye opener, isn't it?  Two generations of my own direct ancestors were itinerant Methodist ministers through the 18th and 19thC.
Good luck with the writing and completion of your book.  It certainly sounds as though his sister Hester might warrant a second book if you have the time and energy for that too!
Regards, Keith

[Mary Crane]

Thanks Keith
There is a great deal about Hester, and a particularly good account by Pamela Sharp.  Hester had a long time relationship with the Hon George Booth MP but they never married.  I think she preferred to be her own woman!
Cheers
Mary

[Keith Sherwood]

I quite recently did some family research for a friend of mine who had an ancestor who was manservant to the 1st Earl of Shaftesbury, Anthony Ashley Cooper (1621-1683).  I found the politics of that part of the 17thC full of intrigue and danger, particularly at the heart of government in London/Westminster.
I imagine Hester Pinney must have been right in the thick of things with that association.
Keith