Impressment in Hull

A life at sea in the 18th and 19th Centuries was the chosen career of only a few. 

To the majority it was a necessity to head for the high seas to support a family and dependants or to escape the squalor and deprivations of a shore based existence. 

Saying that the turnover of personnel was huge and a startling statistic from the era was that out of the hundreds of thousands of fatalities whilst in the service of the Royal Navy the vast majority of these were not from actual conflict but from diseases such as malaria, dysentery and those of a sexually transmitted type. 

In the interests of keeping up the numbers for the vital maritime service the power of Impressment was available. 

Not a common word in the modern vocabulary it meant the collection by force of unwilling recruits for the navy and the army. 

In its more common manifestation of the Press Gang it was a most hated and violently resisted practice and in my home city, the Port of Kingston Upon Hull in Yorkshire, England there was often bloodshed and rioting of its townspeople against its use. 

The legitimately operating Press Gangs were based in vessels anchored in the Humber Estuary known as the Inner and Outer Guard. One of these positions was just off the Old Garrison and the other at Whitebooth Roads. 

From here the Press Gangs were able to intercept merchant ships as they approached what they expected to be the safety of the harbour after many weeks, months and more on the High Seas. This was particularly cruel as many of the returning crew members would be within sight of their home Port and the welcome prospect of a reunion with loved ones who may have been witness to the very events from the shore. 

Perhaps the most common perception of the Press Gangs was of a land based contingent preying on individual seamen who may have been separated from their peers or were worse for wear from drink or other forms of stupor. 

In Hull the main Press Gang was of 12 men and an Officer. They were regularly involved in scuffles on Church Lane and in Humber Street in the Dockside areas which invariably ended in bloodshed. There were reports of sailors being dragged from stage coaches on the Beverley Road or a hunting ground which yielded forth a good quota of unfortunates was amongst those leaving the popular public houses of Ships Glory and Labour in Vain. 

In the early 19th Century a seaman crossing North Bridge was accosted by a Press Gang but wriggled out of his jacket and was then pursued. 

Workers at the Old Dock Basin saw his plight and joined in on the side of the seaman. Being outnumbered by the public the Press Gang ran down Lowgate and headed for their base on Humber Street. Such was the venom of the mob that the premises were wrecked and furnishings thrown out into the street and into the river. 

This type of public reaction was common where the actions of Impressment were seen or rumoured to be about to take place. 

A good proportion of the massed rank mobs were women which was understandable in that their menfolk, whether husbands, lovers, sons or brothers were at risk from being spirited away to the far reaches of the Empire, likely as not never to be seen again. 

Examples of mob action were common.

In 1798 a Naval Lieutenant and his Gang were attacked by a crowd and the Militia had to be called out to enact a rescue. 

In 1803 a mob chased a Gang to the Ships Glory pub and proceeded to tear the place apart. 

A spy gathering information for the Press Gang on the Beverley Road was spotted by a group of women who were working haymaking in a meadow. They challenged him .His fate is not known. 

It was not just seamen who were in peril of being forcibly requisitioned into the Royal Navy. A Shipwright in 1815 was seized as he left the Dockyard. In desperation he jumped into Humber Dock but was followed in by two of his pursuers. A fight ensued in the murky water before the civilian was rescued by onlookers who had found a rowing boat. 

One of the most violent conflicts was not on the shore within the Old Town of Hull but just out on the Humber. The two Guard Ships, the Nonesuch and Redoubt approached and attempted to board the Blenheim, a whaler on its return to Hull from Arctic waters. The crew of the Blenheim were tough, seasoned seafarers and put up a stiff resistance using the tools of their trade, knives and harpoons. 

The Blenheim was also fired upon but got through the Old Harbour Entrance and was run ashore. The Press Gang boarders closed in but two of their number were killed in the fight. One of the Blenheim crew had his hand on the bulwark when struck by a cutlass. He thereafter became known around the Port as Three Fingered Jack. 

The battle drew a large crowd who were partisan in their support for the Whaling Crew. The outcome was that the Captain of The Blenheim was sent to York Assizes Court but was acquitted of all charges and returned to Hull to a heroes welcome. 

The era of the Press Gangs became well established in the history and folklore of Hull although was not the most auspicious for its violence and as a cause of aggravation to its hard working people.