Listening to this discription, what woman wouldn't want to be accosted at midnight??? It is not difficult to perceive how these romantic images surrounded him. That slightly bad streak is after all very irresistible to a woman, especially when coupled with the words, 'debonair and handsome,' words which are THEN enveloped within an aura of mystery! Ahhhh, sigh, sigh, sigh!
Okay, enough of the swooning! I hate to burst anybody's bubble but handsome? No! Debonair? Certainly not! Mystery? Mmmm...maybe! You see, Dick Turpin - a butcher by trade, was a man scarred by small pox, whose main occupation was ransacking houses with a gang of men! His actual highwayman role only lasted all of about 18 months!
However, there are still elements of mystery surrounding his rather short life, mainly due to several myths that have been in circulation for years. In actuality, there is no record of him owning a horse called 'Black Bess,' and despite being given the credit for a non-stop ride from London to York, the feat was actually the accomplishment of another highwayman, 'John Nevison.'
Nevertheless, the myth/fact mix surrounding Turpin's life still cannot fail to hold our interest. What holds my particular interest and is also my reason for bringing this to you over the next two weeks is the FACT that during Dick Turpin's highwayman days, one of the street's that he preyed on was that of 'Watling Street' in Ullesthorpe, Leicestershire!
Richard Turpin's life began on September 21st 1705, at Hampstead in Essex. It ended on April 7th 1739, at the York Tybern. He was 33 years old. Ironically, his romantic image seems to stem from a 19th Century author named 'Harrison Ainsworth' rather than directly from Turpin's actual exploits.
Ainsworth wrote a book in 1843 entitled, 'Rockwood.' One of the characters in the book was that of Dick Turpin whom Ainsworth portrayed as a flamboyant character who rode a horse called Black Bess from London to York. Seeing as the book was an instant hit, Turpin's notoriety grew and it was just one mere step up the ladder to him becoming debonair, handsome and a hit with the ladies.
Turpin's actual description in the police Gazette, depicts him with:
"His cheek bones broad; his face thinner towards the bottom; his visage short; pretty upright; and broad about the shoulders."
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