Book description
Julian Woodford uncovers the breathtakingly appalling life of Joseph Merceron (1764-1839), gangster and corrupt magistrate, who accumulated enormous wealth while presiding over the creation of the poorest slums in Georgian London.Ruling Spitalfields and Bethnal Green from his base in Brick Lane for half a century, Merceron gave the East End…
Why read it?
1 author picked The Boss of Bethnal Green as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
The story of how one unscrupulous person seized control of the evolving institutions of municipal government to line his own pockets might not strike everyone as seat-of-the-pants reading but Julian Woodford’s account of Joseph Merceron is vivid and still relevant today. The long career of this scoundrel is also woven into the larger picture of the times: the ebb and flow of political campaigns; the British reaction to the French Revolution, the effect of the long-running wars against Napoleon, the rapid growth of London, and the scourge of cholera. Stepping into this world is like stepping into a Hogarth print.…
From Lona's list on Regency England beyond balls and bonnets.
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