ATWORTH History Group has been delving into the history of famous local highwaymen, ahead of their summer break.
The group reports, “On 6th June the Atworth History Group enjoyed an excellent talk given by Ruby Vitorino Moody who spoke about famous highwaymen. Despite being little more than common thieves, highwaymen obtained a reputation for leading romantic lifestyles, which appealed to young men who were attracted to the possibility of riches and success with the ladies.
“Famous highwaymen, such as Claude Duval – the ‘Gallant Highwayman’ – only served to support this vision. He would woo the women in a carriage while his gang robbed the men.
“Ruby also told us about ‘The Naked Highwayman’ of Calne. Apparently his nakedness made robbing a carriage easier by having the element of surprise, and by wearing no clothes he was also harder to identify. Almost without exception, though, highwaymen were caught and hanged, so despite the attractions it was a short-lived career.
“The Atworth History Group is taking a break over the summer, and its next meeting is on Monday 3rd October when David Birks (the Learning & Outreach Officer for Trowbridge Museum) will give us a talk about the history of Trowbridge.
“We usually meet on the first Monday of the month (unless there’s a bank holiday, in which case it’ll be the second Monday) in Atworth Village Hall at 7.30pm. Visitors are very welcome at the modest cost of £5 for the evening, or you may wish to join for an annual subscription of £15.”
