The Boss of Bethnal Green, Joseph Merceron the Godfather of Regency London

by Julian Woodford

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 the bad reputation that still lingers today, while the exploits of recent mobsters and political miscreants pale by comparison with his staggering violence and ruthlessness.Julian Woodford's shrewd biography - the first on this subject - is essential reading for all those interested in eighteenth century London, anyone fascinated by the capital's criminal history and everyone who loves an exciting true story well told.

PRAISE FOR 'THE BOSS OF BETHNAL GREEN':

‘More than just a picture of a narcissistic personality with no regard whatsoever for the truth, interesting and apposite to our own times though that may be. The author has understood the wider social crisis underlying the chaos… This is a fine book…deserves to become a standard work on a London district which is still, today, subject to several sorts of threat.’ Gillian Tyndall, TLS.

‘A most handsome “life and times” biography, which shows just what the historians have been missing… Julian Woodford has done an extraordinary job in teasing out what it is possible to know about his subject…as an exercise in retrieving the irretrievable, Woodford’s Boss of Bethnal Green could hardly be bettered.’ Jerry White, The Times.

‘[Merceron]…operated out of Brick Lane like a prototype Kray brother. His ruthless greed and thirst for power are described with real narrative verve and a suitably appalled eye.’ Evening Standard, ‘Best London Books of 2016’.

‘A fascinating look into the underbelly of Regency London.’ Robert Elms, BBC Radio London.

‘It is to his credit that Woodford is able to combine painstakingly detailed research…with impressive storytelling ability, to create what is a very readable, yet intelligent and challenging, book…Given its confident assembling of archival evidence and narrative, it is surprising to learn that this is Woodford’s first book…one can only hope that there is not another 11-year wait for his next book.’ The London Journal.

‘At once unedifying and entertaining, disturbing and much recommended.’ London Topographical Society.

‘Apart from being a superb and informative read, the book is very nicely constructed. Beautifully designed and peppered with well-chosen photos, illustrations and portraits, all where they belong in relation to the text… a fascinating and impeccably-researched account. It is sensational without being sensationalist, which is what makes it such a gripping read. It’s everything an accessible history book should be and I commend it to you.’ London Historians.

‘Ten years in the making, The Boss of Bethnal Green is essential reading for anyone interested in the criminal and political histories of our city, and how the two interweave.’ Hackney Citizen.

‘Relentlessly fascinating…definitive and thrilling…a careful, historical analysis that nonetheless delivers the squalid excitement to be expected from [its] title. Barking and Dagenham Post.

‘Not only has [Julian Woodford] exposed the East End’s vilest gangster – Joseph Merceron, who hid in history’s shadows until now – but he has also tracked down…a pistol fired in a royal assassination attempt…a thrilling biography.’ Love East magazine

Genres: History, London, Nonfiction

319 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 1, 2016

About the author

Julian Woodford was born in Burton-upon-Trent in 1963. Since graduating from the University of York he has combined a City career with a passion for London's history. 'The Boss of Bethnal Green' is his first book. Follow him on Twitter at @HistoryLondon.

Reviews

[Dorothy Piper · Rating 5 out of 5]

Joseph Merceron puts hardened criminals to shame with his greed and robbery of the desperately poor people in Bethnal Green during his life span. I kept hoping that he would jailed for a long period after he was found guilty of his despicable practices but, no, his control of his patch was too complete. He had no conscience at all, and it made me sick to read of the conditions that poor people lived in while he stole the money that should have relieved their misery. Even when incarcerated for a year in the Kings Bench Prison, he had an easy time when compared to Coldbath, the house of correction over which he had presided. And the prison sentence had hardly any effect on him. Within a few months of his release from jail, he had regained his stranglehold over the vestry and important Boards that kept him in power.
Don't touch this book if you can't stomach reading about squalor and disease, vermin-infested houses, streets ankle-deep in mud, and grinding poverty which was the lot of the downtrodden poor in Bethnal Green, while Merceron lived in luxury. I wish I could say he got his just deserts, but he died a natural death aged seventy-five in 1839.
My father was born in Bethnal Green in 1905. Although still a very poor neighbourhood, much of the slum area had been cleared, and new housing blocks had been built, and rents were reasonable. My family lived much happier lives than those unfortunates who had suffered under the hands of the Boss of Bethnal Green.

[Chris simpson · Rating 4 out of 5]

And we think times are hard! The incredibley horrible telling of one of East London's nastiest yet least known characters who throughout his life managed to make the poor people of the East End of London even poorer whilst lining his own and his accomplices pockets, with the conivence and help of local business and community leaders this is indeed a sorry tale!
The lack of support for poor people in the late 18th and early 19th century was horribly harsh whilst the middle classes and the governments of the time seemingly immune to the realities and unable or unwilling to change things for the better. This lasted up to the 20th Century when people where still suffering incredible poverty in slum housing and workhouses.
Read this and be thankful that we live know and not then!

[Lin Renvoize · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting read about my ancester Peter Renvoize and his friend Merceron. What a bunch of rogues, dodgy deals and intrigue all round. Very evokative of the times.

[Lona Manning · Rating 5 out of 5]

Those who are fascinated with the Georgian and Regency period in England will find a wealth of information in this book. I've never been to London, but Woodford's evocations of the crowded, squalid streets of Bethnal Green was like stepping into a Hogarth print. (Thanks to the author for including photos of the places where this real-life story of corruption and avarice played out.)
I appreciated this book for several reasons. First, I learned a wealth of information about municipal government in this time; how parishes were organized and so forth. I learned more about the criminal justice system and the way prisons were run. Secondly, the story of Joseph Merceron provides a lot to think about when it comes to the many ways politicians enrich themselves at the public's expense and how little has changed. I enjoyed the descriptions of the boisterous electoral campaigns of the day. The tactic of misrepresenting your political opponent and disparaging his motives is not a recent invention! Thirdly, we meet a large cast of real-life historical personages. Some of them I've encountered elsewhere, like William Wilberforce and William Garrett, who do not come off as heroically as they do in "Amazing Grace" and "Garrow's Law."
I'm impressed by the research that went into this book. Whenever I clicked on a footnote, it established that the author had studied a lot of original archival material. And that's another thing; I was surprised that there were that many details to find, so much financial information, so much corroboration of who said what and when. On the other hand, where corroborative detail is not available, Woodford tells us so. He does not stray far into speculation.
Merceron is a man who controlled his section of London by controlling the taxes, the poor relief funds, the allocations for public improvements, all salaried public offices, the awarding of contracts, plus he controlled how much in the way of taxes each ratepayer paid. He used fraud, bribery, kickbacks, and intimidation. It was rather surprising to see how incoherent he was when he was finally brought into a court of law and confronted by a clever barrister.
The story of how an unscrupulous person seized control of the evolving institutions of municipal government might not strike everyone as seat-of-the-pants reading but Woodford supplies many colourful anecdotes and quotes that make the story both vivid and relevant. The long career of this scoundrel is also--quite legitimately--woven into the large picture of the times: the ebb and flow of the politics of the day; 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.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to know more about this consequential and transformative period of history.

[Katharine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty interesting reading, especially in light of today's goings on. Some things never change. Classic example of steal the money intended to aid the poor to line the pockets of the rich. The other side of some of the scandalous goings on behind the types of fortunes so sought after in Jane Austen's novels.

[David Charnick · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a highly-detailed yet completely readable study of local corruption in the late C18 and early C19. It has vivid descriptive passages and reasoned comment, taking the reader from stage to stage of Joseph Merceron's seemingly irresistible rise. Certainly this is an important book for local historians, but it's also a valuable reminder of how much damage can be done when public interest is put aside to facilitate the greed of the few. This is a lesson which has a great deal of resonance today.

[Philip Chaffee · Rating 4 out of 5]

This includes an impressive amount of historical research, and paints a vivid picture of early 19th Century Bethnal Green, and East London more broadly.

[David Sankey · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic story, not just about Joseph Merceron but so many details of Bethnal Green, and national politics and law....

.....true crime rarely gets to be as interesting as this

[S · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had never heard of Joseph Merceon until I came across this book in a bookshop and it turned out to be a very enjoyable and interesting read 

Joseph Merceon was born above a pawnbrokers in Brick Lane London in the year 1764. In the insuring years he would rise to control the whole of Bethnal Green through intimidation bribery,fraud and without a single feeling of compassion for others including his own family. I can honestly say I find Joseph Merceon to be a truly rotten individual and makes Scrooge like a pussycat. 

The book is clearly written and you can tell that the life Joseph Merceon has been thoroughly researched by the author. The book is very informative and would it be of great interest to anybody interested in the history of London overall I'd say definitely a five star read.

[Nightwitch · Rating 3 out of 5]

Comprehensively researched, obviously, but... it dragged. It's not the author's fault; it's more that Merceron wasn't a particularly reflective individual - at least not in writing - so the sources for this book were other people's reflections, court proceedings, contemporary press, etc. The book as a whole therefore ends up being more about "life and times," with an emphasis on times - and crimes - and while it's an interesting subject, it would probably have been more compelling if I had a broader understanding of life in England at the time. As it is, the book felt both too granular, in focusing explicitly on Bethnal Green and Merceron's activities, and not granular enough, in its lack of insights about personalities or motivations or details of the kind that weren't recounted in court testimony.