William Brodie. Brodie advertising figure on Edinburgh's Royal Mile William Brodie (28 September 1741 – 1 October 1788), more commonly known by his prestigious title of Deacon Brodie, was a Scottish cabinet-maker, deacon of a trades guild and Edinburgh city councillor, who maintained a secret life as a burglar, partly for the thrill, and partly to fund his gambling. Career[edit] Capture and trial[edit] The case that led to Brodie's downfall began later in 1788 when he organised an armed raid on an Excise office in Chessel's Court on The Canongate. Brodie's plan failed. The trial of Brodie and Smith started on 27 August 1788. Brodie and Smith were hanged at the Tolbooth Prison in the High Street on 1 October 1788, before a crowd of 40,000. Popular culture[edit] Popular myth holds that Deacon Brodie built the first gallows in Edinburgh and was also its first victim.
Sign at Deacon Brodie's Tavern on Edinburgh's Royal Mile Brodie's alter ego References[edit] Further reading[edit] Hutchison, David (2014). Deacon Brodie. A greatly respected member of Edinburgh's society, William Brodie (1741-88) was a skilful cabinet-maker and a member of the Town Council as well as deacon (head) of the Incorporation of Wrights and Masons. However, unknown to most gentlefolk, Brodie had a secret night-time occupation as the leader of a gang of burglars. An extra-curricular activity that was necessary to support his extravagant lifestyle which included two mistresses, numerous children and a gambling habit. To support his night-time activities Brodie had the perfect day job, part of which involved making and repairing security locks and mechanisms. The temptation obviously proved too much for him when working on the locks of his customer's houses, as he would copy their door-keys!
Brodie's last crime and ultimate downfall was an armed raid on His Majesty's Excise Office in Chessel's Court, on the Canongate. The trial started on 27 August 1788, however little hard evidence could be found to incriminate Brodie. Deacon Brodie. Edinburgh-Royal Mile Deacon Brodie. DEACON BRODIE Deacon William Brodie was a very respectable citizen of the old town of Edinburgh, by day a cabinet maker, the top of his profession.
When his father died in 1780, he inherited the family business, the home in Brodies Close and £10,000. A sum that should have set him up for life. But he had some bad habits: He used to drink, and gamble and he had not one, but two mistresses. This life style took quite a lot of his money. It was not hard for him to find the opportunity: As a cabinet maker he would often go to people's houses to measure up in order to make a cabinet.
Late night robberies became common place in the old town of Edinburgh and of course no one suspected the respectable Deacon. Always inventive he even now tried to cheat justice. Deacon Brodie's double life of good and evil was the inspiration for Robert Louis Stevenson's work "The strange case of Dr. Deacon William Brodie an infamous Scottish criminal. Deacon William Brodie was born in 1741 and was a qualified tradesman who worked as a cabinet maker. He was also Deacon of the Trades Guild and an Edinburgh City Councillor. He inherited the family business in the Lawnmarket in Edinburgh when his father died. On the surface he was a pillar of the local community but Brodie had a secret gambling problem and he was a womaniser with at least five illegitimate children. He could not afford his vices and so he began to make copies of the keys to the houses and businesses in which he worked and then return later to rob them.
He teamed up with an English locksmith called George Smith and the two became increasingly bold with their thefts. The rumours were that he used some kind of harness to evade death, possibly a steel collar and he bribed the hangman into silence before escaping again afterwards. Apparently Brodie provided some of the inspiration for Robert Louis Stevenson's classic the Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. Deacon William Brodie. Overview of William Brodie. Deacon Brodie - Edinburgh - Streenge.
Deacon Brodie lived in the 18th century and was one of Edinburgh's most respected citizens - as well as one of its worst rogues. He led an extreme double life which is thought to have been the inspiration for Robert Louis Stevenson's classic novel "Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde". William Brodie was born in 1741, the son of a cabinet maker. He became a well-known figure in he society of the day, being a skilled craftsman, a member of the Town Council and the leader of the guild of Wrights and Masons. This latter post carried the title "Deacon" which is how he is remembered.
Brodie liked the good things in life and had an extravagent lifestyle which even his high position in Edinburgh society couldn't support. So he turned to crime to finance his pleasure, using the skills he'd learned in his trade. Brodie's legitimate job as a woodworker gave him frequent access to the houses of the wealthy. Eventually Brodie - possibly becoming too confident - over-reached himself. Lothian Life the magazine for Edinburgh and the Lothians » Archive » Deacon Brodie – Guilty or Not. A stranger, climbing from The Mound up to the Lawnmarket in Edinburgh, on seeing the bright facade of Deacon Brodie’s Tavern, might be excused from giving some ecclesiastical association to the title of Deacon Brodie.
Such a connotation would be far from the truth. William Brodie was actually from a good Edinburgh family which had earlier moved to the city from Morayshire. Reports describe him as a small, slender man, with a high forehead. He is also said to have had an ‘unfortunate turn in one eye’ and a scar on his face, but was always impeccably dressed. Like his father Francis, he was Deacon (President in today’s terms) of the Incorporation of Wrights – another name for carpenters or cabinet makers. Brodie was only 41 when his father died in 1782 and he inherited his father’s thriving business, a large property in Brodie’s Close on the south side of the Lawnmarket and £10,000. The enterprise did not go to plan due to the unexpected return to the office of Excise man James Bonnar. Trial of Deacon Brodie : Roughead, William, 1870-1952. Deacon Brodie (TV 1997. Edinburgh-Royal Mile Brodie's Close. Deacon Brodie's Tavern: Edinburgh Pub Guide: Undiscovered Scotland.
Deacon Brodie's Tavern occupies a prime location on the corner between Lawnmarket, part of the Royal Mile, and Bank Street, one of the main thoroughfares up from Princes Street. It is named after Deacon William Brodie, the man who inspired Robert Louis Stevenson's novel The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. Deacon Brodie (1741-88) was a respected cabinet-maker and a member of the Town Council, and Deacon (head) of the Incorporation of Wrights and Masons. But Brodie lived a double life, developing an expensive lifestyle including mistresses and gambling that he could only support through a secret life of crime. As a respected craftsman, part of Brodie's day job involved manufacturing and repairing locks. It became his practice to take copies of all the keys involved so that he could return some time later with accomplices as part of his night job.
Brodie's downfall followed an armed raid on His Majesty's Excise Office on Edinburgh's Canongate. Deacon Brodie's Tavern, Edinburgh.