William Nibbs - Part 2. The Trial for Machine Breaking

In 1830 William was 21 years old and being a farm labourer by trade his own anger and frustrations drew him to become involved in a riot in the village of Loudwater in the Parish of Chepping Wycombe. Also known as High Wycombe or Chipping Wycombe. Chepping Wycombe was a large parish incorporating the villages of Wooburn, Heath End, Flackwell Heath, Northern Wood and Little Marlow.

The charge against him was documented as follows:

"Charged on the oaths of William Lacey and others, with having on the 29th November last (1830), unlawfully, riotously, and tumultuously assembled together, to the disturbance of the public peace, at the mill and in the premises of Mr William Robert DAVIS, of the Parish of Chepping Wycombe, in the said county, and feloniously was present aiding, abetting, and assisting divers persons to us yet unknown, with the feloniously and unlawfully destroying certain machinery used in the manufacture of paper in the said mill and on the premises of the said William Robert DAVIS, at the Parish of Chepping Wycombe, in the County of Buckinghamshire aforesaid, against the form of the statute in that case made."

Reports of the Trial proceedings show the riot did get a little out of hand with many threats of violence being flung around, along with rocks and other missiles.   Special constables had also arrived at the scene resulting in many physical altercations as they tried to make arrests.

William receives special mention for his part in the riot.   James GEORGE, a special constable, who was at Mr DAVIS' on the day of the riot, described the proceedings of the mob and identified William KNIBBS as having been at the front of them when there was a cry of "break the machinery".   He continued,

"KNIBBS was pressing on towards the mill and resisting the special constables who opposed the entrance of the mob.   Afterwards, seeing KNIBBS struggling with one of the special constables, I took him into custody.   'It would have been better for me if I had been at my work', KNIBBS said to me as I was conveying him to Beaconsfield".

Mr George MORTON said

"I know the prisoner KNIBBS by sight, and I saw him with the mob at Loudwater, before it proceeded to Mr DAVIS'.   The prisoner threw a stone that hit the sheriff on the chin".

One of the party who had an axe in his hand at the time, threatened to split the head open of one of the special constables.  Another threatened a constable that he, having a long memory would blow the constable's brains out the next time he sighted him.

More background
The first of the rioters arrested received lenient sentences.   Some were released due to the ordinary evidence posed against them, many received one to two months imprisonment or a very young offender may have received just a warning, but as the riots escalated the British Authorities took a harsher stance.

From November 1830 to early January 1831 some 2000 rioters were arrested.   In December and the following January punishments handed down had changed dramatically, to that of transportation for life, fourteen or seven years, or the ultimate penalty, the death sentence.   Appalling as it may seem, one theory posed by historians is the Government may have seen it as an opportunity to get skilled persons over to the newly established colony, Australia, as their emigration incentive schemes were failing.   By late January 1831 the riots had subsided and so did the deliberations handed down to the accused.   Most of the rioters sentenced to death, upon petitioning by their families and village folk, had their sentence reprieved to transportation.

It was evident that the Machine Breakers were devastated by the severe penalties they received.   It was relatively a non-violent form of protest and they may have anticipated only a token punishment for their involvement

After all the evidence had been given, William and eighteen other fellow rioters were placed in the dock to receive sentence.   Mr Justice PARK, overseer of the trial addressed them;

"It is with a most painful consideration to 19 of my own species placed at the bar of a court of justice, in all of whom the law itself has pronounced the sentence of death.   In selecting you 19 out for those capital convictions on whom we do not mean to pronounce that sentence, it has been a matter of most deep and anxious consideration to us to see whether we could distinguish between your cases and that of the others; at the same time, it was most dreadful to contemplate such an effusion of human blood and sacrifice of life taking place.   We therefore determined to recommend you to His Majesty's royal consideration and mercy.  [King William IV]   The sentence of death will be recorded against you, instead of being formerly passed, the meaning of which is, that your lives will certainly be spared, but on what terms, it is for His Majesty to determine, and not for us; yet, undoubtedly, severe punishments will be carried into execution against several of you.   Public Justice would not be satisfied without that being done, and the peace of the country, and the protection of the property of peaceable individuals require it.   I therefore hope and trust that you will be grateful for your lives being spared, and that in whatever situation you may hereafter be placed, whether part of the whole of your lives shall be spent in another country, you will conduct yourselves as honest industrious persons, and endeavour to secure you own peace of mind and the mercy of God, which will render you worthy of his acceptance whenever it may please him to call you from this world".

Minor participants in the riot received sentences from 18 months imprisonment to transportation of 7 years depending on the evidence against them and their character references.   Two main offenders in the riot received the death sentence with no reprieve.

Fortunately for William (and his descendants!!!) the final punishment handed down to him was transportation to Australia for 7 Years.