Jack o' Legs
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Jack O'Legs is the name of a character from folk legend in Hertfordshire, UK. Jack is said to have been a renowned archer who was famed for robbing the rich to give to the poor.
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[edit] Mythology
Jack is said to have lived in the 14th century in a cave, in the middle of Weston Wood. The forest is no longer there but the field where the wood once stood is still called ‘The Cave’ and the neighboring field is called ‘Weston Wood’. A steep incline on the Great North Road, close to the village of Graveley, where Jack was supposed to have robbed wealthy travelers, is still called “Jack’s Hill”.
In the Holy Trinity Church at Weston, Hertfordshire, just inside the entrance you will find two stones that stand 14 feet (4.27m) apart. The stones are meant to mark the head and the foot of Jack's grave.
[edit] Factual basis
According to an 1811 dictionary of slang terms (Grose), his name was originally Jack of Legs, meaning a tall long-legged man or giant.
The century in which Jack lived saw war, plague (the Black Death) and the first peasant revolt. Life for a poor person was described as "nasty, brutal and short".{who}} Much of the countryside was still organized according to a system introduced by William the Conqueror, where land, rather than being owned as is the case nowadays, was held from a member of society higher up the social tree. For peasants, this was usually the Lord of the Manor. However, it was also a time when the country was changing from an economy based on agriculture to a more mixed one, as towns, and the merchants that traded in them, grew in power and influence.
Villagers or peasants, like Jack’s friends mentioned in the story, could earn the opportunity to hold a small amount of land for growing their own food (usually a strip) by also working on the land of the Lord of the Manor, to whom they paid their taxes. Farms were much smaller in the Middle Ages. Farming tools were basic and the farming year was shaped around the weather. A severe frost could kill a crop and heavy rain could flatten it, making it impossible to harvest, leaving a village with nothing. However, the peasants still had to find the money or goods to pay their taxes. So when the harvest failed, the villagers of Weston would have been very worried, as in the story.
Medieval towns, such as Baldock, were places where village people came to trade. They developed in areas where people could easily meet, such as crossroads or rivers. Baldock is situated where two ancient roads cross: the Icknield Way and the Great North Road. The present town was established by the Knights Templar in the 12th century. Medieval Guilds played an important role in the towns. Guilds formed where groups of skilled workers in the same trade joined together to protect their shared interests, by making sure that items produced by guild members were up to standard and sold at a fair price. Guild membership was a sign that you were skilled and respected in society. The bakers in the story would have belonged to a guild organized to limit the markets and increase their profits. Only members of a guild were allowed to sell their produce in towns, except on market days when anyone could trade.
At the very bottom of society were the landless people and those outside society, the outlaws (thieves and rogues) just like Jack. Punishments for wrong doing were severe, as it was believed people only learned how to behave properly if they feared the consequences of not doing so. Even the ‘smallest’ offences had serious punishments. People could be put in the stocks, beaten and those accused of a minor theft could have their hands cut off. Those found guilty of serious crimes such as murder, highway robbery, stealing livestock or produce were executed. Most towns, including Baldock, had a gallows or gibbet nearby.
Although a town could obtain a charter giving it the right to have its own law court, there was no police force to ensure law and order, so despite the severe punishments many got away with their crimes. Larger towns had fences or walls around them with gates that were locked at night. However, most towns did not have enough wealth to build such expensive protection to keep out undesirables. Often, people had to look after themselves. As a member of a guild, the guild would look after you if you were sick or in trouble so, as in the story, the Bakers may well have banded together to help each other remove the problem of Jack.
The Bakers' treatment of Jack may seem brutal but life was harsh for most people and although relatively well off, a baker's life was not easy. The work was hard, the hours terrible and, because of the importance of bread in feeding the population, there were numerous and constantly changing laws that had to be obeyed. Bakers found guilty of selling underweight loaves could be locked in the pillory (a wooden framework on a post with holes for the head and hands) and exposed to public scorn and abuse. In times of famine, municipal authorities coud force bakers to sell below production costs. Sometimes bread was simply confiscated to feed the town.
[edit] Modern references
- A number of local landmarks are named after the character of Jack O'Legs.
- Tring Brewery brews a range of ales named after local legends, including one after Jack O'Legs.
