Peeps into the Past: Moretonhampstead Events in Napoleonic Times: Contemporary Record: The local history of Moretonhampstead has been lately enriched by the discovery of a manuscript journal, kept by one Sylvester Treleaven, and covering the Napoleonic period. By the courtesy of Mr. B. Parker, permission has been given to quote from this record in this and succeeding articles. For years, from 1789 onwards, Treleaven was a shrewd and detached observer of the life the town. French prisoners of war, smugglers, weavers, itinerant preachers, hungry women, and workless men jostle one another in his pages. He is content to write of Moretonhampstead only. When peace was declared in 1801, notes it as a fact, and then goes on to say how Mr. Pinsent’s house was illuminated with coloured lights, spelling “Rejoice Brittons,” while the Post-office showed “Peace and Plenty.” Yet he never lacked material, such was his interest in small details. When Thomas Tyrwhitt, Esquire, drove through the town on his way to his new estate at Tor Royal, Treleaven took pains to describe minutely the armorial bearings on the door of his carriage. In everything there is the same precision, and, like Pepys, he never bothered to assess the relative importance of events. The result is a particularly vivid picture of the life of the town. … (continues) …
Transcribed in whole or part from scanned originals: Presented with or without modified text and punctuation. For absolute accuracy refer to the original newspapers. Source: The British Newspaper Archive
Referenced
GRO1391 Devonport: John Pinsent: 1745 – 1804
GRO1400 Devonport: John Pinsent: 1723 – 1800