Smugglers

From 1733 the Customs onshore anti-smuggling forces of Kent were run by leading establishment figure John Collier (1685-1760). In 1756 he passed on his anti-smuggling role – called Surveyor General of the Customs for Kent – and prominent position in the town to his son-in-law Edward Milward Snr (1723-1811). Local legend has it that Collier and Milward (who was mayor of Hastings 26 times) received large incomes from their liaison with the chief smugglers over several decades, as did other Customs officers around the coast. The senior officers were well-known for having little effect, because their positions were often filled by political jobbery; corruption, inefficiency and laxity were widespread

Smuggling continued until well into the 19th century as evidenced by Brett in his Manuscript Histories, a couple of notable incidents from therein being repeated below:

3rd of January (1828), a party of smugglers rushed onto the beach at about two miles west of the embryo St. Leonards and landed a cargo of smuggled goods, which they conveyed in carts, on horses and on men's backs to Bexhill. There they were overtaken by blockadesmen who had been reinforced to about forty in number, when the smuggler's batsmen drew themselves up in regular lines of battle and a desperate fight ensued. In the first volley fired by the blockadesmen, a smuggler named Smith and one of their comrades were killed, and others were wounded, but the defenders fought with such determination as to repulse their assailants, after Quarter-Master Collins had been killed and many others severely bruised. Next morning the dead body of Smith was found with his bat still graped by his hands, the weapon being almost hacked to pieces by the cutlasses and bayonets of the blockadesmen. Some of the men, whose names were known were afterwards captured. These were Spencer Whiteman, Thos. Miller, Hy. Miller, John Spray, Edward Shoesmith, Wm. Bennett, John Foord and Stephen Stubberfield. They were indicted at the Horsham spring assizes and removed to the Old Bailey for trial, where, on the 10th of April, they all pleaded guilty. They were sentenced to death, but the sentence was commuted to transportation

In the month of October (1829), between 7 and 8 of the morning, a number of men had assembled just above the North Lodge, and in reply to Mr. Robert Deudney, who accosted them, said "You see that boat on the water; that's loaded with tubs, and we mean to have them." Mr. Deudney then went back to his house and called Mr. Beecham, who happened to be staying there, to accompany him to witness the exploit. On getting down to the space in front of the Hotel, where the Baths, but not the parade wall had been built, the boat came ashore, and the "batsmen" assembled on the beach, confronted by a solitary preventive-man. This guardian of the coast was made to understand that it would go hard with him if he fired his pistol. This he did, nevertheless, but as no one was wounded, the party rushed upon him and might have inflicted on him some bodily harm but for the interposition of Mr. Deudney, whose friend, Mr. Beecham, had gone away from sheer fright. The result was that the preventative mans pistol and cutlass were wrenched from him and thrown into the sea, whilst with surprising dexterity, the large cargo of spirits was got clean away to Westfield and other places without the loss of a single keg.

Possibly the lowering of import duties on many of the commonly smuggled items in 1830 possibly assisted with the reduction in large-scale smuggling after this date, together with the almost-complete population of the seafront by affluent families soon after this date.

Known Smugglers Referenced in this Wiki

• Richard Cobb
• "Trucks" (William) Cruttenden
• Rose Fuller
• George Harrod
• "Dolly" Mann
• William Nash
• Thomas Range

Notable incidents

1828:	January 3rd: A group of smugglers landed goods near St. Leonards and transported them to Bexhill, where they clashed with blockadesmen. Two smugglers, including one named Smith, were killed, and others were wounded. The smugglers fought fiercely, killing Quarter-Master Collins and injuring other blockadesmen. Several smugglers, including Spencer Whiteman, were later apprehended and transported.
1830:	March 31st: Lieutenant Newman seized a smuggling boat with a large quantity of tobacco. April 22nd: Comptroller Bevill and his crew captured the "Dove" and 35 tubs of spirits. The smugglers' plans were likely disrupted by stormy weather. July 29th: Solomon Bevill captured the "Fox" with two men and 26 casks of spirits. October 16th: Bevill seized a boat with five men and 106 tubs of spirits. December 5th: A confrontation on the Marine Parade between preventivemen and smugglers resulted in an exchange of gunfire, although no one was hit. Some goods were seized, while the smugglers escaped with the rest. December 8th: Bevill and his men recovered 66 casks of spirits that smugglers had thrown overboard.
1831:	July 28th or 29th: Government officer Solomon Beville and his crew seized the pleasure-lugger "St. Leonards," capturing 42 tubs of spirits and four men who were later sentenced to five years of naval service. November 27th: Two smugglers from Ore, Head and Cobby, were shot at Bopeep. Head was killed and his body was secretly burned. Cobby's fate is unclear.
1832:	January 1st: A violent encounter at Warrior's Gate left several smugglers wounded, and three reportedly died. Coastguard members were also severely beaten. While the smugglers suffered heavy losses, they successfully transported a significant portion of their contraband cargo. This incident was likely fueled by desperation due to prior losses, including a seizure by the Ranger revenue cutter four days earlier. The discovery of a skeleton in 1877 near the site of this conflict suggests it was one of the smugglers killed in the encounter. January 5th: Five men captured by the Ranger and held at Bopeep escaped from custody. February 27th: A clash at Martello Tower 40, Bopeep, resulted in the death of a coastguard and injuries to three others, one fatally. Smugglers may have been wounded as well. The coastguard seized 150 tubs of spirits, and warrants were issued for the smugglers' arrest. Dragoons and rifles were brought in to assist the coastguard.
1833:	March 19th or 20th: A revenue cutter captured 120 tubs of contraband spirits at sea and brought them to Hastings. April 5th: Government officers seized a wagon-load of tubs.
1834:	Three men - Page, Chatfield, and Marchant - were sentenced to death for assembling with firearms to smuggle goods. Their sentence was later commuted to transportation for life.
1837:	An individual named Syms, from Rye, was caught delivering a box containing two casks of contraband spirits to Mrs. Nash in Hastings. Syms was fined £100, later reduced to six months' imprisonment.
1838:	April 1st: A large smuggling operation near Camber Watchhouse involving individuals from Hastings, St. Leonards, Winchelsea, and other areas resulted in a violent confrontation. The smugglers, despite sustaining injuries and one fatality (Thomas Monck, a fiddler from Winchelsea), successfully transported their goods. This event is considered one of the last major smuggling conflicts on the southern coast.
1839:	December 7th-8th: Approximately seventy kegs of brandy were landed at Rock-a-nore and hauled up the cliff. A custom house officer discovered the abandoned boat the following morning.
1840:	October 25th: A Hastings coastguard officer discovered a boat containing 104 gallons of spirits hidden under nets. Three men were apprehended.
1851:	January 16th: 15 tubs of spirits were found buried near the Winchelsea coastguard station, and 10 more shortly thereafter. This suggests a partially successful or disrupted smuggling operation. Two weeks later: A leaky 16-foot boat was found on the beach opposite Carlisle Parade, likely used in a smuggling operation, possibly connected to the tubs found near Winchelsea.