Broadside concerning the proceedings of the Circuit Court of Justiciary, Glasgow

Commentary

This crime report begins: 'One Man sentenced to Death. / Trial and Sentence / of all the Prisoners since the opening of the Circuit Court of Justiciary at Glasgow on Monday the 27th Sept.' The sheet was published in 1824 by William Carse of Glasgow, who had a reputation for giving the results of the local assizes and for covering trials in Glasgow.

Just like the street-cry of a newspaper vendor, this broadside opens with a dramatic piece of news to grab the public's attention. Despite the sensationalist tone of the headline, however, this broadside is a list of the people who were facing court charges, and the various verdicts that were returned. Although there is a wide variety of different crimes and sentences listed on this sheet, revealingly, the majority of the charges are for robbery, theft and housebreaking. The National Library of Scotland's collection contains a number of broadsides that detail the mixed agenda of Glasgow's Circuit Courts during this era.

Broadsides are single sheets of paper, printed on one side, to be read unfolded. They carried public information such as proclamations as well as ballads and news of the day. Cheaply available, they were sold on the streets by pedlars and chapmen. Broadsides offer a valuable insight into many aspects of the society they were published in, and the National Library of Scotland holds over 250,000 of them.

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