William Brodie 948121 221743802 2008-06-25T22:07:19Z 92.16.119.129 {{otherpersons}} '''William Brodie''' ([[September 28]], [[1741]] - [[October 1]], [[1788]]), more commonly known by his prestigious title of '''Deacon Brodie''', was a [[Scotland|Scottish]] [[cabinet making|cabinet-maker]], [[Deacon#Scots_usage|deacon]] of the trades [[guild]] and [[Edinburgh]] city councillor, who maintained a secret life as a [[burglar]], partly for the thrill, and partly to fund his [[gambling]]. By day, Brodie was a respectable [[business]]man, member of the [[burgh]] council and deacon (or president) of the Incorporation of [[Wright]]s and [[Stonemason|Masons]]. Part of his job in building cabinets was to install and repair their [[Lock (device)|locks]] and other security mechanisms and repair door locks. He also served on a [[jury]]. He socialised with the gentry of Edinburgh, meeting poet [[Robert Burns]] and the painter Sir [[Henry Raeburn]]. He was also a member of The [[Edinburgh Cape Club]] [http://books.google.com/books?id=8buM0pK9IpMC&pg=PA26&dq=deacon+brodie+edinburgh+cape&sig=SbjAXTLocHwRzHqLDMq8tdl9oiA] At night, however, Brodie became a burglar and thief. He used his daytime job as a way to gain knowledge about the security mechanisms of his clients and to copy their [[key (lock)|key]]s using [[wax]] impressions. As the foremost [[wright]] of the city, Brodie was asked to work in the homes of many of the richest members of Edinburgh society. He used the illicit money to maintain his second life, including five children, two [[Mistress (lover)|mistress]]es who did not know of each other, and a gambling habit. He reputedly began his criminal career around [[1768]] when he copied keys to a bank door and stole £800. In [[1786]] he recruited a gang of three thieves, Brown, Smith and Ainslie. The case that lead to Brodie's downfall began later in 1786 when he organised an armed raid on an [[Excise office]] in [[Chessel's Court]] on the [[Canongate]]. Brodie's plan failed and Ainslie was captured. Ainslie agreed to turn [[King's evidence]], to avoid [[Penal transportation|transportation]], and informed on the rest of the gang. Brodie escaped to the [[Netherlands]] intending to flee to the [[United States]] but was arrested in [[Amsterdam]] and shipped back to Edinburgh for trial. The trial started [[August 27]] [[1788]]. At first there was no hard evidence against Brodie before the tools of his criminal trade were found in his house; copied keys, a disguise and [[pistol]]s. The jury found Brodie and his [[henchman]] [[George Smith]], a [[grocer]], [[guilty]]. Smith was an [[England|English]] locksmith, he was responsible for a number of thefts, even stealing the [[silver mace]] from the [[University of Edinburgh]]. Brodie and Smith were [[hang]]ed at the [[Tolbooth]] [[October 1]] [[1788]], using a [[gallows]] Brodie had designed and funded the year before. According to one tale, Brodie wore a [[steel]] collar and [[silver]] tube to prevent the hanging from being fatal. It was said that he had bribed the hangman to ignore it and arranged for his body to be removed quickly in the hope that he could later be revived. If so, the plan failed. Brodie was buried in an unmarked grave at the [[Parish]] Church in [[Buccleuch]]. However rumours of his being seen in [[Paris]] circulated later and gave the story of his scheme to evade death further publicity. Popular [[mythology|myth]] holds that Deacon Brodie built the first gallows in Edinburgh and was also its first victim. Of this [[William Roughead]] in ''Classic Crimes'' states that after research he was sure that although the Deacon may have had some hand in the design ''"...it was certainly not of his construction, nor was he the first to benefit by its ingenuity"''. The [[dichotomy]] between Brodie's respectable [[façade]], and his real nature inspired [[Robert Louis Stevenson]] to write ''[[The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde]]''. Stevenson's father had [[furniture]] made by Brodie. Deacon Brodie is commemorated by a [[public house|pub]] of that name on [[Edinburgh]]'s [[Royal Mile]], on the corner between the Lawnmarket and Bank Street which leads down to The Mound, and a ''close'' (or alleyway) off the Royal Mile has been named after him, there is also a pub in Ward Road, [[Dundee]] named after him. A pub in [[New York City]] carrying his name sits on the south side of the famous west side 46th Street Restaurant Row between 8th Avenue and 9th Avenue, closer to 9th Avenue. In [[1997]] a [[TV movie]] of the same name was made starring [[Billy Connolly]] [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0176645/]. ==External links== *[http://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/Scotland-History/DeaconBrodie.htm The history of Scotland - Deacon Brodie] *[http://www.rampantscotland.com/famous/blfamdeacon.htm Famous Scots - Deacon William Brodie] {{DEFAULTSORT:Brodie, William}} [[Category:1741 births]] [[Category:1788 deaths]] [[Category:Burglars]] [[Category:People executed by hanging]] [[Category:Royal High School alumni]] [[Category:People from Edinburgh]] [[Category:Scottish criminals]] [[Category:Scottish businesspeople]] [[Category:Scottish politicians]] [[Category:People associated with the University of Edinburgh]] [[Category:18th century executions by Great Britain]] [[de:William Brodie]]