Barnaby Rudge · Chapter
Chapter 56 explained
The Maypole cronies travel to London, hearing alarming reports of the riots.
What happens
The Maypole cronies travel to London, hearing alarming reports of the riots. They encounter Mr. Haredale, who rides urgently toward a fire at his house. At the ruined Warren, Haredale confronts and captures the murderer Rudge, while old John Willet is found bound and dazed at the Maypole.
Themes in this chapter
Guilt and Retribution
Haredale's pursuit and capture of Rudge, the murderer, brings a long-awaited reckoning.
Mob Violence and Chaos
The riots spread destruction, with fires and threats to lives and property, reflecting the chaos of the mob.
The Spectacle of Death
The burning of the Warren and the confrontation with the murderer evoke a dramatic and deadly spectacle.
Characters to notice
- Mr. Geoffrey Haredale
Rides desperately to his burning house, captures the murderer Rudge, and finds the Maypole destroyed.
- Solomon Daisy
Accompanies Haredale, witnesses the capture of Rudge, and is distraught at the state of the Maypole and John Willet.
- John Willet
Found bound and dazed in the wrecked Maypole bar, barely recognizing his old friends.
- The Blind Man
Not present in this chapter, but the murderer Rudge is revealed and captured.
Key passages
“One man told them that that afternoon the Guards, conveying to Newgate some rioters who had been reexamined, had been set upon by the mob and compelled to retreat; another, that the houses of two witnesses near Clare Market were about to be pulled down when he came away; another, that Sir George Saville’s house in Leicester Fields was to be burned that night, and that it would go hard with Sir George if he fell into the people’s hands, as it was he who had brought in the Catholic bill.”
The travelers heard that the mob had attacked the Guards escorting prisoners to Newgate, that houses of witnesses were threatened, and that Sir George Saville's house was to be burned because he introduced the Catholic bill.
The escalating violence and targeting of individuals associated with the Catholic Relief Act.
“One fellow who wore the popular colour, damned them for not having cockades in their hats, and bade them set a good watch tomorrow night upon their prison doors, for the locks would have a straining; another asked if they were fireproof, that they walked abroad without the distinguishing mark of all good and true men;—and a third who rode on horseback, and was quite alone, ordered them to throw each man a shilling, in his hat, towards the support of the rioters.”
Rioters berated them for not wearing blue ribbons, warned of an attack on prisons, and demanded money for the rioters.
The pressure on ordinary citizens to support the rioters or face consequences.
““Villain!” cried Mr. Haredale, in a terrible voice—for it was he. “Dead and buried, as all men supposed through your infernal arts, but reserved by Heaven for this—at last—at last I have you. You, whose hands are red with my brother’s blood, and that of his faithful servant, shed to conceal your own atrocious guilt—You, Rudge, double murderer and monster, I arrest you in the name of God, who has delivered you into my hands.””
Haredale confronts and captures Rudge, accusing him of murdering his brother and a servant, and declares he has been delivered to justice.
The climax of Haredale's quest for vengeance and justice.