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All the United Kingdom England London Site of Execution Dock

Site of Execution Dock

Where condemned pirates met their grisly end at the gallows on the River Thames.

London, England

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AmunyAnkhesenra
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Wapping Old Stairs at low tide.   Edward Ballinger/cc by 2.0
The stairs to the Thames foreshore at low tide.   Edward Ballinger/cc by 2.0
The Wapping Old Stairs are the most likely site of Execution Dock.   AmunyAnkhesenra / Atlas Obscura User
The Wapping Old Stairs with the tide in.   AmunyAnkhesenra / Atlas Obscura User
The Wapping Old Stairs with the tide in.   AmunyAnkhesenra / Atlas Obscura User
The Town of Ramsgate pub and Wapping Old Stairs seen from the river.   Chris Gunns/cc by-sa 2.0
The Prospect of Whitby pub, another contender for the site of Execution Dock, seen at high tide.   Christine Matthews/cc by-sa 2.0
Historic depiction of a pirate being hanged at Execution Dock.   public domain
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  SEANETTA / Atlas Obscura User
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About

The city of London was once the largest port in the world, and as such attracted its fair share of pirates and smugglers. Policing the port was the responsibility of the Admiralty court, which often handed down a death sentence to those convicted of piracy. Prisoners would be marched en masse along the south side of the Thames, across London Bridge, past the Tower, and to the foreshore of the river in Wapping. They ended their journey, and lives, at the site known as Execution Dock.

Pirates meeting their gruesome end on the gallows at Execution Dock were allegedly subject to an unusual hanging. The rope was too short to break the neck on the drop, so the condemned would be strangled, appearing to dance as their limbs twitched as they died. Their bodies were often left hanging until three tides had washed over them. Particularly notorious pirates’ corpses were tarred and placed in cages (known as gibbets) along the river as a warning to other would-be bandits. Captain William Kidd is probably the most famous swashbuckler to meet his end this way in 1701; his gibbeted body was left in the Thames estuary for three years.

All traces of Execution Dock are now long gone; after 400 years of use the last pirates stepped off in 1830. The exact location of the former dock is disputed, with three riverside pubs claiming the site: the Prospect of Whitby (which comes complete with replica gallows), Captain Kidd, and the Town of Ramsgate. The last is thought to be the most likely location. Down a narrow alley along the western side of the Town of Ramsgate, you'll see a set of stairs known as the Wapping Old Steps. At low tide, they lead all the way down to the river foreshore, to what may well have been the site of Execution Dock. 

Related Tags

Execution Pirates Rivers Death History Crime And Punishment Stairs Tidal

Know Before You Go

The stairs only lead to the foreshore at low tide, so time your visit accordingly. Watch out for mud and debris when walking down toward the water.

There is no sign indicating the location of the dock. However, there is a pub named The Town of Ramsgate situated along Wapping High Street, take the narrow lane named Wapping Old Stairs E. The dock is about a 15 minute walk along the Thames Path from the Tower of London to the South & Wapping Station to the North.

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Added By

AmunyAnkhesenra

Edited By

SEANETTA, CDVV86, Krikki, Meg

  • SEANETTA
  • CDVV86
  • Krikki
  • Meg

Published

March 1, 2019

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Sources
  • Amanda Ruggeri, 'The London gallows where pirates were hanged', BBC.com (December 2016), http://www.bbc.com/autos/story/20161216-the-london-gallows-where-pirates-were-hanged
Site of Execution Dock
51 Wapping High St
London, England
United Kingdom
51.503435, -0.062055
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