Research and Planning : Editorial Brief

"1. The Power of the Georgian Underclass

BBC History Magazine 2015 

You have been commissioned to produce two full colour illustrations for The Cocky Criminal & 

The Letter Writing Pauper. These illustration need to convey a stylistic continuity between each 

other. This illustrations will be in both the printed and digital edition of the magazine. 

The dimensions for the final illustrations are as follows.

The Cocky Criminal - 190 mm (W) x 175mm (H)

The Letter Writing Pauper - 55 mm (W) x 80mm (H)

You can work at a larger size (recommended in most cases), but it must be the same size ratio. 

The digital version needs to be 300dpi CMYK. "

Both of the illustrations I will compose for this module will have to have a stylistic appearance which can visually been seen in both.  I chose this following magazine as it has an underlying depth of history and past which appealed to me. The topic of 'Cocky criminal ' interested me as the legal and serious side of life combined with the idea of Art. I feel there is various things to explore. 

Cocky Criminal: 

James Dalton, lead gang robberies and prison breaks, which alarmed London.  He had been in the legal and court system from a young age after witnessing the suicide of his father at the age of five. Due to the outbreak of Dalton gang actions the legal force were on his case. He was then convicted and transported where he later joined a mutiny at the Spanish coast. Recaptured he plotted a prison break , but wasn't successful due to a file being discovered in a gingerbread cake in Dalton possession. Dalton and Sheppard where black listed but popular with the poor. Dalton believed that his profession was widely encourage due to Oprea house creating plays based on the acts of Sheppard and others.  Dalton was executed at the age of 30. Due to Dalton rebellious actions the government enhanced the punishment for robberies, but this had an bigger effect. The justice system was then allowed defence lawyers present in the case of a felony.  This was the first act to modern adversarial trial. 

The Letter writing Pauper :

Catherine Jones was  sick, disabled and difficulty to read or write. However that didn't stop her from writing 'pauper letters' ( those living outside their parish in need of financial support). Jones was currently living 200miles away from London on a Welsh boarder.  So wrote threatening to return home to London costing the parish more money if  they did not aid her with financial support. Her plea was successful which impacted positively;  higher level of support that paupers could expect from their parish. It  increased the pressure for a change introducing the New Poor law of 1834; operating poor relief systems and new work houses.