Dorothy Peel (1782–1857), better known as Dolly Peel, was a famous character in the

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardia ...

South Shields South Shields () is a coastal town in South Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England. It is on the south bank of the mouth of the River Tyne. Historically, it was known in Roman times as Arbeia, and as Caer Urfa by Early Middle Ages. According to the 20 ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, who acquired local legendary status. She is commemorated by a statue in the centre of the town.

Life

Peel was a

fishwife A fishwife, fish-fag or fishlass is a woman who sells fish. Some wives and daughters of fishermen were notoriously loud and foul-mouthed, as noted in the expression, ''To swear like a fishwife'' as they sold fish in the marketplace. One reaso ...

, but was also known as a

smuggler Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations. There are various ...

and as a protector of local sailors from the

press gang ''Press Gang'' is a British children's television comedy drama consisting of 43 episodes across five series that were broadcast from 1989 to 1993. It was produced by Richmond Film & Television for Central, and screened on the ITV network in it ...

.Paul Usherwood et al, ''Public sculpture of North-East England'', Liverpool University Press, 2000, p.175. During the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

her husband Cuthbert Peel and son were press-ganged to serve in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

, Dolly snuck on board the ship and hid. After being discovered, she was given work as a

nurse Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health c ...

to sick and wounded sailors. Her work and dedication was respected, and she was allowed to stay on board with her family. She was rewarded by a

pardon A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the ju ...

for her initial attempts to interfere with naval practice. Her husband and son were released from the navy and were exempted from future press-ganging. The incident made her into a local

hero A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or a main fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or Physical strength, strength. Like other formerly gender-specific terms (like ...

ine. Back in South Shields, she worked as a

hawker Hawker or Hawkers may refer to: Places * Hawker, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra * Hawker, South Australia, a town * Division of Hawker, an Electoral Division in South Australia * Hawker Island, Princess Elizabeth Land, Antarct ...

of allegedly

contraband Contraband (from Medieval French ''contrebande'' "smuggling") refers to any item that, relating to its nature, is illegal to be possessed or sold. It is used for goods that by their nature are considered too dangerous or offensive in the eyes o ...

goods and became well known for her wit and colourful stories. She also published

poetry Poetry (derived from the Greek ''poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings i ...

, most notably verses praising the local liberal MP

Robert Ingham Robert Ingham (1793 – 21 October 1875) was a British barrister and politician. The fourth son of the surgeon William Ingham and his wife Jane Walker, of Newcastle upon Tyne, Ingham was educated at Harrow School. He matriculated at Oriel Col ...

, of whom she was a strong supporter, during the 1841 general election. According to census date, in 1841 Dorothy Peel (Dolly) was living at Ropery Stairs near Shadwell Street. By 1851 she had relocated to Lookham Stairs, near Shadwell Street with her husband Cuthbert Peel. On Wednesday 14th of October 1857 Dolly died aged 76.

Commemorations

In 1923 South Shields playwright

Eva Elwes Eva Elwes (born Gertrude Emma Cannon; 1876–1950) was an English actress and playwright who wrote over 50 plays between 1907 and 1938. Acting career Between 1896 and the late 1920s Elwes performed in a variety of plays and variety shows. She r ...

wrote ''Dolly Peel'', a play based on her life. It was revived by the Customs House theatre in 2005. In the 1980s a statue was commissioned by Reg Peel of

South Tyneside Metropolitan Borough Council South Tyneside Council is the local authority of South Tyneside in Tyne and Wear, North East England. It is a metropolitan borough A metropolitan borough (or metropolitan district) is a type of local government district in England. Created in ...

, who is her great-great-great grandson. It was intended as a tribute to the strength of local working women. It was based on a surviving photograph of Dolly and was designed by Billy Gofton. It was unveiled in 1987. The statue is located on River Drive, near the junction with Palatine Street. She is depicted looking out over the

River Tyne The River Tyne is a river in North East England. Its length (excluding tributaries) is . It is formed by the North Tyne and the South Tyne, which converge at Warden Rock near Hexham in Northumberland at a place dubbed 'The Meeting of the Wate ...

.Public Monument and Sculpture Association National Recording Project
A public house in Commercial Road, South Shields, is named "Dolly Peel" after the legendary character and contains various tributes to her amongst its furnishings and wall decorations.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Peel, Dolly 1782 births 1857 deaths People from South Shields Victorian poets Female wartime nurses English women poets 19th-century English women writers 19th-century British writers Fishmongers (people)