Peter Labilliere | |
|---|---|
 Portrait of Peter Labilliere by Henry Kingsbury. | |
| Other name(s) | Peter Labelliere |
| Born | 30 May 1725 Dublin |
| Died | 6 June 1800 (aged 75) Dorking |
| Buried | |
| Rank | Major |
Peter Labilliere (1725-1800), also known as Peter Labelliere, was the British Army Major buried upside down on Box Hill near Dorking in Surrey.
Labilliere was born in Dublin on 30 May 1725 to a family of French Huguenot descent (his family was from Aulas, in the Gard department [1] ). He joined the British Army at the age of 14, becoming a major in 1760. [2] After leaving the army he became a political agitator and was accused in 1775 of bribing British troops not to fight in the American War of Independence, although he was never tried for treason. [3] Throughout the 1770s and 80s Labiliere corresponded regularly with both Benjamin Franklin (at that time the American representative in France) and the Long Island wax sculptor Patience Wright. [4] [5] The effect of his anti-war protests on British public sentiment is uncertain, although he appears to have attracted a following of over 700 like-minded adherents, [6] and the army was required to rely on German mercenaries, as recruitment of British troops for the war became increasingly difficult. [7]
Labilliere moved to Dorking from Chiswick in around 1789, [3] living in a small cottage called "The Hole in the Wall," on Butter Hill, [8] and often visiting Box Hill to meditate. [9] With old age he became increasingly eccentric and neglected his own personal hygiene to such an extent that he acquired the nickname "the walking dung-hill". [9]
Labilliere died on 6 June 1800. [8] In accordance with his wishes he was buried head downwards, on 10 or 11 June on the western side of Box Hill above The Whites. In the presence of a crowd of thousands that included visitors from London as well as the local "quality gentry", [8] [10] Labilliere was buried without any religious ceremony, having reportedly said that the world was "topsy-turvey" and that it would be righted in the end if he were interred thus. But this preference was not mentioned in his "Book of Devotions": rather he there said that he wished to emulate the example of St Peter, who was crucified upside-down according to tradition. [11] [12] [note 1]
Labilliere’s grave, on a steep incline above the River Mole, was originally marked with a small, cube-shaped stone bearing the inscription:
Note the spelling Labelliere is used, whereas all surviving manuscripts indicate that he spelt his name Labilliere. He is also believed to have been 75 years old when he died (and not 76). [15]
The current stone, installed in the late 1950s, is on level ground, several metres to the east of the actual burial site. Although it gives his correct age at death, the stone erroneously states that Labilliere was buried in the month of July. [15] [16]
Labelliere's story was recorded (under that spelling) by John Timbs in his English Eccentrics and Eccentricities , published in 1866. [8]
He then earned a mention (continuing the 'e' spelling) in Edith Sitwell's 1933 book The English Eccentrics, which surely draws on Timbs' description, and through which he came to feature in W.H. Auden's 1940 book of poems New Year Letter (The Double Man in the United States) (Part 1, ll. 368-82):
Also from the Sitwell account, he appears as a character in the 1964 chamber opera English Eccentrics , by Malcolm Williamson. [17] [18]
Surrey is a ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Greater London to the north east, Kent to the east, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the west. The largest settlement is Woking.
Dorking is a market town in Surrey in South East England, about 21 mi (34 km) south of London. It is in Mole Valley District and the council headquarters are to the east of the centre. The High Street runs roughly east–west, parallel to the Pipp Brook and along the northern face of an outcrop of Lower Greensand. The town is surrounded on three sides by the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and is close to Box Hill and Leith Hill.
The River Mole is a tributary of the River Thames in southern England. It rises in West Sussex near Gatwick Airport and flows northwest through Surrey for 80 km to the Thames at Hampton Court Palace. The river gives its name to the Surrey district of Mole Valley.
Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objects in it, and covering it over. A funeral is a ceremony that accompanies the final disposition. Evidence suggests that some archaic and early modern humans buried their dead. Burial is often seen as indicating respect for the dead. It has been used to prevent the odor of decay, to give family members closure and prevent them from witnessing the decomposition of their loved ones, and in many cultures it has been seen as a necessary step for the deceased to enter the afterlife or to give back to the cycle of life.
Box Hill is a summit of the North Downs in Surrey, approximately 31 km (19 mi) south-west of London. The hill gets its name from the ancient box woodland found on the steepest west-facing chalk slopes overlooking the River Mole. The western part of the hill is owned and managed by the National Trust, whilst the village of Box Hill lies on higher ground to the east. The highest point is Betchworth Clump at 224 m (735 ft) above OD, although the Salomons Memorial overlooking the town of Dorking is the most popular viewpoint.
Peter Woulfe (1727–1803) was an Anglo-Irish chemist and mineralogist. He first had the idea that wolframite might contain a previously undiscovered element (tungsten).
John Timbs was an English author and antiquary. Some of his work was published under the pseudonym of Horace Welby.
Mickleham is a village in south east England, between the towns of Dorking and Leatherhead in Surrey. The civil parish covers 7.31 square kilometres and includes the hamlet of Fredley. The larger ecclesiastical parish includes the majority of the neighbouring village of Westhumble, from which Mickleham is separated by the River Mole.
Westcott is a village in central Surrey, England, about 1.5 miles (2.5 km) west of the centre of Dorking. It is in the Mole Valley district and the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The Pipp Brook, a tributary of the River Mole, runs to the north of the centre and the settlement is between Ranmore Common on the North Downs and Leith Hill on the Greensand Ridge.
Betchworth is a village and civil parish in the Mole Valley district of Surrey, England. The village centre is on the north bank of the River Mole and south of the A25 road, almost 3 miles (4.8 km) east of Dorking and 3 miles (4.8 km) west of Reigate. London is 19.5 miles (31.4 km) north of the village.
Westhumble is a village in south east England, approximately 2 km (1.2 mi) north of Dorking, Surrey. The village is not part of a civil parish, however the majority of the settlement is in the ecclesiastical Parish of Mickleham.
Dorking Football Club was a football club based in Dorking, Surrey, England. The club was formed in 1880 and was the oldest senior football club in Surrey until folding in 2017.
Headley is a village and civil parish in the North Downs in Surrey, England. The nearest settlements are, to the west, Mickleham and Leatherhead; to the north, Ashtead and Langley Vale; to the east, Walton-on-the-Hill; and to the south, Box Hill. It is just outside the M25 motorway encircling London.
Box Hill & Westhumble is a railway station in the village of Westhumble in Surrey, England, approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) north of Dorking town centre. Box Hill is located approximately 1⁄2 mile (800 m) to the east. It is 21 miles 14 chains (34.1 km) down the line from London Waterloo. Train services are operated by Southern who manage the station, and South Western Railway.
Ranmore Common, also known as Ranmore Commons, is an area of wooded former common land on the North Downs, immediately northwest of Dorking in the English county of Surrey. Its civil parish is Wotton, a geographically large village with a small population west of Dorking. Ranmore Common is within the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and part of it is Ranmore Common SSSI, a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
Norbury Park is a swathe of mixed wooded and agricultural land associated with its Georgian manor house near Leatherhead and Dorking, Surrey, which appears in the Domesday Book of 1086. It occupies mostly prominent land reaching into a bend in the Mole in the parish of Mickleham.
West Surrey was a parliamentary constituency in the county of Surrey, which returned two Members of Parliament (MPs) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the bloc vote system.
Dorking Wanderers Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in Dorking, Surrey, England. Affiliated to the Surrey County Football Association, they are currently members of the National League, the fifth tier of English football, and play at Meadowbank. Formed in 1999 by a group of friends as a recreational amateur team playing grassroots football, the club began life in the Crawley & District League and went on to win twelve promotions in their first 23 seasons, reaching the National League in 2022. Having played for the club in its earlier years, club founder Marc White continues to be the chairman and first team manager to the present day.
Hannah Beswick, of Birchin Bower, Hollinwood, Oldham, Greater Manchester, was a wealthy woman who had a pathological fear of premature burial. Following her death in 1758, her body was embalmed and kept above ground, to be periodically checked for signs of life.
George Wathen (1762–1849) was an English actor, stage manager and theatre owner who performed in London in the late 1700s and early 1800s. He was the father of the poet and author Marianne Baillie.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
