Beggar's badge facts for kids
Beggars' badges were badges and other identifying insignia worn by beggars beginning in the early fifteenth century in Great Britain and Ireland. They served two purposes; to identify individual beggars, and to allow beggars to move freely from place to place.
Origins
It was not until the introduction of poor laws across the nations of Great Britain and Ireland that the “problem” of the poor was properly addressed. In England and Scotland, from the time of the old poor laws in Elizabethan times, some form of safety net was provided for the destitute. The Victorian poor laws set in place the basis for modern social care. In addition to unclassified poor, there were bedesmen. Bedesmen were elderly men and in some cases women, who were cared for by the Church or civic authorities. Bedesmen were housed in hospitals from the early twelfth century. Cowan and Easson provide the most comprehensive account of medieval hospitals. Many such hospitals were chantries with bedesmen.
However, many poor were left to fend for themselves in towns and villages across the whole country. Such an unregulated situation caused many local problems. The earliest known reference to beggars badges is quoted in Balfour Paul's survey of badges, published in the nineteenth century. He claims that there was a regulation in Valencia, Spain that required poor men to wear a leaden badge stamped with the arms of Valencia. In Britain, from as early as the fifteenth century, badges were introduced to identify beggars. Badges served two purposes; first they enabled civic and church authorities to control those who were allowed to ask for alms. (in the recorded text of the day)
Modern translation [thig – to beg or ask for charity]
The punishments indicated here were typical of the times. Similar sentiments were still prevalent in the eighteenth century. In Ireland, Jonathan Swift wrote a pamphlet supporting the control of beggars (Swift, 1737).
Control of the "... evil of foreign beggars ..." was uppermost in Swift’s purpose.
The second purpose badges served was to identify and permit the free movement of beggars from place to place. The royal bedesmen in Scotland wore a badge inscribed "Pass and Re-Pass" indicating their right to move from burgh to burgh to ask for alms without hindrance. While some bedesmen and royal bedesmen did have badges, it does not appear that bedesmen in general had such identifying insignia. Some bedesmen had to wear gowns – blue gowns in Scotland. However, there is no evidence that bedesmen in cities and such as Glasgow or Aberdeen had any insignia or badges.
Examples
There are many examples of badges including beggars' badges held in museums and some private collections across the UK. There appears to be a significant number of such badges in Scotland. In some cases, churches issued communion tokens in lieu of beggar's badges. Other civic organization also issued badges to street porters. There are examples of pilgrims' badges – worn by pilgrims on pilgrimages to shrines e.g. Santiago de Compostela. The scallop shell badge is still used by walkers and pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago (Way of St. James). The National Museum of Scotland has a collection of 110 badges, 20 of which are on permanent display. Glasgow Museums have four badges, one from Dundee, the others from Rothsay. The University of Aberdeen holds seven badges among which are examples of badges from Old Aberdeen and from across the north east of Scotland. Probably the finest example of a beggars badge is held at the National Museum in Edinburgh. It is a royal bedesmen badge inscribed “Pass and Re-Pass”. This badge provides a strong link between bedesmen and beggars. A comprehensive survey of northern Irish badges is found in Seaby and Paterson.
See also
- Bede House, Old Aberdeen
- Hospitals in medieval Scotland
- Aberdeen trades hospitals
- Kincardine O'Neil Hospital, Aberdeenshire
- Scottish Bedesmen
- Soutra Aisle
- Provand's Lordship - the "physic" garden in Glasgow
- David Allan
- Bishop Dunbar's Hospital
- Aberdeen poorhouses
