Tiger Roche
Encyclopedia
David "Tiger" Roche, was a celebrated soldier, duellist and adventurer, variously hailed as a hero and damned as a thief and a murderer at many times during his stormy life. Roche was born to a middle class family in Dublin in 1729 and received a gentleman's education, he was in fact so well turned out that his comportment sufficiently impressed the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland to offer him a military commission at sixteen years' old. Roche had fallen in with bad company and was possibly involved in an attack on a night watchman, one of many carried out by gangs of bucks
at the time. He fled to North America where he volunteered during the French and Indian War. There his bravery and intrepidity impressed and he quickly rose to a high rank; until accused of theft from a fellow officer. Roche always denied the allegation, stating he had bought the gun in question, but the corporal from whom he claimed to have done so that Roche himself had stolen it. Roche was convicted and disgraced by Court Martial. Roche later attacked several people involved in the case, including the Corporal, after which he earned the nickname "Tiger".
He continued to fight with distinction in the war, and then with money from friends in Ireland, sailed for England where he hoped to buy a commission in the army. However the stain of his conviction followed him, and the other officers refused to serve with him, until the dying Corporal confessed that he had in fact stolen the gun. Roche was vindicated overnight and returned to Dublin a hero, where he was offered a Lieutenancy in a new regiment. His status was further boosted after he raised a unit to patrol the streets at night against a particularly vicious brand of criminals active at the time. After the Treaty of Paris in 1763 Roche was forced to retire from the army and move to London, where he married the wealthy Miss Pitt, but later squandered her money and she divorced him. Roche ended the affair in debtors' prison, until his own inheritance freed him. Roche idled along in London until friends asked him to stand for Parliament, though he declined the offer. In 1773, though, he accepted a captaincy in an infantry regiment and sailed for India. There were disagreements aboard the ship and Roche fell out with the Captain and other gentlemen aboard. When they landed at the Cape of Good Hope
Roche called on Captain Ferguson's house, who was later founded with dead behind it. Roche feld, but was caught, tried and acquitted by the Dutch. He continued to Bombay where the British arrested him, he opposed the legal grounds of his trial, but he was returned to London to stand trial in the Old Bailey in December 1774. He was again acquitted. The case is the last trace Roche left.
He appeared as the hero in a play by John Masefield
and may have been the model for William Makepeace Thackeray
's Barry Lyndon
.
in 1729. His younger brother was Sir Boyle Roche
, the eminent politician.
Roche received the best education Dublin could provide, and was instructed in all the accomplishments then deemed essential to the rank and character of a gentleman. So expert was he in the various acquirements of polite life, that at the age of 16 he recommended himself to Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield
, then Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
, who offered him, gratuitously, a commission in the army. However, Roche had fallen in with a disreputable crowd who convinced him to refuse Chesterfield's offer. Further, Roche was present (and probably directly involved) when his associates attacked and killed a watchman. Compelled to leave Dublin, Roche made his way to Cork
, and from there to North America
. At the outbreak of the French and Indian War
, Roche entered as a volunteer in one of the provincial regiments, and distinguished himself in skirmishes against the Indians.
. Roche was convicted of the theft and ordered to quit the service with "every mark of disgrace and ignominy".
Roche subsequently challenged and attacked a number of the people involved in the incident, including Corporal Bourke. During his fight with Bourke, Roche sank his teeth into Bourke's throat and was pulled away dragging a mouthful of flesh (which he afterwards said was "the sweetest morsel he had ever tasted"). It was from this fight that he gained the nickname "Tiger".
After this incident, Roche fought as a volunteer in other battles, possibly including the first battle at Fort Ticonderoga
. Though he fought well, Roche was not able to escape the stain of the robbery. He made his way to New York
and eventually, in 1758, received some money from friends in Ireland and was able to obtain passage on a vessel bound for England
. Roche reserved part of his supply of money for the purchase of a regimental commission. Unfortunately, just as the purchase was about to be completed, a report of his theft in America reached the regiment, and the officers refused to serve with him.
Roche traced the origin of the report to a Captain Campbell, whom he met and challenged to a duel
. Both men were desperately wounded. On other occasions Roche challenged or attacked others connected with the incident, and generally anyone who spread the story. Roche's attacks, though fierce, were not usually successful, and he was seriously wounded on several occasions. Ultimately, redress to his character came accidentally and unexpectedly. Corporal Bourke was mortally wounded by a scalping party of Indians, and on his death-bed made a solemn confession that he himself had actually stolen the gun, and sold it to Roche, and that Roche had purchased it without any suspicion of the theft. This declaration of the dying man was properly attested and universally accepted, and instantly restored Roche's character.
Dublin was at this time infested with criminals known as sweaters or pinkindindies (who cut off the points of their swords because they would rather "inflict considerable pain" than kill). One evening Roche happened to single-handedly rescue an old gentleman with his son and daughter from a gang of several such attackers. This gave him the idea to form a body, consisting of officers and others of his acquaintance, to patrol Dublin at night, further enhancing his heroic status.
concluded in 1763 reduced the size of the army, and forced Roche to retire in indigent circumstances to London
, where he soon lived beyond his income. In order to repair it, he managed to marry a Miss Pitt, who had a fortune of £4,000 (approximately £100,000 in today's money). Unfortunately, on the anticipation of this fortune, Roche engaged in a series of extravagances that accumulated debts beyond his marriage portion. He was arrested and cast into the King's Bench Prison
, where his wife divorced him and where so many detainers were laid upon him so that it seemed unlikely that he would ever go free. However, a legacy left him by a relation enabled him to escape confinement.
Roche became a constant frequenter of billiard
-tables. One day he was idly pushing balls around a table, and someone complained that while he was not playing himself, he was "hindering other gentlemen from their amusement." Roche replied, "why, sir, except you and me, and two or three more, there is not a gentleman in the room." A friend afterwards remarked that he had grossly offended a large company, and wondered why none had appeared to resent the affront. "Oh!" said Roche, "there was no fear of that. There was not a thief in the room that did not consider himself one of the two or three gentlemen I excepted."
Once again Roche's fortunes improved, and he was called on to stand as candidate to represent Middlesex
in Parliament
. So high an opinion was entertained of his daring spirit, that it was thought by some of the popular party he might be of use in intimidating Colonel Luttrell
, who was the declared opponent of John Wilkes
at that election. In April 1769, he was put into nomination at Brentford
. Roche disappointed his friends and declined the poll, induced, it was said, by promises of Luttrell's friends to provide for him.
Roche's stay in London included at least one duel, and also an attack by two ruffians with pistols in which Roche, armed only with a sword, nevertheless prevailed. Less savoury stories of Roche's attachment, mismanagement and eventual dissipation of a young woman's fortune also survive from this period.
in the East India Service
, and embarked in the Vansittart for India
in May, 1773. Apparently Roche was in such a temper that he fell out with all the passengers, including a Captain Ferguson, who called him out as soon as they arrived at Madeira
. Roche was seized with a sudden and unaccountable fit of terror, and refused to fight. The early arrogance and later cowardice he had displayed revolted the whole body of the passengers, and the captain of the ship expelled him from the table, leaving Roche to join the common sailors and soldiers on board the ship. With these he endeavoured to ingratiate himself by claiming vengeance against every gentleman and officer on board the ship. His threats were particularly directed against Ferguson, whom he considered the origin of the disgrace he suffered.
On the arrival of the ship at the Cape of Good Hope
, Roche came ashore and was seen near the house where Ferguson lodged. A message was conveyed to Ferguson, who went out, and was found soon afterwards behind the house with nine deep wounds, all on his left side. Suspicion immediately fixed on Roche as the murderer and he fled during the night, taking refuge among the Kaffirs.
Roche was tried by the Dutch authorities at the Cape of Good Hope, and acquitted. He then took a passage in a French vessel to Bombay
, but the Vansittart had arrived in India before him. Information had been given to the British authorities, charging Roche with Ferguson's murder, and Roche was arrested as soon as he landed. He asked to be discharged, or at least bailed, on the grounds that there was not sufficient evidence against him and that he had been already acquitted. He also argued that as the offence, if any, had been committed outside British dominions, he could only be tried by special commission, and it was uncertain whether the Crown would issue one or not, or when or where it would sit. He argued his own case with the skill of a practised lawyer. The authorities, however, declined either to bail or discharge him, and he was kept in custody until he was sent a prisoner to England, to stand his trial.
A charge of murder was brought against him, and a commission was issued to try it. The case came on at the Old Bailey
, in London, before Baron Burland, on 11 December 1774. Roche's counsel declined to rely on the former acquittal at the Cape of Good Hope, and the case was again gone through. The fact of the killing was undisputed, but from the peculiar nature of the proceedings, there could not be, as in a common indictment for murder, a conviction for manslaughter; and the judge directed the jury, if they did not believe the killing to be malicious and deliberate, absolutely to acquit the prisoner. The jury brought in a verdict of acquittal.
Bucks
Bucks may refer to: Places* Buckinghamshire, England, UK, after which the following are named:* Bucks County, Pennsylvania, USA* Bucks Township, Tuscarawas County, Ohio, USAIn sports:...
at the time. He fled to North America where he volunteered during the French and Indian War. There his bravery and intrepidity impressed and he quickly rose to a high rank; until accused of theft from a fellow officer. Roche always denied the allegation, stating he had bought the gun in question, but the corporal from whom he claimed to have done so that Roche himself had stolen it. Roche was convicted and disgraced by Court Martial. Roche later attacked several people involved in the case, including the Corporal, after which he earned the nickname "Tiger".
He continued to fight with distinction in the war, and then with money from friends in Ireland, sailed for England where he hoped to buy a commission in the army. However the stain of his conviction followed him, and the other officers refused to serve with him, until the dying Corporal confessed that he had in fact stolen the gun. Roche was vindicated overnight and returned to Dublin a hero, where he was offered a Lieutenancy in a new regiment. His status was further boosted after he raised a unit to patrol the streets at night against a particularly vicious brand of criminals active at the time. After the Treaty of Paris in 1763 Roche was forced to retire from the army and move to London, where he married the wealthy Miss Pitt, but later squandered her money and she divorced him. Roche ended the affair in debtors' prison, until his own inheritance freed him. Roche idled along in London until friends asked him to stand for Parliament, though he declined the offer. In 1773, though, he accepted a captaincy in an infantry regiment and sailed for India. There were disagreements aboard the ship and Roche fell out with the Captain and other gentlemen aboard. When they landed at the Cape of Good Hope
Cape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa.There is a misconception that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa, because it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. In fact, the...
Roche called on Captain Ferguson's house, who was later founded with dead behind it. Roche feld, but was caught, tried and acquitted by the Dutch. He continued to Bombay where the British arrested him, he opposed the legal grounds of his trial, but he was returned to London to stand trial in the Old Bailey in December 1774. He was again acquitted. The case is the last trace Roche left.
He appeared as the hero in a play by John Masefield
John Masefield
John Edward Masefield, OM, was an English poet and writer, and Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom from 1930 until his death in 1967...
and may have been the model for William Makepeace Thackeray
William Makepeace Thackeray
William Makepeace Thackeray was an English novelist of the 19th century. He was famous for his satirical works, particularly Vanity Fair, a panoramic portrait of English society.-Biography:...
's Barry Lyndon
The Luck of Barry Lyndon
The Luck of Barry Lyndon is a picaresque novel by William Makepeace Thackeray, first published in serial form in 1844, about a member of the Irish gentry trying to become a member of the English aristocracy...
.
Early life
David Roche was born, either the first or second of three sons, to Jordan Roche and Ellen White in Dublin, IrelandIreland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
in 1729. His younger brother was Sir Boyle Roche
Boyle Roche
Sir Boyle Roche, 1st Baronet was an Irish politician. After a distinguished career in North America with the British Army, Roche became a member of the Irish House of Commons in 1775, generally acting in support of the viceregal government...
, the eminent politician.
Roche received the best education Dublin could provide, and was instructed in all the accomplishments then deemed essential to the rank and character of a gentleman. So expert was he in the various acquirements of polite life, that at the age of 16 he recommended himself to Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield
Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield
Philip Dormer Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield PC KG was a British statesman and man of letters.A Whig, Lord Stanhope, as he was known until his father's death in 1726, was born in London. After being educated at Trinity Hall, Cambridge, he went on the Grand Tour of the continent...
, then Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
The Lord Lieutenant of Ireland was the British King's representative and head of the Irish executive during the Lordship of Ireland , the Kingdom of Ireland and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
, who offered him, gratuitously, a commission in the army. However, Roche had fallen in with a disreputable crowd who convinced him to refuse Chesterfield's offer. Further, Roche was present (and probably directly involved) when his associates attacked and killed a watchman. Compelled to leave Dublin, Roche made his way to Cork
Cork (city)
Cork is the second largest city in the Republic of Ireland and the island of Ireland's third most populous city. It is the principal city and administrative centre of County Cork and the largest city in the province of Munster. Cork has a population of 119,418, while the addition of the suburban...
, and from there to North America
British North America
British North America is a historical term. It consisted of the colonies and territories of the British Empire in continental North America after the end of the American Revolutionary War and the recognition of American independence in 1783.At the start of the Revolutionary War in 1775 the British...
. At the outbreak of the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
, Roche entered as a volunteer in one of the provincial regiments, and distinguished himself in skirmishes against the Indians.
Court Martial
Roche displayed intrepidity and spirit in his military doings, and was expected to rise to a high rank until an unfortunate event destroyed his career. An officer of Roche's regiment missed a valuable gun, which was later found in Roche's possession. Roche declared that he had bought the gun from a corporal of the regiment named Bourke. Bourke declared on oath that Roche's statement was false, and Roche was brought to a court-martialCourt-martial
A court-martial is a military court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the armed forces subject to military law, and, if the defendant is found guilty, to decide upon punishment.Most militaries maintain a court-martial system to try cases in which a breach of...
. Roche was convicted of the theft and ordered to quit the service with "every mark of disgrace and ignominy".
Roche subsequently challenged and attacked a number of the people involved in the incident, including Corporal Bourke. During his fight with Bourke, Roche sank his teeth into Bourke's throat and was pulled away dragging a mouthful of flesh (which he afterwards said was "the sweetest morsel he had ever tasted"). It was from this fight that he gained the nickname "Tiger".
After this incident, Roche fought as a volunteer in other battles, possibly including the first battle at Fort Ticonderoga
Battle of Carillon
The Battle of Carillon, also known as the 1758 Battle of Ticonderoga, was fought on July 8, 1758, during the French and Indian War...
. Though he fought well, Roche was not able to escape the stain of the robbery. He made his way to New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and eventually, in 1758, received some money from friends in Ireland and was able to obtain passage on a vessel bound for England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. Roche reserved part of his supply of money for the purchase of a regimental commission. Unfortunately, just as the purchase was about to be completed, a report of his theft in America reached the regiment, and the officers refused to serve with him.
Roche traced the origin of the report to a Captain Campbell, whom he met and challenged to a duel
Duel
A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two individuals, with matched weapons in accordance with agreed-upon rules.Duels in this form were chiefly practised in Early Modern Europe, with precedents in the medieval code of chivalry, and continued into the modern period especially among...
. Both men were desperately wounded. On other occasions Roche challenged or attacked others connected with the incident, and generally anyone who spread the story. Roche's attacks, though fierce, were not usually successful, and he was seriously wounded on several occasions. Ultimately, redress to his character came accidentally and unexpectedly. Corporal Bourke was mortally wounded by a scalping party of Indians, and on his death-bed made a solemn confession that he himself had actually stolen the gun, and sold it to Roche, and that Roche had purchased it without any suspicion of the theft. This declaration of the dying man was properly attested and universally accepted, and instantly restored Roche's character.
A hero in Dublin
In compensation for the injustice and injury he had suffered, Roche was awarded a lieutenancy in a newly-raised regiment. He returned to Dublin (where the old murder charge had been quietly dropped) a much-celebrated hero.Dublin was at this time infested with criminals known as sweaters or pinkindindies (who cut off the points of their swords because they would rather "inflict considerable pain" than kill). One evening Roche happened to single-handedly rescue an old gentleman with his son and daughter from a gang of several such attackers. This gave him the idea to form a body, consisting of officers and others of his acquaintance, to patrol Dublin at night, further enhancing his heroic status.
Fall and rise in London
The peaceTreaty of Paris (1763)
The Treaty of Paris, often called the Peace of Paris, or the Treaty of 1763, was signed on 10 February 1763, by the kingdoms of Great Britain, France and Spain, with Portugal in agreement. It ended the French and Indian War/Seven Years' War...
concluded in 1763 reduced the size of the army, and forced Roche to retire in indigent circumstances to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, where he soon lived beyond his income. In order to repair it, he managed to marry a Miss Pitt, who had a fortune of £4,000 (approximately £100,000 in today's money). Unfortunately, on the anticipation of this fortune, Roche engaged in a series of extravagances that accumulated debts beyond his marriage portion. He was arrested and cast into the King's Bench Prison
King's Bench Prison
The King's Bench Prison was a prison in Southwark, south London, from medieval times until it closed in 1880. It took its name from the King's Bench court of law in which cases of defamation, bankruptcy and other misdemeanours were heard; as such, the prison was often used as a debtor's prison...
, where his wife divorced him and where so many detainers were laid upon him so that it seemed unlikely that he would ever go free. However, a legacy left him by a relation enabled him to escape confinement.
Roche became a constant frequenter of billiard
Billiard
-Games:* A , a type of shot in cue sports * Billiards: cue sports in general, including pool, carom billiards, snooker, etc.; the term "billiards" by itself is also sometimes used to refer to any of the following more specifically:...
-tables. One day he was idly pushing balls around a table, and someone complained that while he was not playing himself, he was "hindering other gentlemen from their amusement." Roche replied, "why, sir, except you and me, and two or three more, there is not a gentleman in the room." A friend afterwards remarked that he had grossly offended a large company, and wondered why none had appeared to resent the affront. "Oh!" said Roche, "there was no fear of that. There was not a thief in the room that did not consider himself one of the two or three gentlemen I excepted."
Once again Roche's fortunes improved, and he was called on to stand as candidate to represent Middlesex
Middlesex
Middlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time...
in Parliament
Parliament of Great Britain
The Parliament of Great Britain was formed in 1707 following the ratification of the Acts of Union by both the Parliament of England and Parliament of Scotland...
. So high an opinion was entertained of his daring spirit, that it was thought by some of the popular party he might be of use in intimidating Colonel Luttrell
Henry Luttrell, 2nd Earl of Carhampton
General Henry Lawes Luttrell, 2nd Earl of Carhampton PC was a politician and soldier.-Military career:Educated at Westminster School and Christ Church, Oxford, Luttrell was commissioned into the 48th Regiment of Foot in 1757. In 1762, during the Seven Years' War, he became Deputy Adjutant-General...
, who was the declared opponent of John Wilkes
John Wilkes
John Wilkes was an English radical, journalist and politician.He was first elected Member of Parliament in 1757. In the Middlesex election dispute, he fought for the right of voters—rather than the House of Commons—to determine their representatives...
at that election. In April 1769, he was put into nomination at Brentford
Brentford
Brentford is a suburban town in west London, England, and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It is located at the confluence of the River Thames and the River Brent, west-southwest of Charing Cross. Its former ceremonial county was Middlesex.-Toponymy:...
. Roche disappointed his friends and declined the poll, induced, it was said, by promises of Luttrell's friends to provide for him.
Roche's stay in London included at least one duel, and also an attack by two ruffians with pistols in which Roche, armed only with a sword, nevertheless prevailed. Less savoury stories of Roche's attachment, mismanagement and eventual dissipation of a young woman's fortune also survive from this period.
A murder in Africa
Roche was appointed captain of a company of foot soldiersInfantry
Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
in the East India Service
British East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
, and embarked in the Vansittart for India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
in May, 1773. Apparently Roche was in such a temper that he fell out with all the passengers, including a Captain Ferguson, who called him out as soon as they arrived at Madeira
Madeira
Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago that lies between and , just under 400 km north of Tenerife, Canary Islands, in the north Atlantic Ocean and an outermost region of the European Union...
. Roche was seized with a sudden and unaccountable fit of terror, and refused to fight. The early arrogance and later cowardice he had displayed revolted the whole body of the passengers, and the captain of the ship expelled him from the table, leaving Roche to join the common sailors and soldiers on board the ship. With these he endeavoured to ingratiate himself by claiming vengeance against every gentleman and officer on board the ship. His threats were particularly directed against Ferguson, whom he considered the origin of the disgrace he suffered.
On the arrival of the ship at the Cape of Good Hope
Cape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa.There is a misconception that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa, because it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. In fact, the...
, Roche came ashore and was seen near the house where Ferguson lodged. A message was conveyed to Ferguson, who went out, and was found soon afterwards behind the house with nine deep wounds, all on his left side. Suspicion immediately fixed on Roche as the murderer and he fled during the night, taking refuge among the Kaffirs.
Roche was tried by the Dutch authorities at the Cape of Good Hope, and acquitted. He then took a passage in a French vessel to Bombay
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
, but the Vansittart had arrived in India before him. Information had been given to the British authorities, charging Roche with Ferguson's murder, and Roche was arrested as soon as he landed. He asked to be discharged, or at least bailed, on the grounds that there was not sufficient evidence against him and that he had been already acquitted. He also argued that as the offence, if any, had been committed outside British dominions, he could only be tried by special commission, and it was uncertain whether the Crown would issue one or not, or when or where it would sit. He argued his own case with the skill of a practised lawyer. The authorities, however, declined either to bail or discharge him, and he was kept in custody until he was sent a prisoner to England, to stand his trial.
A charge of murder was brought against him, and a commission was issued to try it. The case came on at the Old Bailey
Old Bailey
The Central Criminal Court in England and Wales, commonly known as the Old Bailey from the street in which it stands, is a court building in central London, one of a number of buildings housing the Crown Court...
, in London, before Baron Burland, on 11 December 1774. Roche's counsel declined to rely on the former acquittal at the Cape of Good Hope, and the case was again gone through. The fact of the killing was undisputed, but from the peculiar nature of the proceedings, there could not be, as in a common indictment for murder, a conviction for manslaughter; and the judge directed the jury, if they did not believe the killing to be malicious and deliberate, absolutely to acquit the prisoner. The jury brought in a verdict of acquittal.
Mysterious end
It is not known what happened to Roche next, or where and when his life ended. Somerville-Large claims he returned to India, and lived quietly until his death.Further bibliography
- The trials of Tiger Roche: Sequels to the killing of Captain Ferguson in Van Plettenbergs Cape Town, Randolph Vigne.
Related literary works
- The Sweeps of '98 (play), by John MasefieldJohn MasefieldJohn Edward Masefield, OM, was an English poet and writer, and Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom from 1930 until his death in 1967...
- The Luck of Barry LyndonThe Luck of Barry LyndonThe Luck of Barry Lyndon is a picaresque novel by William Makepeace Thackeray, first published in serial form in 1844, about a member of the Irish gentry trying to become a member of the English aristocracy...
(novel), by William Makepeace ThackerayWilliam Makepeace ThackerayWilliam Makepeace Thackeray was an English novelist of the 19th century. He was famous for his satirical works, particularly Vanity Fair, a panoramic portrait of English society.-Biography:... - "The Spanish Lady" (Irish folksong, similar to and possibly a basis for or a version of "Whiskey in the JarWhiskey in the Jar"Whiskey in the Jar" is a famous Irish traditional song, set in the southern mountains of Ireland, with specific mention of counties Cork and Kerry, as well as Fenit, a village in county Kerry. It is about a Rapparee , who is betrayed by his wife or lover, and is one of the most widely performed...
")