John Middleton Black Plaque- Hale, UK - Blue Plaques on Waymarking.com

As can be imagined, a person 9 feet 3 inches tall, becomes rather well known especially in the 17th Century. The small village of Hale has commemorated him in a number of ways in addition to this plaque. The most notable is a 3 metres high bronze statue of him, and the church of St. Mary's cemetery contains his grave.

"John Middleton was born in the village of Hale, near Liverpool. According to contemporary accounts and his epitaph, Middleton grew to the height of 9 feet 3 inches (2.82 m).

Because of his size, landlord and sheriff of Lancashire Gilbert Ireland hired him as a bodyguard. When King James I stopped by in 1617 to knight Ireland, he also heard about Middleton and invited both of them to the court, which they accepted in 1620.

In London, John Middleton was presented to the King in a costume of large lace ruffs about his face and hands; a striped doublet of crimson and white; a blue girdle embroidered with gold; large plush white breeches with powdered blue flowers; green stockings; broad shoes in a light colour, having high red heels and tied with large bows of red ribbon and just below his knees were bandages of the same colour with large bows and by his side a sword was suspended by a broad belt over his shoulder. Brasenose College has a portrait of Middleton in this dress and the painted outline of his hand. Middleton beat the King's champion in wrestling and in doing so broke the man's thumb. He received £20, a large amount of money in those times. Unfortunately, jealous of his wealth, Middleton's companions mugged him when he was returning to Hale. His money was stolen.

John Middleton died impoverished in 1623. He was buried in the Hale churchyard with an epitaph, "Here lyeth the bodie of John Middleton the Childe of Hale. Nine feet three. Born 1578 Dyed 1623."

There have been numerous local uses and commemorations of Middleton; a pub in Hale, named "The Childe of Hale", bears a copy of the Brasenose College portrait as its sign. Previously situated across the road from the church was a large tree trunk. In 1996 it was carved with representations of John Middleton, Hale Lighthouse and other local symbols. In 2011, due to disease and in the interests of public safety the tree trunk was removed by Halton Borough Council. In April 2013, the wooden sculpture was replaced by a bronze statue 3 m tall by local sculptor, Diane Gorvin." link

"Sadly, no official record of John Middleton's true height exists to prove - or disprove - his gravestone's lofty claim. The only estimate comes from a life-size impression of his right hand which Guinness World Records said indicated "a probable height of 7ft 9in (2.36m)" - somewhat shorter than the legend but impressive nonetheless.

Nick Martin, from Halton Borough Council, accepted that John Middleton's height had 'grown bigger through the years.'

'He was supposed to have been exhumed and the bones measured in Victorian times, and that's when they roughly worked out his height at 9ft 3in,' he added. 'So we have more or less settled on that.'" link

JOHN
MIDDLETON
1578 - 1623
9 feet 3 inches tall
known as

THE CHILDE
OF HALE

lived here

Halton Borough Council 2013

Blue Plaque managing agency: Halton Borough Council Individual Recognized: John Middleton, The Childe of Hale Physical Address: John Middleton's House Church End Hale, Cheshire United Kingdom Web Address: [Web Link]

Visit Instructions:
To log an entry for a "Blue Plaque," please try to include a picture of you next to the plaque!

Recent Visits/Logs:

There are no logs for this waymark yet.