10 Facts About Joseph Merceron

Joseph Merceron was a British businessman, property developer, parochial politician and magistrate notorious for his corrupt practices.

Joseph Merceron was born and raised in Brick Lane, Bethnal Green in the East End of London.

Joseph Merceron's family were of prominent Huguenot stock; his grandfather was a refugee who migrated to London following the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes.

Joseph Merceron's father James Merceron was a former silk-weaver turned pawnbroker and slum landlord who held various offices in the then-new parish of St Matthew's, Bethnal Green.

Joseph Merceron's position was briefly threatened in 1804, when the Bethnal Green vestry instigated an audit of the parish accounts.

Joseph Merceron promptly resigned as treasurer; but was re-elected in 1805.

Bethnal Green continued to suffer violent disorder, with Joseph Merceron's regime encouraging bull-baiting and dog fighting, even while church services were taking place.

In 1813 a prosecution for altering the poor's rate assessments failed, seemingly as a result of Joseph Merceron bribing the prosecution to drop the case, and the vestry not only passed a vote of confidence in Joseph Merceron but paid his expenses out of parish funds.

At the Easter vestry in 1818 Joseph Merceron was voted out of all parish offices, and shortly afterwards, amid great scandal, he was convicted of the charges against him.

In 2019, a partly fictitious version of Joseph Merceron, played by Tim Dutton and drawing on a number of incidents described in Woodford's biography, was written into Series 5 of Poldark by Debbie Horsfield.