n.
A house of correction for the confinement of disorderly persons; -- so called from a hospital built in 1553 near St. Bride's (or Bridget's) well, in London, which was subsequently a penal workhouse.
Bridewell
| Dictionary: Bride·well |
n.
| Wordsmith Words: bridewell |
(BRYD-wel)
noun
A prison. [After a prison that formerly stood near the church of St. Bride in London during 1545-55.
"Men arrested for crimes such as trespass, public intoxication, lewdness, and domestic violence could be confined to the demiprison of the bridewell ...." — Clifford F. Thies, Bring back the bridewell, The World & I, 1 Sep 1995.
| British History: Bridewell |
The London Bridewell, set up in 1555, was the first ‘House of Correction’ and the term was often used henceforth to describe such institutions. The 16th cent. saw a massive increase in the numbers of poor and indigent, and houses of correction were used for the punishment and reformation of petty offenders. In 1610 houses of correction were set up generally throughout England.
| Columbia Encyclopedia: Bridewell |
Bridewell (brīd'wəl), area in London, England, between Fleet St. and the Thames River. The Bridewell house of correction, demolished in 1863, was on the site of a palace built under Henry VIII and given by Edward VI to the City of London in 1553 for use as a training school for homeless apprentices. The building later became a prison. Bridewell thus came to be used as a general term for a prison or house of correction.
Learn More
 | Briddell (family name) |
| Bridwell (family name) |
| Birdwell (family name) |
Post a question - any question - to the WikiAnswers community:
Copyrights:
 |
 | Dictionary. Webster 1913 Dictionary edited by Patrick J. Cassidy Read more |
 |
| Wordsmith Words. © 2009 Wordsmith.org. All rights reserved. Read more |
 |
| British History. A Dictionary of British History. Copyright © 2001, 2004 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. Read more |
 |
| Columbia Encyclopedia. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2003, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/. Read more |
ADVERTISEMENT
Mentioned in
- Bedlam
- Saint Bridget (Irish theologian)
- Eustace White
- John Molton (architecture)
- Margaret Ward
- Indie Top 20, Vol. 11 (1993 Album by Various Artists)
- Tom Maclntyre
- correction
- Saturday Night [London Cast Recording] (1998 Album by London Cast Recording)
- Vardis Fisher (literature)
