Early Clocks | Lee Borrett
Charles Rogers
at Guilhall, c.1672
Charles Rogers,
At Guildhall , c1672
Among the earliest London 30-hour longcase clocks, few are as attractive or as historically interesting as the example illustrated here. Made by Charles Rogers at Guild Hall around 1672, it represents the formative years of English longcase clockmaking, when the long pendulum and anchor escapement were still comparatively recent innovations.
The clock retains a beautifully engraved 9¾-inch brass dial decorated with an elegant all-over tulip design, together with a high-quality plated movement that survives in a remarkably original condition. Its compact architectural proportions make it one of the most desirable forms of early London longcase clock.
Charles Rogers was born around 1635 and was apprenticed to William Almond through the Worshipful Company of Clockmakers in November 1649, becoming Free of the Company in December 1657. He subsequently worked in Blackfriars before establishing himself at Guild Hall and later at Charing Cross. During a career that extended for almost fifty years, he trained several apprentices and produced both lantern and longcase clocks that are today highly regarded by collectors.
Yet fascinating as the clock itself is, the story of its maker is perhaps even more remarkable. Contemporary records reveal that in February 1665 Charles Rogers stood trial in London for attending an unlawful religious meeting, only weeks before the first recorded deaths of the Great Plague. Whether he was ever transported, as the court ordered, remains uncertain, making his life one of the more intriguing stories associated with an early English clockmaker.
This rare longcase clock is therefore significant not only for its quality and rarity, but also for the extraordinary glimpse it provides into the life and times of one of London’s early master clockmakers.
The Trial of
Charles Rogers, 1665
One of the most fascinating aspects of this clock is not the movement or the dial, but the extraordinary story of the man who made it.
Research has revealed that on 17 February 1665, Charles Rogers was brought before the Middlesex Sessions in London, together with thirty-three other men and women, accused of attending an unlawful religious meeting. At the time, the authorities were actively suppressing religious gatherings held outside the established Church, and repeated offences could result in severe punishment.
The Middlesex Sessions Rolls record Charles Rogers, described as “late of St Sepulchre’s, clockmaker,” among those who, after previous convictions for the same offence, were found guilty by a jury. The sentence was harsh. Rogers and twenty-three others were ordered to be transported to the island of Jamaica for a period of seven years.
Whether this sentence was ever carried out remains uncertain. The documentary evidence presents an intriguing mystery. Charles Rogers took another apprentice in March 1665, only a few weeks after the trial, suggesting he may never have left England. However, no further apprentices are recorded for more than seven years, raising the possibility that some form of punishment or interruption to his business did indeed take place.
Later records show that Rogers resumed his career, working in Whitehall Parish by 1679 and later in St Ethelburga’s. He continued making clocks into the early years of the eighteenth century, eventually leaving behind his wife, Jane, and seven children.
The remarkable survival of this clock therefore preserves far more than the work of a skilled London craftsman. It also provides a tangible connection to the turbulent religious and political climate of Restoration England, reminding us that even respected members of the Clockmakers’ Company could find themselves caught up in the uncertainties of the age.
Above. Religious Meeting. A Religious meeting in the seventeenth century. Alamy.com.
Below. In February 1665, Charles Rogers along with 33 other persons was put on trial for attending an illegal Religious Meeting. Shutterstock.com
The Great Plague
The timing of Charles Rogers’ trial makes his story all the more remarkable. He appeared before the Middlesex Sessions on 17 February 1665, only a matter of weeks before the first officially recorded deaths from the Great Plague in London.
The outbreak, caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, began during the spring of 1665 and rapidly spread throughout the capital. By July, King Charles II and his court had fled the city as the number of deaths continued to rise. The epidemic reached its devastating peak in September 1665, when more than 7,000 people were recorded as dying in a single week. Although the official death toll stood at 68,596, historians generally believe that the true figure probably exceeded 100,000, making it one of the worst disasters in London’s history.
The plague was spread primarily by infected fleas carried by rats, although seventeenth-century physicians had little understanding of the disease or how it was transmitted. The now-famous plague doctors, dressed in their distinctive long robes and bird-like masks filled with aromatic herbs, became enduring symbols of the epidemic as they cared for the sick in desperate circumstances.
As the colder weather arrived, the number of deaths gradually declined, allowing King Charles II to return to London in February 1666. Only a few months later, in September of that year, the Great Fire of London swept through the City, destroying much of medieval London and dramatically changing the landscape in which Charles Rogers had lived and worked.
It is extraordinary to reflect that this clock was made by a man whose life was shaped by these momentous events. Charles Rogers lived and worked through one of the most turbulent periods in London’s history, and his surviving clock provides a tangible link to that remarkable age.
Plague Doctor.
A plague doctor was a physician who treated victims of bubonic plague during epidemics mainly in the 16th and 17th century. These physicians were hired by cities to treat infected patients regardless of income, especially the poor that could not afford to pay.
Above. A seventeenth-century plague doctor wearing the distinctive protective clothing associated with outbreaks of bubonic plague. Only weeks after Charles Rogers stood trial in February 1665, London was overwhelmed by the Great Plague. Image: Shutterstock.com
The
Charles Rogers
30-hour Longcase Clock
This fine London 30-hour longcase clock is a particularly attractive example of the work produced by Charles Rogers during the early 1670s. Although modest in size, it possesses all the refinement and elegance expected of an accomplished London maker working during the formative years of the longcase clock.
The beautifully proportioned 9¾-inch square brass dial is fitted with small winged cherub-head spandrels and a narrow 1¼-inch chapter ring, features that are characteristic of some of the earliest London longcase clocks. The chapter ring is engraved with distinctive matchstick half-hour markers, while the minute divisions are carefully marked around its outer edge.
The richly engraved dial centre is of exceptional quality and is decorated with an elegant arrangement of tulip flowers, a decorative style that was particularly fashionable during the third quarter of the seventeenth century. The engraving displays the confidence and skill associated with the finest London workshops of the period.
The maker proudly signed the dial within a finely engraved lambrequin above the number VI, reading ‘Charles Rogers at Guil Hall’. This signature not only identifies the maker but also records the location of his workshop during one of the most important periods of his career.
Taken as a whole, the dial combines restrained elegance with superb craftsmanship, reflecting the high standards achieved by London’s leading clockmakers during the early years of pendulum clockmaking.
Above. Showing the beautifully engraved 9.75 inch brass dial of the Charles Rogers 30-hour c1672. Private collection, Photographed by Lee Borrett.
Above. The busy dial centre is most beautifully engraved with tulip flowers and is of the highest London quality of the day. Private collection, Photographed by Lee Borrett.
Above. The dial centre is signed within a lambrequin above VI 'Charles Rogers at Guil Hall'. Private collection, Photographed by Lee Borrett.
Below. Showing a close-up of a small winged cherub head spandrels which sits above one of the matchstick flower design half-hour markers. Private collection, Photographed by Lee Borrett.
The Movement
Behind the beautifully engraved dial lies a movement that fully reflects the quality expected from one of London’s accomplished clockmakers during the early years of pendulum clockmaking.
The substantial plated movement is of typical London construction and retains its original anchor escapement together with four large ringed and knopped pillars. It survives today in a remarkably original condition, preserving its original wheelwork and many of the constructional details that make early longcase clocks of this period so desirable to collectors.
As one would expect from a clock made by an established London maker, the movement displays a high standard of workmanship throughout. The wheels, pinions and forged iron components exhibit the confidence and precision that characterised the work of the capital’s leading workshops during the third quarter of the seventeenth century.
More than three and a half centuries after it was made, the movement continues to demonstrate the sound engineering and craftsmanship that enabled these early pendulum clocks to establish the longcase clock as one of the great achievements of English horology.
Today, the movement stands as a fitting testament to Charles Rogers’ skill as a clockmaker and to the high standards maintained by the London trade during this pioneering period.
Above Showing a side view of Charles Rogers plated movement and as you would expect from a london maker of this early period, it is of a high quality throughout. Private collection, Photographed by Lee Borrett.
The Architectural Case
Above. The elegant architectural longcase, with its restrained proportions and compact rising hood, provides a sympathetic period setting for this rare early London 30-hour clock. Private collection. Photographed by Lee Borrett.
The clock is housed in an attractive architectural longcase standing approximately 6 feet 4 inches to the top of its pediment. Fashioned with ebonised fruitwood veneers and mouldings upon a pine carcass, the case faithfully reflects the elegant proportions associated with London longcase clocks of the early 1670s.
The hood incorporates glazed side windows and is of the simple, restrained form characteristic of the period, while the slender proportions of the trunk and base complement the compact movement and beautifully engraved dial. Together they create an exceptionally pleasing and well-balanced appearance.
Although the case itself is antique and well over a century old, it is not the original case supplied with the movement during the seventeenth century. This is perhaps unsurprising, as many of the earliest longcase cases were constructed around pine carcasses that proved vulnerable to woodworm, damp and decay over the succeeding centuries. Consequently, the survival of completely original cases from this early period is exceptionally uncommon.
Today, the movement is housed in a sympathetic period architectural case that provides both an attractive and historically appropriate setting for this important early London clock, allowing it to be appreciated in a form that closely reflects its original appearance.
This rare early London 30-hour longcase clock benefits from an excellent documented provenance that can be traced back for at least a century.
Until recently it formed part of the distinguished private collection of John Carlton-Smith, where it remained for more than sixty years. John acquired the clock in 1960 from another highly respected private collector, ensuring that it passed through knowledgeable hands and was carefully preserved for future generations.
Its long and well-recorded history of private ownership, combined with its remarkable state of preservation, adds considerably to its historical importance. Together with its association with the London clockmaker Charles Rogers and the fascinating events that surrounded his life during the Great Plague year of 1665, the clock stands today as an exceptional survivor from one of the most significant periods in the development of English longcase clockmaking.
Provenance
Historical Significance
The importance of this clock lies not simply in its rarity, but in the remarkable period from which it survives. Made around 1672, it belongs to the earliest generation of London longcase clocks produced after the introduction of the anchor escapement, when English clockmakers were refining the design that would dominate domestic timekeeping for the next two centuries.
Its beautifully engraved tulip dial, original movement and association with Charles Rogers make it an important example of early London craftsmanship. At the same time, the documented history of its maker places the clock firmly within the wider social history of Restoration England, linking it to the religious unrest of the 1660s and the tragic events surrounding the Great Plague.
Today, this rare survivor stands not only as an outstanding example of early English clockmaking, but also as a reminder that every antique clock has two histories to tell—the story of its mechanical development and the story of the people who made, owned and preserved it over the centuries.
Summary
Early London 30-hour longcase clocks dating from the early 1670s are exceptionally rare, making this beautifully preserved example by Charles Rogers an historically important survivor from the pioneering years of English pendulum clockmaking.
Its finely engraved tulip dial, elegant proportions and high-quality plated movement reflect the craftsmanship expected from one of London’s accomplished early clockmakers. More than three and a half centuries after it was made, the clock continues to display the refinement and quality that established London as the centre of English horological excellence during the seventeenth century.
Yet perhaps the greatest fascination lies not only in the clock itself, but also in the remarkable story of the man who made it. Contemporary court records reveal Charles Rogers standing trial in February 1665 for attending an unlawful religious meeting, only weeks before the first recorded deaths of the Great Plague. Few surviving clocks can be linked so closely with such a dramatic chapter in English history.
Combined with its excellent documented provenance extending back more than a century, this rare longcase clock represents far more than an early domestic timepiece. It is a tangible survivor from one of the most important periods in English clockmaking and provides a direct connection to the life, work and extraordinary times of one of London’s early master clockmakers.
For me, one of the greatest pleasures of collecting and researching early clocks is that they often reveal stories far beyond their mechanical purpose. This remarkable clock by Charles Rogers is a perfect example. It not only measures the passing of time, but also preserves a fascinating chapter in the history of seventeenth-century London, ensuring that both the clock and the story of its maker continue to be appreciated over 350 years after they were created.
Acknowledgements
I would like to express my sincere thanks to John Carlton-Smith, whose generosity made it possible for me to acquire this remarkable clock after it had remained in his private collection since 1960.
I would also like to acknowledge the historical information published by History.com, which was consulted when researching the background to the Great Plague of 1665 and helped provide the historical context for this article.