The Blind Beggar

The Blind Beggar is a historic pub at 337 Whitechapel Road in London’s East End. The present building dates from 1894, but it stands on the site of an inn documented before 1654. It later became the brewery tap for the neighbouring Albion Brewery, which developed into one of London’s major breweries. The pub takes its name from the old ballad and legend of the Blind Beggar of Bethnal Green, traditionally identified as Henry de Montfort, who was said to have been blinded at the Battle of Evesham in 1265.

The pub also has an important connection with William Booth and the origins of the Salvation Army. In 1865, Booth encountered a group of evangelists preaching near the Blind Beggar on Mile End Waste and joined their open-air meeting. He was subsequently invited to lead the mission, which developed into the Christian Mission and was renamed the Salvation Army in 1878. The area around the pub is therefore closely connected with the earliest period of Booth’s work in East London.

The Blind Beggar is, however, most famous for its association with the Kray twins and organised crime in the East End during the 1960s. On the evening of 9 March 1966, George Cornell, a member of the rival Richardson gang, was drinking in the pub with Albie Woods. Ronnie Kray entered with associate Ian Barrie. Barrie fired shots into the ceiling before Kray approached Cornell and shot him in the forehead with a 9 mm Luger pistol. Cornell was taken to hospital but died from his injuries several hours later.

The killing took place in front of several witnesses, but the Krays’ reputation for intimidation initially made it difficult for police to secure testimony against Ronnie. He was arrested shortly afterwards but released when witnesses would not identify him. The investigation continued under Scotland Yard detective Leonard “Nipper” Read, who was tasked with dismantling the Krays’ criminal organisation. Ronnie Kray was eventually convicted at the Old Bailey in 1969 of murdering Cornell. He was also convicted in connection with the murder of Jack “The Hat” McVitie, while his twin brother Reggie was convicted of McVitie’s murder and being an accessory after the fact to Cornell’s killing. The brothers received life sentences with recommendations that they serve at least 30 years.

The murder of George Cornell permanently linked the Blind Beggar with the Krays and the gangland history of 1960s London. The pub continues to operate at the same address and openly acknowledges this history, while also retaining its much older connections with Whitechapel, the Albion Brewery and the beginnings of the Salvation Army.