Above map circa 1800.

From a talk given by Charlotte Cornell, Friday 8 March 2024.

Aphra Behn, née Aphra Johnson, was born in Harbledown, Canterbury in 1640. Her parents were Bart Johnson a barber, and Elizabeth Dunham a wet nurse who came from a 'light aristocratic' Faversham family. Elizabeth’s marriage was not a particularly good match for her, not only due to Bart’s lower social status, but also because he was a drunk and was often before the courts. Bart Johnson was constantly applying for freedom of the city of Canterbury to set up as a barber. In the 17th century only, a freeman could legally ply their trade in Canterbury. But his application was refused by the mayor at least three times. Regardless, Bart Johnson sets up an illegal barber’s shop in Canterbury anyway, undercutting his contemporaries in the barbers’ guild who petition against him.

Meanwhile, Aphra’s mother Elizabeth obtains a position as nurse to the Culpepper family at Sturry House, now Junior Kings. It is thought that this is where Aphra learnt to read and write, was given access to a library and acquire some education, possibly alongside the daughter of the house. Nevertheless, Aphra complains bitterly in a poem written later that females are not given the chance to learn Latin, and to be able to study classics in their original form.

In 1649 Bart finally gets granted the freedom of the city but not as a barber. He applies as the innkeeper of the "Queen’s Arms," which was in Stour Street opposite the Poor Priests Hospital. A way of trying to dissuade an unwelcome applicant from becoming a freeman was to price them out of the market. Bart’s fee was set at £10.00 which was well beyond his means. However, he borrows the money which leads to him becoming a debtor when subsequently he is unable to pay back the loan.

A debtor in the 17th century was considered a moral failure in the community and could be punished by imprisonment until the debt was paid. Bart tries to petition The Lord Protector Cromwell to quash the debt which is not granted. Consequently, Bart moves the family including a teenaged Aphra, to London the following year and it is not thought that she ever returned to Canterbury.