Summary

Thomas Hobson was born in the 16th Century and was very well known in Cambridge, especially for helping fund the conduit to bring fresh water to Cambridge. But he also owned his own inn and stables, where he hired horses out, a bit like rental cars today! When people came to hire a horse they had to take the first horse in line, which is where the term "Hobson’s choice" originated, meaning there is no choice! Hobson also had the role of ‘courier’ delivering post and news between Cambridge and London, on a horse, and we’ve a round and song about this!

Story

This history trail is narrated by the poet Michael Rosen, with script researched by Helen Weinstein and the team at Historyworks. This recording is part of a series of Cambridge history trails which have lyrics inspired by 'history beneath our feat' performed by local schoolchildren, with poems by the top poet Michael Rosen and songs by the funny team at CBBC's songwriters commissioned by Historyworks. 

Where St Catherine’s College chapel now stands there used to be an inn, run by Thomas Hobson, who lived between 1544 and 1631 - an impressive 87 years in an era when you were expected to die before you reached 40. And Hobson wasn’t a lazy man either. His main job was organising the carrying of messages on horseback between London and Cambridge, for which he stabled about forty horses at his inn. But as he owned more horses than he ever needed, he decided to start renting them. He provided boots, bridles and whips so the academics and university students, who were his main customers, could set out straight away. To those who had used his horses but had nowhere else to stay in Cambridge he also offered board and lodging at his Inn. He was the first person in England to set up a business renting out horses on such a large scale!

He was a shrewd businessman, no doubt about it, and soon noticed that his customers always wanted the fastest horses, which left those horses tired and overworked, and others unused. So he placed all his horses in a single line, only offering customers the horse at the front, a bit like the taxi ranks of today! The choice was “take it, or leave it” - Hobson’s choice! In other words – no choice at all!

Hobson was well known in the area, and he is featured in writings by the famous poet John Milton, author of Paradise Lost, who also lived in Cambridge. Milton immortalised Hobson by writing about him in his poems called “On the University Carrier”, “Another on the same” and “Hobson’s epitaph”. Inspired by these works, the playwright Harold Brighouse wrote the play “Hobson’s Choice” which became an international film and gave the expression world-wide exposure!

We have a funny song and a round about Thomas Hobson written by Dave Cohen, the CBBC Horrible Histories Songwriter. You can listen and sing along to it on the website.

Hobson was famous in Cambridge not just for his horses, but also for his philanthropy. He donated money to the Town and University to bring fresh water into the city centre, through a conduit commonly called “Hobson’s River” which fed a big fountain and a water pump in Market Square.

Today, you can find the pieces of the original Hobson fountain from Market Square on display in the courtyard at the Museum of Cambridge.