Editing Doctor Syn (section)

{{Short description|Fictional character from novels by Russell Thorndike}}
{{Distinguish|Dr. Sin}}
{{For|the 1937 film|Doctor Syn (film){{!}}''Doctor Syn'' (film)}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2024}}
{{Infobox character
| name        = Doctor Syn
| full_name   = Christopher Syn
| series      = 
| image       = 
| caption     = 
| first       = ''[[Doctor Syn: A Tale of the Romney Marsh]]'' (1915)
| last        = ''[[Shadow of Doctor Syn]]'' (1944)
| creator     = [[Russell Thorndike]]
| portrayer   = [[George Arliss]]<br>[[Peter Cushing]]<br>[[Patrick McGoohan]]
| alias       = Captain Clegg, "the Scarecrow"
| gender      = Male
| occupation  = Clergyman, smuggler
| family      = 
| nationality = British
}}
The '''Reverend Doctor Christopher Syn'''<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.internationalhero.co.uk/s/syn.htm|title=The Reverend Dr Syn, the Scarecrow of Romney Marsh|work=internationalhero.co.uk}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.pjfarmer.com/woldnewton/Syn.htm|title=The Life and Times of Doctor Syn|work=pjfarmer.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://members.tripod.com/STAR_CONVOY/syn.html|title=The Peculiar Dr. Syn|work=tripod.com}}</ref> is the smuggler hero of a series of novels by [[Russell Thorndike]]. The first book, ''Doctor Syn: A Tale of the Romney Marsh''<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.facebook.com/pages/Doctor-Syn-A-Tale-of-the-Romney-Marsh/105606636139334|title=Doctor Syn: A Tale of the Romney Marsh|work=Facebook}}</ref> was published in 1915. The story idea came from legendary coastal smuggling in the 18th century around well-known [[Romney Marsh]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.smuggling.co.uk/gazetteer_se_15.html|title=Smuggling on Romney Marsh, East Sussex|work=smuggling.co.uk}}</ref> where brandy and tobacco were brought in at night by boat from France to avoid the tax. Minor battles were fought, sometimes at night, between gangs of smugglers, such as the [[Hawkhurst Gang]], and [[HM Customs and Excise|His Majesty's Customs and Excise / Revenue]], supported by the [[British Army]], [[Royal Navy]] and local militias in the counties of the South [[Kent]] and [[Sussex]].