Florence Maybrick was the first American woman to be sentenced to death in England--for murdering her husband, a crime she almost certainly did not commit. Her 1889 trial was presided over by an openly misogynist judge who was later declared incompetent and died in an asylum. Hours before Maybrick was to be hanged, Queen Victoria reluctantly commuted her sentence to life in prison--in her opinion a woman who would commit adultery, as Maybrick had admitted, would also kill her husband. Her children were taken from her; she never saw them again. Her mother worked for years to clear her name, enlisting the president of the United States and successive ambassadors, including Robert Todd Lincoln. Decades later, a gruesome diary was discovered that made Maybrick's husband a prime Jack the Ripper suspect.

Hugely respected, extensively quoted and widely regarded as the 'bible' of Ripper studies, The Complete Jack the Ripper A to Z is the ultimate reference for anyone fascinated by the Jack the Ripper mystery. This new, rewritten, up-to-date edition includes sources and well over 100 photographs.The Complete jack the Ripper A-Z has an entry for almost every person involved in the case, from suspects and witnesses to policemen and journalists, plus the ordinary people who became caught up in the unfolding drama.Written by three of the world's leading authorities on the case, it takes a completely objective look at theories old and new, describes all the key Ripper books and gives potted biographies of many of the authors.Whether you are new to the mystery of Jack the Ripper or an experienced 'Ripperologist' The Complete Jack the Ripper A-Z will keep you turning the pages. Fascinating and entertaining reading in its own right, it is the essential reference to have beside you when you venture into the dark alleys of Victorian Whitechapel.

“An intriguing story told in the style of Thomas Hardy or George Eliot, if they traded in true crime” (Kirkus Reviews). In the summer of 1889, young Southern belle Florence Maybrick stood trial for the alleged arsenic poisoning of her much older husband, Liverpool cotton merchant James Maybrick. The “Maybrick Mystery” had all the makings of a sensation: a pretty, flirtatious woman; resentful, gossiping servants; rumors of gambling and debt; and scandalous mutual infidelity. The case cracked the varnish of Victorian respectability, shocking and exciting the public in equal measure as they clamored to read the latest revelations of Florence’s past and glimpse her likeness in Madame Tussaud’s. Florence’s fate was fiercely debated in the courtroom, on the front pages of the newspapers, and in parlors and backyards across the country. Did she poison her husband? Was her previous infidelity proof of murderous intentions? Was James’s own habit of self-medicating to blame for his demise? In this book, historian and CWA Gold Dagger Award nominee Kate Colquhoun recounts an utterly absorbing tale of addiction, deception, and adultery that keeps you asking to the very last page: Did she kill him?

The latest research on the ultimate whodunnit by the world's leading society for Ripper studies The Whitechapel Murders of 1888 remain unsolved and hundreds of theories have been suggested as to the killer's identity. However, many of the suggestions naming the infamous Ripper remain ill-informed and ludicrous, until now. The authors of this book are all members of The Whitechapel Society, the world's largest organization for the study of Jack the Ripper. Each has spent many years researching a particular suspect and the results of their latest, cutting-edge investigations are published here for the first time. Based on indisputable facts and concrete evidence, the cases put forward in this collection allow readers to decide exactly who they believe is the man behind the myth. With each chapter discussing a separate suspect in detail, this book is the ultimate guide to one of the most famous criminal investigations in history.

Real life crimes, famous and forgotten, re-examined by leading crime writersA superb collection of brand new and original essays about famous and obscure real life crimes, Truly Criminal showcases a group of highly regarded, award-winning writers who all share a special passion for crime. Among these real-life crimes, famous and forgotten, are such notorious cases as Samuel Herbert Dougal, the Moat Farm murderer; George Joseph Smith, the Brides in the Bath killer; and Dr. Hawley Harvey Crippen, one of the most infamous killers in British history. Featuring a dazzling list of contributors, including leading crime novelists Peter Lovesey, Andrew Taylor, and Catherine Aird, as well as 2013 CWA Crime Non-Fiction Dagger winner Paul French; a bonus essay by the late great Margery Allingham about the controversial William Herbert Wallace case has also been rediscovered. With a foreword by international bestselling writer Peter James, this collection will thrill lovers of true-crime writing.

In the first detailed study of its kind, James Gregory's book takes a historical approach to mercy by focusing on widespread and varied discussions about the quality, virtue or feeling of mercy in the British world during Victoria's reign. Gregory covers an impressive range of themes from the gendered discourses of 'emotional' appeal surrounding Queen Victoria to the exercise and withholding of royal mercy in the wake of colonial rebellion throughout the British empire. Against the backdrop of major events and their historical significance, a masterful synthesis of rich source material is analysed, including visual depictions (paintings and cartoons in periodicals and popular literature) and literary ones (in sermons, novels, plays and poetry). Gregory's sophisticated analysis of the multiple meanings, uses and operations of royal mercy duly emphasise its significance as a major theme in British cultural history during the 'long 19th century'. This will be essential reading for those interested in the history of mercy, the history of gender, British social and cultural history and the legacy of Queen Victoria's reign.

In this lively study of the development and transformation of voices of female offenders in nineteenth-century England, Anne Schwan analyzes a range of colorful sources, including crime broadsides, reform literature, prisoners' own writings about imprisonment and courtroom politics, and conventional literary texts, such as Adam Bede and The Moonstone. Not only does Schwan demonstrate strategies for interpreting ambivalent and often contradictory texts, she also provides a carefully historicized approach to the work of feminist recovery. Crossing class lines, genre boundaries, and gender roles in the effort to trace prisoners, authors, and female communities (imagined or real), Schwan brings new insight to what it means to locate feminist (or protofeminist) details, arguments, and politics. In this case, she tracks the emergence of a contested, and often contradictory, feminist consciousness, through the prism of nineteenth-century penal debates. The historical discussion is framed by reflections on contemporary debates about prisoner perspectives to illuminate continuities and differences. Convict Voices offers a sophisticated approach to interpretive questions of gender, genre, and discourse in the representation of female convicts and their voices and viewpoints.

The new definitive guide to Victorian crime.

Florence Elizabeth Chandler Maybrick was tried at the Liverpool assizes, 1889, for the murder of her husband, James Maybrick.