Women and the Gallows 1797 – 1837: Unfortunate Wretches
By Naomi Clifford
Published by: Pen and Sword History
Publication Date: 2nd November 2017
I.S.B.N.: 9781473863347
Price: £15.99
Format: Hardback
Blurb
131 women were hanged in England and Wales between 1797 and 1837, executed for crimes including murder, baby-killing, theft, arson, sheep-stealing and passing forged bank notes. Most of them were extremely poor and living in desperate situations. Some were mentally ill. A few were innocent. And almost all are now forgotten, their voices unheard for generations.
Mary Morgan – a teenager hanged as an example to others.
Eliza Fenning – accused of adding arsenic to the dumplings.
Mary Bateman – a ‘witch’ who duped her neighbours out of their savings.
Harriet Skelton – hanged for passing counterfeit pound notes in spite of efforts by Elizabeth Fry and the Duke of Gloucester to save her.Naomi Clifford has unearthed the events that brought these ‘unfortunates’ to the gallows and has used contemporary newspaper accounts and documents to tell their stories.
Continue reading “Bonus Review #4. Also, Merry Christmas, and all that.”
Everything Is Better With Dragons 