CRIME AND MURDER IN VICTORIAN LEICESTERSHRE 1837-1901

Softcover. Murder is a subject that never fails to evoke macabre curiosity. Whether murdered or murderer, those involved often shared the same fate of an ignominious death. One can't get a more intriguing story than that of Jack the Ripper. It was while the author was giving a talk on this subject in the Summer of 1978, that someone asked if Leicestershire had experienced any similar murders. This book is the outcome of that question. Whilst not equalling the exploits of 'Peerless' Jack the stories included portray the pathos and despair that surrounds all murders. The author has tried to place the murders within the framework of crime and punishment as a whole but makes no scholarly claims in doing so. Victorian times not only marked the beginning of Britain as we know it today, but also the end of an era of savage crime and even more savage punishment. As the gibbet and pillory disappeared the constabulary and telegraph were introduced. Chapter headings include : An Eye for an Eye; The Shadow of the Gallows; Life in Leicester's Gaols; Times of Change; Victorian Murders. Illus. + Appendices (Capital Punishment in England and Wales; Executions in Leicestershire, 1800-1901). 56pp. trade size softcover. From the library of true-crime writer, Wilfred Gregg, with his personal b/plate. Vg+