Thank you for this fascinating post. It speaks directly to the kind of material I am working with as I explore the lives of two of my forebears, Hannah Brown and Thomas Maslin, who were also caught up in the British legal system. Hannah, in particular, was sentenced under what became known as the Bloody Code after stealing cloth and a scarf, the value of which placed her offence among those punishable by death. Her sentence was later commuted to transportation for life to New South Wales.
Forgery seems to have been a prevalent crime in 18th- and early 19th-century Britain, often appearing in court records. It seems to occupy a murky place in the moral landscape of the time. Unlike violent crimes, forgery could be seen as more calculated, almost genteel, yet still punishable by death. In many cases, it is hard to discern who the direct victims were or to understand the social pressures behind the offence fully.
Your account of the two men hanged side by side reminded me of something one of my great-great-grandfathers, Robert Anthony, witnessed. He has only just been appointed as a turnkey of the goal in the country town of Toowoomba when there was a double hanging, which caused great public interest there as well. In that case, the two condemned men were from groups often marginalised in colonial Australia. One was Chinese, the other Aboriginal. Both had committed serious crimes, and there was little public sympathy at the time. Still, their stories raise questions about how they came to be so alienated from society and whether there was ever any real chance for them to belong.
Thank you again for such a thought-provoking post.
This is an interesting story Anne. Also looking forward to hearing about your ancestor who was hanged at same time. Very sad
Thank you for this fascinating post. It speaks directly to the kind of material I am working with as I explore the lives of two of my forebears, Hannah Brown and Thomas Maslin, who were also caught up in the British legal system. Hannah, in particular, was sentenced under what became known as the Bloody Code after stealing cloth and a scarf, the value of which placed her offence among those punishable by death. Her sentence was later commuted to transportation for life to New South Wales.
Forgery seems to have been a prevalent crime in 18th- and early 19th-century Britain, often appearing in court records. It seems to occupy a murky place in the moral landscape of the time. Unlike violent crimes, forgery could be seen as more calculated, almost genteel, yet still punishable by death. In many cases, it is hard to discern who the direct victims were or to understand the social pressures behind the offence fully.
Your account of the two men hanged side by side reminded me of something one of my great-great-grandfathers, Robert Anthony, witnessed. He has only just been appointed as a turnkey of the goal in the country town of Toowoomba when there was a double hanging, which caused great public interest there as well. In that case, the two condemned men were from groups often marginalised in colonial Australia. One was Chinese, the other Aboriginal. Both had committed serious crimes, and there was little public sympathy at the time. Still, their stories raise questions about how they came to be so alienated from society and whether there was ever any real chance for them to belong.
Thank you again for such a thought-provoking post.
I wrote about Henry Weston last week at https://anneyoungau.substack.com/p/not-bound-for-botany-bay
What a rogue he was! Interesting story!
What a story. If financial fraud was today a hanging offense, Old Bailey would be the busiest place around.