Suspicious murders that took place in England in the 19th century continue to arouse curiosity to this day.
A group of people. It’s a peaceful place. A death. It’s a great mystery. An unforgettable detective. A “grand finale” where all the characters involved come together to make the outcome come out dramatically.
A familiar story to the readership of Agatha Christie, the British author of 66 crime novels translated into more than 145 languages. A fascinating woman inspired by the mysteries of real life, unsolved cases and brought to life in her works.
Some were particularly intrigued, not only because justice had not been served, but also because, despite not having been convicted in court, suspects were publicly convicted and held the blame for the rest of their days—a situation the author exemplified. In Tragic Innocence.
In the work, the death of Charles Bravo is an open case that raises a series of suspicions that come to ruin the lives of innocent people, especially his wife Florence.
Meanwhile in A Sleeping Crime, lovable detective Miss Marple points out that the murder was “not proven in the Madeleine Smith case,” but many believe she was guilty.
Who were these women and what happened?
Some of the cases were detailed by the BBC radio show and podcast Lady Killers, which depicted women suspected of murder in 19th century cases.
Manipulative killer or manipulated naive?
Madeleine Smith was a socialite in Glasgow, Scotland in the 1850s. She lived a life that seemed perfect: she went to balls and concerts, toured shops in the commercial districts of the city, and spent summers in her country. house. your family.
But she had a secret: against all the conventions of the Victorian era (Queen Victoria, who reigned in the United Kingdom between 1837 and 1901), she began a love affair with a man ten years her senior, and, meanwhile, above, an immigrant clerk, far from her position in the social hierarchy. one below.
His name was Pierre Emile L’Angelier. He met her in 1855, when he was 19. They fell in love with each other in a short time, began to correspond frequently and became intimate.
However, two years later Madeleine became engaged to a boy chosen by her parents – someone who, frankly, went to the same places as her in the English aristocracy.
When Emile found out, the two got into a fight.
Madeleine burned the letters exchanged between the two and begged Emile to return what she had, fearing they would eventually be discovered and ruined her reputation.
Heartbroken and jealous, she not only refused the request, but threatened to mail it to her father for revealing their relationship.
Madeleine in a panic begged them to meet.
On the night of March 22, 1857, Emile fell ill and died of arsenic poisoning. Madeleine was charged with murder. If found guilty, he would be hanged.
The trial was a mess.
More than 100 letters he wrote just for his lover’s eyes were read for everyone to hear.
The clearest evidence of their affair, considered scandalous by society at the time, was in his own handwriting and, according to the prosecution, represented the probable cause of the murder.
“Your visit last night is over. I missed her so much. How quickly it passed. Dear Emile, I love you more and more every day. I am your wife, because after our intimacy I can never be anyone else’s wife.”
She had left her virginity out of wedlock, something that ruined the lives of girls like herself in those days by preventing her from marrying someone else.
During the investigation, police discovered that Madeleine had purchased arsenic to use on her skin.
The prosecution also relied on testimony from a witness who said that Emile had told her that Madeleine had made her hot chocolate when they met shortly before her death. That’s how Madeleine poisoned him.
With the help of renowned toxicologist Sir Andrew Douglas Maclagan, the defense challenged this argument.
The expert said that it is not true that arsenic can only be used as a cosmetic, that it must be completely dissolved in a fire for half an hour in order for it to be deadly and undetectable if ingested. Trying to turn it into hot chocolate would be even harder.
The jury decided: the crime was “unproven”.
Madeline was neither found guilty nor innocent. She was free, but her reputation was forever tarnished.
He had no choice but to change his name and disappear.
Brutal Killer or Abused Wife?
On April 21, 1876, at a luxury residence called The Priory in the Balham district of south London, a lawyer named Charles Bravo died of poisoning after three days of torment. He drank potassium antimony water.
On his deathbed, he didn’t say who might poison him, and he remained oddly calm during his final days.
The six doctors who treated him and the detectives in charge of the case interpreted his silence as a sign that he had committed suicide.
Still, Charles’ friends and family, unconvinced, demanded another investigation.
It was then that the case began to attract media attention. Initially, tabloid articles pointed to a coachman dismissed by Charles, a coachman who shouted “Mr. Bravo will die in five months” as a suspect in a bar, and then to bridesmaid Jane Cox, whom Charles allegedly threatened. fire. But soon the focus of attention turned to his wife.
During the three days Florence Bravo testified, the lawyers of the Charles family, the famous Dr. James Manby Gully is a doctor whose clients include Charles Darwin and Florence Nightingale.
With these materials, what became known as the “Balham mystery” became one of the most sensational murder cases of the Victorian era, with daily newspaper and tabloid coverage and crowds flocking to the neighborhood to follow the story.
The investigation eventually turned into an investigation into Florence’s sexual morality, which did not fit the scenario envisioned for women at the time.
At the age of 19, she had married Alexander Ricardo, the only child of John L. Ricardo, founder of the International Telegraph Company.
But Alexander was a violent alcoholic – and Florence decided to break up with him, despite his parents begging him to stay in the marriage.
Before the separation papers were finalized, Ricardo died of hematemesis (loss of blood from the mouth) triggered by drunkenness in an apartment he shared with “a companion” in Cologne, Germany.
Florence, with its legacy and red-dyed hair, is the motto of Dr. Gully is married and 37 years older than her.
She miscarried in 1873 or speculated that she had an abortion by Gully to avoid further scandal.
Whatever happened, it made Florence very ill, and her experiences caused her to end her relationship with the doctor and seek reconciliation with her family.
With the intention of restoring the young woman’s position in society, her bridesmaid Jane Cox planned meetings with Charles, who would eventually become her second husband.
They had only been married for 5 months when he died, but their relationship was already strained.
Charles was jealous of Gully and although he had reached a financially favorable agreement before the marriage, he was frustrated that he did not have unlimited control over his wife’s vast wealth, the only reason he married her was, he told his lawyer in the courtroom. First visit after wedding.
Florence suffered two consecutive miscarriages in that short time, and although her condition was bad, her husband insisted that she fulfill her “marital obligations”.
In the end, the investigation failed to produce enough evidence to charge anyone with the crime.
Florence was never tried. However, according to the public, she managed to get away with killing her husband.
“And so Florence Bravo, abandoned by her family, died alone from drinking. Outcast with three young children, Ms. Cox lived into old age knowing that most people she knew thought she was a murderer. Dr Gully was devastated professionally and socially,” Tragic says. A character in Innocence.
“Someone was guilty and got away with it. But the others were innocent and couldn’t get away.”
And this criminal, Agatha Christie, believed she was a doctor.
His theory was that Gully had prescribed medication to Charles, who was suffering from neuralgia and rheumatism, and one of the pills in the bottle had been poisoned with antimony.
“I always thought he was the only person with a dominant drive and the right personality type: he was considered highly competent, successful, and beyond doubt,” he wrote in a 1968 letter to the editor of the Sunday Times Magazine.
source: Noticias
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