You are such an incredible writer, Sophie. You write with such clarity and compassion. I am so moved every Friday. This one was particularly brutal, and I am left wondering how many men starved their wives and children, and starved them to death.
The information from the workhouse supervisor about how the children had gained substantial weight since arriving was particularly chilling.
The concept of criminal neglect is really unclear in the 19thC, and something that keeps coming up in my thesis data. I've got inquests where children starve to death, and the verdict is "natural causes". I've got inquests where women are locked out by their husbands, die of exposure and the verdict is "natural causes". One woman was found in a terrible state, with clear evidence of sexual abuse, and the verdict was STILL "natural causes". So it takes a lot to go so far as to blame someone directly at inquest, and therefore bring a criminal case.
My tiny sample suggests that it happened far more often than was prosecuted.
You are such an incredible writer, Sophie. You write with such clarity and compassion. I am so moved every Friday. This one was particularly brutal, and I am left wondering how many men starved their wives and children, and starved them to death.
The information from the workhouse supervisor about how the children had gained substantial weight since arriving was particularly chilling.
Thank you Mara, that means a lot!!!
The concept of criminal neglect is really unclear in the 19thC, and something that keeps coming up in my thesis data. I've got inquests where children starve to death, and the verdict is "natural causes". I've got inquests where women are locked out by their husbands, die of exposure and the verdict is "natural causes". One woman was found in a terrible state, with clear evidence of sexual abuse, and the verdict was STILL "natural causes". So it takes a lot to go so far as to blame someone directly at inquest, and therefore bring a criminal case.
My tiny sample suggests that it happened far more often than was prosecuted.