Who Was Jack the Ripper?
Crime, criminals and policing in Victorian London.
One thing united the murdered: Jack the Ripper’s victims were all prostitutes. In Victorian London, prostitution was rampant. Some have speculated that the Ripper was motivated by hatred of prostitutes borne of disease, but whilst this cannot be proven, what can be said is the prostitute class, wandering the streets at unsociable hours, often intoxicated, …
The Society was founded in 1802 by William Wilberforce following a Royal Proclamation by George III in 1787 (the Proclamation for the Discouragement of Vice). The Obscene Publications Act came into force in September 1857, superseding the 1787 Proclamation. One effect of the Act was to forbid the distribution of information about contraception and human …
As well as specific individuals, criminal gangs were also suspected of being involved in the Whitechapel murders. This line of reasoning was based on the attack on victim Emma Smith, who had been set upon by a group of three men nd subsequently died of the injuries received. These men may have been from the …