Category: Articles of the key ‘dark’ historical events across the world

By Tim Lambert Thomas More, former Chancellor of England was beheaded on 6 July 1535. Anne Boleyn was beheaded on 19 May 1536. Former Chancellor Thomas Cromwell was beheaded for treason on 28 July 1540. Catherine Howard the 5th wife of Henry VIII was executed on 13 February 1542.  On 12 February 1554, Lady Jane… Continue reading A Timeline of Famous Executions

By Tim Lambert This was a notorious case from the early 18th century when murderers were caught because of a head. Catherine Hayes was executed for killing her husband in 1726. She was born Catherine Hall near Birmingham in 1690. She moved around the country working as a domestic servant. Eventually, she was employed by… Continue reading Catherine Hayes

By Tim Lambert Catherine Wilson has the distinction of being the last woman to be hanged in public in London. Public executions drew big crowds as they were free entertainment. Catherine Wilson was a female poisoner. Her poison of choice was colchicum, a kind of crocus. In small doses, it was used as a medicine… Continue reading Catherine Wilson – the Poisoner

By Tim Lambert On 30 September 1630, John Billington became the first person executed in America for murder. On 11 May 1812 British prime minister Spencer Perceval was shot by a merchant named John Bellingham. Perceval was the only British prime minister to be assassinated. John Bellingham was hanged on 18 May 1812. In 1849,… Continue reading Crime Useless Information

By Tim Lambert Havant has a connection with Jack the Ripper. At the time of the murders, in 1888 a letter with a Portsmouth postmark was sent to a magistrate claiming to be from Jack the Ripper. The writer said not to look for him in London because ‘I’m not there’. Shortly afterwards a boy… Continue reading Did Jack the Ripper Strike in Havant?

By Tim Lambert Elizabeth Short, known as the Black Dahlia was the victim of an unsolved murder that took place in 1947. She was just 22. Her body was found on the morning of Wednesday 15 January 1947 on a vacant building plot in the Leimert Park district of Los Angeles in California. Her naked… Continue reading Elizabeth Short, The Black Dahlia

By Tim Lambert An Unsolved Trunk Murder in Brighton 1934 An unsolved murder took place in Brighton, England in 1934. A body was found in a trunk but the victim was never identified and the case was never solved. On 17th June 1934, a railway employee named William Vinnicombe noticed a horrid odour coming from… Continue reading The Brighton Trunk Murders

By Tim Lambert The Beginning In the 19th century Australia had a number of outlaws or bushrangers; the most famous is Ned Kelly. Edward or Ned Kelly was born in 1855 of Irish parents. Ned Kelly became a bushranger in 1878 when policemen called Alexander Fitzpatrick went to arrest his brother for horse stealing. There… Continue reading The Bushranger Ned Kelly

By Tim Lambert In 1666 London was devastated by a terrible fire. The Great Fire of London destroyed a great deal of property but fortunately, only a small number of people were killed. In the 17th century fire was a constant danger in towns when many houses were made of wood and streets were narrow.… Continue reading The Great Fire of London 1666