Scandal and Crime in Victorian Britain

The Victorians have been immortalized by popular culture as stuffy and repressed, but nothing could be further than the truth. Though they espoused a culture of civility and decorum, in reality, they craved scandal and gobbled up news stories about the latest crimes. From Queen Victoria’s alleged romances with Lord Melbourne and her servant John Brown to ghoulish reports of body snatching, lady poisoners, or Jack the Ripper’s murder spree, there was never a lack of scandal or crime to read or talk about over tea. But aside from being newsworthy, terrifying, and titillating, these scandals and crimes shed light on the larger culture, with its rigid class system and restricted gender roles. This lecture will highlight certain crimes and scandals as a lens to explore the larger Victorian history and also how this history is presented in pop culture today.