Donna Andrew
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520220621
- eISBN:
- 9780520923706
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520220621.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Modern History
This book tells the remarkable story of a complex forgery uncovered in London in 1775. The Perreau-Rudd case—filled with scandal, deceit, and mystery—preoccupied a public hungry for sensationalism. ...
More
This book tells the remarkable story of a complex forgery uncovered in London in 1775. The Perreau-Rudd case—filled with scandal, deceit, and mystery—preoccupied a public hungry for sensationalism. Peopled with such familiar figures as John Wilkes, King George III, Lord Mansfield, and James Boswell, this story reveals the deep anxieties of this period of English capitalism. The case acts as a prism that reveals the hopes, fears, and prejudices of that society. Above all, this episode presents a parable of the 1770s, when London was the center of European finance and national politics, of fashionable life and tell-all journalism, of empire achieved and empire lost. The crime, a hanging offense, came to light with the arrest of identical twin brothers, Robert and Daniel Perreau, after the former was detained trying to negotiate a forged bond. At their arraignment they both accused Daniel's mistress, Margaret Caroline Rudd, of being responsible for the crime. The brothers' trials coincided with the first reports of bloodshed in the American colonies at Lexington and Concord and successfully competed for space in the newspapers. From March until the following January, people could talk of little other than the fate of the Perreaus and the impending trial of Mrs. Rudd. The participants told wildly different tales and offered strikingly different portraits of themselves. The press was filled with letters from concerned or angry correspondents. The public, deeply divided over who was guilty, was troubled by evidence that suggested not only that fair might be foul, but that it might not be possible to decide which was which.Less
This book tells the remarkable story of a complex forgery uncovered in London in 1775. The Perreau-Rudd case—filled with scandal, deceit, and mystery—preoccupied a public hungry for sensationalism. Peopled with such familiar figures as John Wilkes, King George III, Lord Mansfield, and James Boswell, this story reveals the deep anxieties of this period of English capitalism. The case acts as a prism that reveals the hopes, fears, and prejudices of that society. Above all, this episode presents a parable of the 1770s, when London was the center of European finance and national politics, of fashionable life and tell-all journalism, of empire achieved and empire lost. The crime, a hanging offense, came to light with the arrest of identical twin brothers, Robert and Daniel Perreau, after the former was detained trying to negotiate a forged bond. At their arraignment they both accused Daniel's mistress, Margaret Caroline Rudd, of being responsible for the crime. The brothers' trials coincided with the first reports of bloodshed in the American colonies at Lexington and Concord and successfully competed for space in the newspapers. From March until the following January, people could talk of little other than the fate of the Perreaus and the impending trial of Mrs. Rudd. The participants told wildly different tales and offered strikingly different portraits of themselves. The press was filled with letters from concerned or angry correspondents. The public, deeply divided over who was guilty, was troubled by evidence that suggested not only that fair might be foul, but that it might not be possible to decide which was which.
Donna T. Andrew and Randall McGowen
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520220621
- eISBN:
- 9780520923706
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520220621.003.0005
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Modern History
This chapter provides the biographies of the central characters: Daniel and Robert Perreau and Mrs. Rudd. It notes that during and immediately after their trials, the Perreaus and their witnesses ...
More
This chapter provides the biographies of the central characters: Daniel and Robert Perreau and Mrs. Rudd. It notes that during and immediately after their trials, the Perreaus and their witnesses told of the fair promises that Mrs. Rudd had employed to secure their confidence. It reports that Mrs. Rudd offered such a tempting prospect of advancement that the Perreaus could be pardoned for naively acting as her agents. It further reports that they were dazzled when Mrs. Rudd spoke of how her relations and their connections were at work to set the brothers up as bankers, buy them a country estate, make Daniel a member of Parliament and a baronet. It observes that before the disclosures at Bow Street, the Perreaus stood at the center of one kind of London story; that of rapid economic success followed by increasing social and even political influence.Less
This chapter provides the biographies of the central characters: Daniel and Robert Perreau and Mrs. Rudd. It notes that during and immediately after their trials, the Perreaus and their witnesses told of the fair promises that Mrs. Rudd had employed to secure their confidence. It reports that Mrs. Rudd offered such a tempting prospect of advancement that the Perreaus could be pardoned for naively acting as her agents. It further reports that they were dazzled when Mrs. Rudd spoke of how her relations and their connections were at work to set the brothers up as bankers, buy them a country estate, make Daniel a member of Parliament and a baronet. It observes that before the disclosures at Bow Street, the Perreaus stood at the center of one kind of London story; that of rapid economic success followed by increasing social and even political influence.
Donna T. Andrew and Randall McGowen
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520220621
- eISBN:
- 9780520923706
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520220621.003.0008
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Modern History
This chapter discusses the legal controversy surrounding Mrs. Rudd's detention after the trial of Daniel Perreau. It notes that this act transformed what had been a scandal into a major legal ...
More
This chapter discusses the legal controversy surrounding Mrs. Rudd's detention after the trial of Daniel Perreau. It notes that this act transformed what had been a scandal into a major legal controversy. It further notes that before the case was over, it would raise serious questions about the law and bring the procedures of justice itself into dispute. It observes that in the charged political climate of the 1770s, the press and the public were sensitive to the conduct of the executive and the courts. The chapter further observes that the complex, ongoing struggle between the Crown and the supporters of the radical MP John Wilkes over executive power and privilege, as well as conflict between American colonists and the government over many of the same issues, formed the backdrop for such apprehensions.Less
This chapter discusses the legal controversy surrounding Mrs. Rudd's detention after the trial of Daniel Perreau. It notes that this act transformed what had been a scandal into a major legal controversy. It further notes that before the case was over, it would raise serious questions about the law and bring the procedures of justice itself into dispute. It observes that in the charged political climate of the 1770s, the press and the public were sensitive to the conduct of the executive and the courts. The chapter further observes that the complex, ongoing struggle between the Crown and the supporters of the radical MP John Wilkes over executive power and privilege, as well as conflict between American colonists and the government over many of the same issues, formed the backdrop for such apprehensions.
Donna T. Andrew and Randall McGowen
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520220621
- eISBN:
- 9780520923706
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520220621.003.0002
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Modern History
This chapter describes the public execution of seven men hanged for property offenses. It notes that these men were Lyon Abrahams and Saunders Alexander, convicted of burglary, George Lee, a handsome ...
More
This chapter describes the public execution of seven men hanged for property offenses. It notes that these men were Lyon Abrahams and Saunders Alexander, convicted of burglary, George Lee, a handsome eighteen year old condemned for highway robbery, two coiners, Richard Baker and John Radcliffe, the twin brothers, Daniel and Robert Perreau, convicted of forgery. It further notes that although the brothers had been convicted of forgery, they continued to protest that they were the victims of a beautiful, intelligent, and dangerous courtesan, Mrs. Margaret Caroline Rudd. It relates that when the crime was first detected in March, the brothers insisted on their innocence and alleged that Mrs.Rudd, Daniel's mistress, had entrapped them.Less
This chapter describes the public execution of seven men hanged for property offenses. It notes that these men were Lyon Abrahams and Saunders Alexander, convicted of burglary, George Lee, a handsome eighteen year old condemned for highway robbery, two coiners, Richard Baker and John Radcliffe, the twin brothers, Daniel and Robert Perreau, convicted of forgery. It further notes that although the brothers had been convicted of forgery, they continued to protest that they were the victims of a beautiful, intelligent, and dangerous courtesan, Mrs. Margaret Caroline Rudd. It relates that when the crime was first detected in March, the brothers insisted on their innocence and alleged that Mrs.Rudd, Daniel's mistress, had entrapped them.
