Book description
Capital Crimes tells the shifting story of crime and punishment
in London through vivid re-creations of a series of murders that
stretches from the killing of Roger Legett, a notorious 'questmonger',
during the Peasants' Revolt in 1381, through to the hanging of Styllou
Christofi in 1954. Some of the murderers, such as the political
assassin John Bellingham, are still remembered. Others, including the
eighteenth-century highwayman John Davis, are largely forgotten. But
all their lives and fates have much to tell us - about London's
changing underworld, about the slow evolution of policing in the
capital, and about the sometimes strange workings of the law. Above
all, they provide a fascinating sideways view of London over the
centuries - from the crime-ridden alleyways of the Georgian capital to
the supposedly respectable suburbs of Finchley, where the notorious
'baby-farmers' Amelia Sach and Annie Walters operated at the beginning
of the twentieth century.
Illustrated throughout with contemporary engravings and photographs,
this is an essential read for all devotees of London - and of crime.
Max Décharné is a writer and musician. He is the author of seven
previous books, including
King's Road, Hardboiled Hollywood, Straight
from the Fridge,Dad
and
A Rocket in my Pocket.
He has been a regular contributor to
Mojo
magazine since 1998, and
also writes for a variety of other publications. In his music career, he
has released eleven albums and numerous singles since 1991. He lives in
London.
