Victorians Against the Gallows: Capital Punishment and the Abolitionist Movement in Nineteenth Century Britain (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781350163492)

By the time that Queen Victoria ascended the throne in 1837, the list of crimes liable to attract the death penalty had been reduced to murder, yet the gallows remained a source of controversy in Victorian Britain and there was growing unease in liberal quarters surrounding the question of capital punishment.

Focusing in part on the activities of the Society for the Abolition of Capital Punishment, James Gregory examines abolitionist strategies, leaders and personnel. He locates the 'gallows question' in an imperial context and explores the ways in which debates about the gallows and abolition featured in literature, from poetry to 'novels of purpose' and popular romances of the underworld. He places the abolitionist movement within the wider Victorian worlds of philanthropy, religious orthodoxy and social morality in a study which will be essential reading for students and researchers of Victorian history.

Author: James Gregory
ISBN-10: 135016349X
ISBN-13: 9781350163492
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Language: English
Published: 05/28/2020
Pages: 384
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.98lbs
Size: 8.50h x 5.50w x 0.80d