The Strange Affair of Madeleine Smith
The Strange Affair of Madeleine Smith

Author: Douglas MacGowan

Publisher: Birlinn Ltd

Published: 2021-09-01

Total Pages: 243

ISBN-13: 0857902725

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Discover the true story of Victorian Scotland's trial of the century. It was a case that rocked Victorian society. Emile L'Angelier was a working-class immigrant from the Channel Islands who began a clandestine affair with prominent Glasgow socialite Madeleine Smith. Six weeks after Emile threatened to show Madeleine's father their passionate letters, on 23 March 1857, he was found dead from arsenic poisoning. The evidence against Madeleine seemed overwhelming as she went to trial for murdering her lover. Douglas MacGowan's vivid account reads by turns like a thriller, a love story and a courtroom drama. He quotes extensively from contemporary sources, notably the pathology reports, the trial testimony and the infamous correspondence between Madeleine and Emile, whose explicit content so shocked Victorian sensibilities. Ultimately it is up to the reader to judge Madeleine's guilt or innocence.

Madeleine Smith on Trial
Madeleine Smith on Trial

Author: Brian Jenkins

Publisher: McFarland

Published: 2019-06-21

Total Pages: 238

ISBN-13: 1476678405

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 In 1855, Glasgow socialite Madeleine Smith began a flirtation with Pierre L'Angelier, a handsome clerk--for her a mere diversion. But L'Angelier sought social mobility. Their class disparity gave her control of the intrigue but when the relationship turned sexual, the power imbalance shifted. The Scots recognized irregular unions in certain cases. L'Angelier considered Smith his wife, a part she at first discreetly played. When he refused to step aside and allow her a more socially acceptable marriage, his removal became necessary. Smith's sensational murder trial captivated both Britain and America. Despite compelling evidence of guilt, various factors led to her acquittal--her class and gender, the peculiarities of Scottish law--and many believed the case went to trial only because the Crown feared blatant confirmation that justice was not blind.

A Scottish Murder
A Scottish Murder

Author: Jimmy Powdrell Campbell

Publisher:

Published: 2007

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9780752440088

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Madeleine Smith's murder trial was made famous by the shocking nature of her letters to the lover she was supposed to have poisoned. She has always been thought guilty of the crime, dispite the lack of enough evidence to convict her, but now, 150 years later, Campbells foresic discoveries turns the case on it's head.

Murder in Victorian Scotland
Murder in Victorian Scotland

Author: Douglas MacGowan

Publisher: Greenwood Publishing Group

Published: 1999

Total Pages: 200

ISBN-13:

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Examinining the life and 1857 trial of Madeleine Smith accused of poisoning an undesired suitor, this book uses analyses of her correspondence with the victim. Her trial testimony reveals much about Victorian society, Scottish law and the woman.