On 29 January 1695, Jeane Bates, using a false name, stole silver plate and household goods from her employer Peter Courtney. Tried at the Old Bailey, she was identified as a repeat offender, found guilty of felony, falsely claimed pregnancy, and was executed at Tyburn. Her case reveals the harsh punishment for servant theft in seventeenth-century London.
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This Day in History: 1 December 1838 — The Servant, the Spoons and the Silver Basket
On 1 December 1838, servant Ludlow Tedder stole two silver spoons and a valuable bread-basket from her master, Fitzowen Skinner. Tried at the Old Bailey later that month, she was convicted and transported for ten years to Van Diemen’s Land. This retelling explores trust, temptation and punishment in Victorian London.
This Day in History – 21 August 1848
21 August 1848 — Old Bailey Session: Thomas Lancaster faced trial for coining counterfeit coins. In the same session, Albert Brown was judged for poisoning, and John Boosey for pocket-picking.
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