The rise of cheap, sensational newspapers in the nineteenth century meant that shocking scandals weren’t whispered behind fluttering fans; they splashed across breakfast tables, letting the public devour every salacious detail.
Why These Shocking Scandals Fascinated Victorians
Victorians loved a good scandal because it let them peek behind the stiff upper‑lip of respectability. From royal bedrooms to convent corridors, each scandal gave readers a front‑row seat to the drama they craved.
10 The Boy Who Visits the Palace
Seventeen‑year‑old Edward Jones, the son of a tailor and described as “as unattractive as homemade sin,” was caught skulking in a Buckingham Palace dressing room adjoining Queen Victoria’s bedroom. The queen had just welcomed her first child. Jones had been sneaking into the palace since 1838 and, on one occasion, was discovered with the queen’s underwear stuffed down his trousers. Newspapers christened him “Boy Jones.” Even after heightened security, he returned in 1841, was sentenced to hard labour, and ultimately shipped off to Australia.
9 The Great Convent Case
In February 1869 the courtroom drama of Saurin v. Starr and Kennedy ignited anti‑Catholic fervour. Susan Saurin, once Sister Mary Scolastica, sued her mother superior, Mrs. Starr, for libel and conspiracy, alleging an unjust expulsion. The trial drew a packed gallery, with witnesses accusing Saurin of crimes as ludicrous as eating strawberries and cream and being “excited” in a priest’s presence. The mother superior clarified that the excitement was not of that nature. The jury sided with Saurin, awarding her £500 in damages.
8 The Men Who Flogged Haynau
General Julius Jacob von Haynau, nicknamed “the Hyena” for his brutal suppression of the 1848 Hungarian Revolution, faced the wrath of the English public when he stopped at a London brewery in September 1850. Draymen seized the opportunity, beating him with whips, brooms, and stones, tearing off his moustaches and ripping his clothes. Humiliated, Haynau fled to a nearby inn, leaving the newspapers to revel in the spectacle.
7 The Charges Proved
When Lady Harriet Mordaunt’s newborn daughter arrived, doctors feared the baby might be blind. Convinced she had contracted syphilis, Lady Mordaunt confessed to her husband, Sir Charles, that she had been unfaithful, naming the Prince of Wales among her lovers. The February 1870 trial aimed to determine her sanity for a divorce. The Prince was summoned to testify and denied any impropriety. The jury concluded Lady Mordaunt suffered “puerperal mania,” committing her to an asylum. The divorce was eventually granted.
6 All That We Publish, We Shall Defend
Feminist Annie Besant and atheist Charles Bradlaugh released the pamphlet *The Fruits of Philosophy*, a controversial guide on contraception. Considered obscene, the publication was seized twenty minutes after the first copies hit the shelves, and the duo were arrested by the Society for the Suppression of Vice. Their trial concluded with a jury finding they had not intended to corrupt the public, yet they were ordered not to republish. Undeterred, Besant and Bradlaugh printed the pamphlet again.
5 Men in Petticoats
During a masked ball at London’s Druid’s Hall in July 1854, George Campbell (35) and John Challis (60) were arrested for “exciting others to commit an unnatural offence” after being found dressed in women’s attire. Homosexuality was illegal, and the ensuing trial scandalized the city. Campbell claimed his costume was a tactic to observe vice for later preaching. Both men received stern warnings after character witnesses painted them in a favourable light.
4 Unspeakable Baseness
Colonel Valentine Baker, a respected officer and friend of the Prince of Wales, faced a public outcry in June 1875 after being accused of raping 22‑year‑old Rebecca Dickenson on a moving train. Dickenson alleged Baker tried to lift her skirts, intrude into her underwear, and kiss her repeatedly. She escaped onto the carriage’s step and screamed for help. Though the rape charge did not stick, Baker was convicted of indecent assault, prompting debate over class privileges in the justice system.
3 Concerned in an Unspeakably Gross Case
In July 1889 a policeman stopped a 15‑year‑old telegraph boy who was carrying eighteen shillings (about £77 today). The boy confessed he earned the money by sleeping with gentlemen at a house on Cleveland Street, a practice shared by other telegraph boys. Scotland Yard raided the house, uncovering a clientele that included Lord Arthur Somerset and Prince Victor Albert “Prince Eddy.” While the British press kept the Prince’s name out, foreign reporters exposed the scandal, and several implicated men fled the country.
2 He Did Not Make Me His Wife
Euphemia “Effie” Gray married art critic John Ruskin in 1846, only to discover her husband deliberately delayed consummation. By 1854 she fell in love with painter John Everett Millais, left Ruskin, and filed for annulment on the grounds that she remained a virgin. The scandal drew harsh commentary, and Queen Victoria barred her from any event where the monarch was present. Nonetheless, she married Millais, and together they raised eight children.
1 A Somewhat Uncertain Character
When William Charles Yelverton, Viscount Avondmore, began a relationship with 20‑year‑old Theresa Longworth, society deemed her “ruined” for cohabiting without marriage. Theresa championed their partnership, followed Yelverton to Scotland and Ireland, and secured a secret church ceremony in 1857. A year later, Yelverton entered a bigamous marriage with another woman. Theresa sued for alimony, but Yelverton argued their marriage was invalid due to religious differences—he was Catholic, she Protestant. After numerous appeals, the courts ruled in his favour.