The Tryal of Charles Lord Mohun, Before the House of Peers in Parliament, for the Murder of William Mountford; Which began the 31 of January 1692. And continued by several Adjournments till the Fourth of February following; The Most Honourable the Lord Marquiss of Carmarthen, Lord President of Their Majesties Council, Being Lord High Steward pro had vice. Together with The Questions in Points of Law, Put by Their Lordships to the Judges; With The Arguments of my Lord Mohun's Counsel, And the Opinions of the Judges upon the said Questions
first edition Hardcover
1693
by [LAW - MURDER TRIAL]
Printed by Edward Jones... and Published by him and Randal Taylor, 1693. First Edition. Hardcover. Near Fine. Modern half calf and marbled paper, gilt-stamped lettering on spine; 300x187mm; pp. [4], 64. Binding is fine. Text block browned, as expected; tiny chips at corners of first two leaves.
In December 1692 the young, but already dissolute Cornish peer, Charles, 4th Lord Mohun, was involved in a fracas arising from a botched attempt to kidnap the popular actress Anne Bracegirdle. Mohun was acting as accomplice to a young army officer (Captain Hill) who had taken a fancy to Bracegirdle and decided not to take no for an answer. Their plan to bundle her into a coach was thwarted by the intervention of several of Bracegirdles neighbours but principally by her fellow actor, William Mountford. In the ensuing scuffle Mountford was stabbed; he died shortly after. His trial was one of the society events of the year, as Mohun had already been part of numerous duels and brawls, and tho he was not yet a member of the House, his father had been a good Whig and the young Lords future vote was not something that either party were keen to squander. His acquittal proved as sensational as the trial itself had been. One newsletter commented bitterly that a commoner would not have been so fortunate; others debated the intricacies of an attempted appeal that it was thought Mountfords widow intended to lodge but which was expected to be stifled by the Lords. Perhaps most intriguing of all was the conclusion drawn by Queen Mary herself, that the verdict was symptomatic of a rot at the very heart of society. Mohun did not learn his lesson. He continued to brawl and only a few years later he was again arrested for another murder (of an apparently unrelated Captain Hill). On this occasion he was spared a trial, though, and took advantage of a royal pardon. Over the next few years he repaid his (Whig) colleagues trust in him by proving a dependable lieutenant in the House. He may well have been fulfilling precisely the same role when he took the field against the (Tory) Duke of Hamilton with fatal consequences for both. (Inventory #: D12884)
In December 1692 the young, but already dissolute Cornish peer, Charles, 4th Lord Mohun, was involved in a fracas arising from a botched attempt to kidnap the popular actress Anne Bracegirdle. Mohun was acting as accomplice to a young army officer (Captain Hill) who had taken a fancy to Bracegirdle and decided not to take no for an answer. Their plan to bundle her into a coach was thwarted by the intervention of several of Bracegirdles neighbours but principally by her fellow actor, William Mountford. In the ensuing scuffle Mountford was stabbed; he died shortly after. His trial was one of the society events of the year, as Mohun had already been part of numerous duels and brawls, and tho he was not yet a member of the House, his father had been a good Whig and the young Lords future vote was not something that either party were keen to squander. His acquittal proved as sensational as the trial itself had been. One newsletter commented bitterly that a commoner would not have been so fortunate; others debated the intricacies of an attempted appeal that it was thought Mountfords widow intended to lodge but which was expected to be stifled by the Lords. Perhaps most intriguing of all was the conclusion drawn by Queen Mary herself, that the verdict was symptomatic of a rot at the very heart of society. Mohun did not learn his lesson. He continued to brawl and only a few years later he was again arrested for another murder (of an apparently unrelated Captain Hill). On this occasion he was spared a trial, though, and took advantage of a royal pardon. Over the next few years he repaid his (Whig) colleagues trust in him by proving a dependable lieutenant in the House. He may well have been fulfilling precisely the same role when he took the field against the (Tory) Duke of Hamilton with fatal consequences for both. (Inventory #: D12884)