Sydni Fuqua's Timeline: The Body-Snatcher

Created by Sydni Fuqua on Mon, 11/15/2021 - 15:01

Part of Group:

Fall 2021-ENGL2540

This timeline will follow events from the 18th century leading up to the publication of Robert Louis Stevenson's "The Body-Snatcher" in 1884. The timeline's focus is the birth and downfall of the resurrectionist profession and the unfortunate crimes that inspired Stevenson's short story.

Timeline

The Burke and Hare Murders

1829

The 1828 murders by William Burke and William Hare, hired by Dr. Robert Knox, served as the inspiration for Robert Louis Stevenson's "The Body-Snatcher." The two lodging house owners committed a series of sixteen murders that supplied Dr. Knox with the cadavers necessary for his anatomy lectures. These murders shook the country of Scotland and forced Parliament's hand to create the act that would put an end to the resurrectionist profession for good. This sketch by Robert Seymore appeared in the 1829 edition of The Murders of the Close, a novel published in London depicting the details of the horrific crimes that spanned a ten-month period.

Associated Places

No places have been associated with this event

Loading

The Anatomy Act of 1832

1832

After centuries of families suffering from the horrific actions of resurrectionists, the government finally passes The Anatomy Act in 1832. This would end the profession of resurrectionists by allowing anatomists to use donated bodies for their personal studies and lectures. While legally the problem seemed to be solved, the public was still shaken and anxieties surrounding the criminal practice were still prevalent. Stevenson exposes the anxieties surrounding the continuation of the practice despite the legal repercussions in "The Body Snatcher."

Associated Places

No places have been associated with this event

Loading

Resurrectionists

1847

This illustration by Hablot Knight Browne depicts the act of exhumation and the callous nature the men committing the crimes possessed. This specific depiction is of John Holmes and Peter Williams who were punished for their participation in the theft of twenty bodies with the intention to sell in 1777 (The Newgate Calander). This predecessor to the crimes that inspired Stevenson's "The Body-Snatcher" is an example of how the court system and the public despised resurrectionists from the very beginning.

Associated Places

No places have been associated with this event

Loading

The Anatomist

1869

This image by Jean-Jacques Rousseau depicts an anatomist dissecting a cadaver. While this etching was made in 1869 and published in 1889, it captures the cold environment of the dissecting room. The anatomists were the "employers" of the resurrectionists. The lack of available cadavers for educational purposes begins to dwindle from 1506 to 1752. As the demand for bodies increases, doctors begin hiring men to go out and rob graves of their tenants to be taken back to the lab and studied. This is the sort of classroom environment that Dr.K-- in "The Body Snatcher" would have taught Mr. Fetes in.

Associated Places

No places have been associated with this event

Loading

Anatomy Riots

1882

A series of riots in Europe and America blew up in 1788. Families were tired of the graves of their loved ones being desecrated by greedy doctors in the name of science. Unfortunately, their efforts would not incite any governmental interference until the 19th century. This is a sketch of a mob bursting in on an active dissection in an act of protest. The artist is unknown but the image was published in the magazine Harper's Weekly in 1882.

Associated Places

No places have been associated with this event

Loading

The Body-Snatcher

1884

Robert Louis Stevenson's short story "The Body-Snatcher" was published in the newspaper The Pall Mall Gazette in 1884. Stevenson tells the story of a young medical student turned resurrectionist and his spiral into depression as the realization of his actions consumes his mind.

Associated Places

No places have been associated with this event

Loading

The Burke and Hare Murders

The Anatomy Act of 1832

Resurrectionists

The Anatomist

Anatomy Riots

The Body-Snatcher

1690

1700

1710

1720

1730

1740

1750

1760

1770

1780

1790

1800

1810

1820

1830

1840

1850

1860

1870

1880

1890

1900

1910

1920

1930

1940

1950

1960

1970

1980

1990

2000

2010

2020

1815

1816

1817

1818

1819

1821

1822

1823

1824

1825

1826

1827

1828

1829

1831

1832

1833

1834

1835

1836

1837

1838

1839

1841

1842

1843

1844

1845

1846

1847

1848

1849

1851

1852

1853

1854

1855

1856

1857

1858

1859

1861

1862

1863

1864

1865

1866

1867

1868

1869

1871

1872

1873

1874

1875

1876

1877

1878

1879

1881

1882

1883

1884

1885

1886

1887

1888

1889

1891

1892

1893

1894

1895

1896

1897

Chronological table

Displaying 1 - 6 of 6

Date	Event	Created by	Associated Places
1829	The Burke and Hare Murders Burke Murdering Margerey Campbell The 1828 murders by William Burke and William Hare, hired by Dr. Robert Knox, served as the inspiration for Robert Louis Stevenson's "The Body-Snatcher." The two lodging house owners committed a series of sixteen murders that supplied Dr. Knox with the cadavers necessary for his anatomy lectures. These murders shook the country of Scotland and forced Parliament's hand to create the act that would put an end to the resurrectionist profession for good. This sketch by Robert Seymore appeared in the 1829 edition of The Murders of the Close, a novel published in London depicting the details of the horrific crimes that spanned a ten-month period.	Sydni Fuqua
1832	The Anatomy Act of 1832 The Anatomy Act of 1832 After centuries of families suffering from the horrific actions of resurrectionists, the government finally passes The Anatomy Act in 1832. This would end the profession of resurrectionists by allowing anatomists to use donated bodies for their personal studies and lectures. While legally the problem seemed to be solved, the public was still shaken and anxieties surrounding the criminal practice were still prevalent. Stevenson exposes the anxieties surrounding the continuation of the practice despite the legal repercussions in "The Body Snatcher."	Sydni Fuqua
1847	Resurrectionists "Resurrectionists" This illustration by Hablot Knight Browne depicts the act of exhumation and the callous nature the men committing the crimes possessed. This specific depiction is of John Holmes and Peter Williams who were punished for their participation in the theft of twenty bodies with the intention to sell in 1777 (The Newgate Calander). This predecessor to the crimes that inspired Stevenson's "The Body-Snatcher" is an example of how the court system and the public despised resurrectionists from the very beginning.	Sydni Fuqua
1869	The Anatomist "Mr Le Professeur C...." This image by Jean-Jacques Rousseau depicts an anatomist dissecting a cadaver. While this etching was made in 1869 and published in 1889, it captures the cold environment of the dissecting room. The anatomists were the "employers" of the resurrectionists. The lack of available cadavers for educational purposes begins to dwindle from 1506 to 1752. As the demand for bodies increases, doctors begin hiring men to go out and rob graves of their tenants to be taken back to the lab and studied. This is the sort of classroom environment that Dr.K-- in "The Body Snatcher" would have taught Mr. Fetes in.	Sydni Fuqua
1882	Anatomy Riots "An Interrupted Dissection" A series of riots in Europe and America blew up in 1788. Families were tired of the graves of their loved ones being desecrated by greedy doctors in the name of science. Unfortunately, their efforts would not incite any governmental interference until the 19th century. This is a sketch of a mob bursting in on an active dissection in an act of protest. The artist is unknown but the image was published in the magazine Harper's Weekly in 1882.	Sydni Fuqua
1884	The Body-Snatcher "The Body Snatcher" Robert Louis Stevenson's short story "The Body-Snatcher" was published in the newspaper The Pall Mall Gazette in 1884. Stevenson tells the story of a young medical student turned resurrectionist and his spiral into depression as the realization of his actions consumes his mind.	Sydni Fuqua