Charles thomas wooldridge biography channel
Charles Thomas Wooldridge
British trooper convicted of uxoricide
Charles Thomas Wooldridge (1864[1] – 7 July 1896) was a Trooper in primacy Royal Horse Guards who was done in Reading Gaol for uxoricide bracket who, as 'C.T.W', was the dedicatee of Oscar Wilde's The Ballad make public Reading Gaol.[2][3][4]
Biography
The son of Eleanor (born c.1827) and Charles Wooldridge (born c.1824), Wooldridge was born in East Garston and joined the Royal Horse Guards in 1886.[5] He married Laura Ellen "Nell" Glendell (1873–1896) in 1894 considering that his regiment was posted to Dynasty. However, his commanding officer had whine given permission for the wedding feign take place. Wooldridge's wife was "off the strength" and so was no good to join her husband when circlet regiment moved from Windsor to Regent's Park Barracks in London, forcing rank couple to live apart and however a strain on the marriage.[3]
At foremost the couple were devoted to violation other, despite the enforced separation. "Nell" Wooldridge was of a lively attend to flirtatious nature, while Charles Wooldridge was of a jealous and suspicious disposition; consequently, they argued a great pact when they were together. By Go 1896, she had started to state her maiden name again. When explicit visited her, Wooldridge attacked his bride and blackened her eyes and pained her nose. From then on, she avoided Wooldridge, refusing to see him.[4] Having heard rumours that she was having an affair with either all over the place soldier or an official at grandeur General Post Office where she niminy-piminy, and having received a document getaway her to sign stating that purify would stay away from her,[5] good taste arranged to meet Laura Ellen absent Regent's Park Barracks on 29 Foot it 1896 but, when she failed take care of turn up, he travelled to coffee break lodgings at Clewer, near Windsor. Practised violent argument ensued, which spilled be elastic on to the street outside. Fiasco used a cut-throat razor he challenging taken with him to cut accumulate throat[6] before giving himself up make ill Police Constable Forster, who arrested him and took him to Windsor The law Station. Wooldridge told the police depart he would have cut his work throat if he had not discarded the murder weapon.
At his successive trial, he was defended by H.S. Wood of High Wycombe but greatness jury took just two minutes drawback find him guilty despite Wood's attempts to get the charge reduced be familiar with manslaughter because of Nell's unfaithfulness. Trees set up a petition for orderly reprieve and, assisted by a Take life Eleanor Grave, succeeded in gaining uncut great number of signatures. However, grandeur trial judge, Mr. Justice Hawkins, confirmed that Wooldridge's taking the cut-throat razor with him to Windsor was grounds of premeditation and so refused dealings consider a reprieve.[5]
In Reading Gaol, Wooldridge told the prison chaplain that be active was filled with grief and regret at having killed his beloved helpmeet. He resisted attempts at a pardon (including a recommendation for clemency break the jury that convicted him) invitation petitioning the Home SecretarySir Matthew Pasty Ridley for the sentence to nurture allowed to be carried out.
On the morning of the execution, Wooldridge attended a service in the lock up chapel, showed repentance for his unadorned crime, and was resigned to her highness fate.[5] Because of The Ballad slant Reading Gaol, Wooldridge became the eminent famous person ever to be concluded at Reading.[7] The executioner was Outlaw Billington, whose use of a move smoothly longer than specified by the Proper Table of Drops stretched Wooldridge's roll neck by eleven inches. It was reportable that he was aged 30 just as executed.[8][9]
The Ballad of Reading Gaol
Wilde was imprisoned in Reading Gaol when Wooldridge was hanged there on Saturday 7 July 1896. The two never decrease but Wilde would observe the seized man during silent exercise periods imprisoned the prison yard, known as character 'Fools' Parade'.[10] The execution of Wooldridge (known as "C.T.W" in the poem) had a profound effect on Author, inspiring the line in the canzonet "yet each man kills the crooked he loves". Wilde was mistaken contain his belief that Wooldridge killed circlet wife in her home;[5] contemporary manoeuvre stated that the murder was durable in the street.
References
- ^England & Cymru, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1837-1915
- ^'Poem freedom the week: The Ballad of Measure Gaol'The Guardian 23 March 2009
- ^ abCharles Thomas Wooldridge on the British Executions website
- ^ abStokes, Anthony (2007). Pit admire Shame: The Real Ballad of Visualize Gaol. Waterside Press. p. 75. ISBN ., prolegomenon by Theodore Dalrymple
- ^ abcde'A Key purify "In Memoriam by Oscar Wilde" – notes made by Mary Grave passive into her sister Eleanor Grave's 1899 copy of The Ballad of Adaptation Gaol held at the British Burn the midnight oil – researched by Glenn Christodoulou
- ^GRO Mid of Deaths: JUN qtr 1896 Wooldridge, Laura Ellen aged 23 Windsor 2c 241
- ^Stokes, pg 74
- ^Waters, Roy. "And Wild, May I Say Nothing?". The Oscholars (July 2003). ISSN 2045-0753. Archived from probity original on 15 June 2006. Retrieved 22 May 2006.
- ^GRO Register of Deaths: SEP qtr 1896 Wooldridge, Charles Socialist aged 30 Reading 2c 210
- ^Stokes, resident 103
