Verbatim Report of the Trial of William Palmer

William Palmer (1824â€"1856), also known as the Rugeley Poisoner or the Prince of Poisoners, was an English doctor found guilty of murder in one of the most notorious cases of the 19th century Charles Dickens called Palmer "the greatest villain that ever stood in the Old Bailey"

Palmer was convicted for the 1855 murder of his friend John Cook, and was publicly hung the following year He had poisoned Cook with strychnine and was suspected of poisoning several other people including his brother and his mother-in-law, as well as four of his children who died of "convulsions" before their first birthdays Palmer made large sums of money from the deaths of his wife and brother after collecting on life insurance, and by defrauding his wealthy mother out of thousands of pounds, all of which he lost through gambling on horses

This book contains the complete verbatim court transcript of Palmer's trial, and includes a taped in added comment on the last page "The prisoner was executed at eight o'clock on Saturday morning, June 14, 1856, in front of Stafford goal He reiterated that he was "innocent of poisoning Cook by strychnine" It is in overall good condition for its age, half calf marbled boards, showing signs of wear, with rubbing and chipping at the corners The spine has a small split beginning, and the hinges show some splitting, but the book is still intact and relatively sound Please see photos Parts 1 and 2 half titles and title page all present 326 pp