1826day.year
Shrigley abduction: 15-year old Ellen Turner is abducted by Edward Gibbon Wakefield, a future figure in the establishment of colonies in South Australia and New Zealand.
In 1826, 15-year-old Ellen Turner was abducted in the Shrigley abduction by Edward Gibbon Wakefield.
On March 7, 1826, Edward Gibbon Wakefield kidnapped 15-year-old heiress Ellen Turner from her home in Cheshire, England. Wakefield intended to force a marriage and gain control of her considerable inheritance. The shocking crime quickly attracted widespread media coverage and public outrage. Ellen was rescued by her determined father and British authorities after Wakefield fled to France. The subsequent trial led to Wakefield’s extradition and a life sentence in prison. The case prompted legal reforms concerning abduction, consent, and child protection. The Shrigley abduction remains one of the most notorious criminal scandals of early nineteenth-century England.
1826
Shrigley abduction
abducted
Edward Gibbon Wakefield