Legal London in 1900: Coroners' Courts

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Arthur H. Beavan continued his survey of Imperial London, 1901 with this look at the Coroners' Courts:

At what exact period Coroners' Courts were established in Britain it is difficult to determine, some authorities dating them to a remoter period than that of Alfred the Great, the original founder.

(Tradition says that a coroner was appointed by King Alfred, and a coroner is mentioned in the charter granted by King Athelstane in the monastery of St. John of Beverley, A.D. 925.)

One thing is certain, viz. that the "crowner's quest" is an ancient institution, and in old parish registers such entries as the following are common enough:

"1701, Jan. 2nd, Buried, Thomas Hall, Barber, (who dyed by excessive drinkeing) by a report of the Coroner's warrant," reminding one of Lady Olivia's instruction to the clown, "Go thou and seek the Crowner, and let him sit o' my coz; for he's in the third degree of drink; he's drowned."

There were two facts relating to coroners not generally known; one, that the Lord Chief Justice of England was, ex officio, the head-coroner of the kingdom; the other, that under certain circumstances, any "good and lawful man," present or in the neighbourhood, could be drawn to complete a jury panel without the formality of a summons.

The Coroner's duty was to ascertain, on behalf of the Sovereign, how any violent or sudden death had been occasioned.

When the Coroner received due notice of such occurrences, he summonsed a jury to appear at a particular time and place, while the corpse was supposed to remain in the same situation as when death supervened.

No inquest, however, could be held on a Sunday.

Formerly, the jury, after having "viewed the body," generally withdrew to some convenient room in a neighbouring tavern, where the court was held, at the close of which they not unnaturally, after such lugubrious duties, became convivially inclined, the sequel being a prolonged symposium in the bar-parlour.

This rarely happened by 1900; most of the London boroughs having properly-arranged Coroners' court-houses; if not, the inquiry took place in a town-hall or in the parish offices, now and again in a school or mission-room; at times in a hospital; and occasionally in a private dwelling.

There was a special Coroner for His Majesty's Household, also for the City of London and Borough of Southwark; the remainder of the Metropolis being divided into districts - central, northeastern, eastern, western, south-western, south, south-eastern; besides the City of Westminster and Duchy of Lancaster, and Penge divisions.

Peculiar and accidental deaths formed by far the largest proportion of Coroners' verdicts; next in order came suicides (chiefly in the summer months), and, lastly, justifiable homicides and execution of criminals.

London Coroners' salaries were not large, considering the amount or work they had to get through.

It has been calculated that each individual Coroner held, on the average, over one thousand inquests annually, around 1900.

There was little formality about a Coroner's court.

The Coroner necessarily presided, and around him sat the jury, from amongst whom they chose as foreman, the oldest, the most experienced, or the most influential of their number.

At some inquests, solicitors appeared on behalf of the parties interested, and the Coroner's powers of forbearance were often much taxed owing to the frequent differences of opinion, which were apt to merge into what the reporters called a "scene," when tempers were lost all round, and the Coroner had peremptorily to call to order, or to even threaten with incarceration, which he had the power to enforce.

A police-constable - the parish beadle in gown and cocked hat was a thing of the past - was in attendance to regulate the inquisitive public, and, in cases of suspected murder, to take charge of the accused, if committed.

The greatest variety of cases, most of them very sad, came under the Coroner's notice.

It may have been the frightful tragedy of a parent, who, having in a fit of frenzy killed his children, had taken his own life; it mayhave been the pathetic death of a young girl - the old, old story!; or that of a youthful gambler, who, after embezzling his employer's money, and lost it, had not dared to face the consequences.

Deaths from incessant drinking were only too frequent, increasingly so amongst women.

Rarely, too rarely, a flash of humour illuminated the doleful proceedings of a Coroner's court, generally caused by the peculiar testimony of the witnesses.

At Hoxton, for instance, a question of relationship arose, and the lady's husband, stepping forward, said that he could solve it.

"Go on, then," said the Coroner.

"You see by marriage he is my nephew; by marriage you know."

"We don't know," replied the Coroner. "Did the father marry your niece?"

"No, not that, exactly. His mother's sister married my father a second time."

"Oh," gasped the Coroner, "that gets over me. Sit down. We must leave your relationship a mystery."

The witness afterwards endeavoured to explain the matter to a juryman, and got as far as the fact that his father's second wife was stepmother to the deceased's father's mother's sister - but the juryman couldn't wait any longer!

Another amusing case of a similar kind occurred at Camberwell, when the Coroner asked his witness what relation the deceased was to her.

Witness: "He was my husband's mother's uncle; so he would be a cousin, wouldn't he?"

The Coroner: "I really couldn't say. Life is too short for one to attempt to solve a relationship of that kind."

Next: Lunatic Asylums in 1900 London: Bedlam