Gourt > Society > Crime > Murder > Serial Murder > Serial Killers > Burke and Hare
The West Port murders were perpetrated in 1827-1828 by William Burke and William Hare who sold the corpses of their 16 victims to the Edinburgh Medical College for dissection. Their principal customer was Edinburgh doctor Robert Knox.
Historical background
- Main article History of anatomy in the 19th century.
Before 1832, there was little legitimate supply of cadavers for the study and teaching of anatomy in British medical schools. As medical science began to flourish in the early 19th century, demand rose sharply and attracted criminal elements who were willing to obtain specimens by any means. The activities of body-snatchers and the Resurrectionists gave rise to particular public fear and revulsion.
More on [ West Port murders ]
RT @ChantiParnell: @FirmCheeks Love it, very creative! Sounds like a good plan to me we could be like bonnie and clyde, burke and hare
FirmCheeks (Iain Rose) Sun, 25 Oct 2009 17:43:49 -0000
RT @ChantiParnell: @FirmCheeks Love it, very creative! Sounds like a good plan to me we could be like bonnie and clyde, burke and hare
Thanks to Doylestown Bookshop,http://www.doylestownbookshop.com, for inviting me to talk about Anatomy Murders, true story of Burke and Hare
burkeandhare (Lisa Rosner) Sun, 25 Oct 2009 14:16:06 -0000
Thanks to Doylestown Bookshop,http://www.doylestownbookshop.com, for inviting me to talk about Anatomy Murders, true story of Burke and Hare
Tennant and Pegg team up for Hare an Burke film!!! XD
adrianmurren (Adrian Murren) Sat, 24 Oct 2009 14:08:50 -0000
Tennant and Pegg team up for Hare an Burke film!!! XD
Thanks again to http://bit.ly/1sEsbV for the second verse of Burke and Hare nursery rhyme -- anyone know the tune?
burkeandhare (Lisa Rosner) Sat, 24 Oct 2009 13:54:52 -0000
Thanks again to http://bit.ly/1sEsbV for the second verse of Burke and Hare nursery rhyme -- anyone know the tune?
Burke and Hare were quite a pair, Killed a wife and didnae care. Then they put her in a box, and sent her off to Doctor Knox...
burkeandhare (Lisa Rosner) Sat, 24 Oct 2009 13:12:07 -0000
Burke and Hare were quite a pair, Killed a wife and didnae care. Then they put her in a box, and sent her off to Doctor Knox...
Up the close and down the stair, but and ben with Burke and Hare, Burke's the butcher, Hare's the thief, Knox the boy who buys the beef...
burkeandhare (Lisa Rosner) Sat, 24 Oct 2009 13:10:31 -0000
Up the close and down the stair, but and ben with Burke and Hare, Burke's the butcher, Hare's the thief, Knox the boy who buys the beef...
Hare - A synopsis of the story of these serial killers.
William Hare - Multi-part essay on the killers and their string of victims.
Meta Description: [ Burke & Hare, with their wives, murdered several
people in the early 1800's to sell the bodies to Doctors for research, from The Crime Library ]
Broadside Regarding the Burke and Hare Trials - Transcription of a contemporary broadside which describes Burke's hanging and gives information on some of the murder victims. Also a PDF facsimile of the broadside, and commentary. From the National Library of Scotland.
Burke and Hare--Murder for Money? - Profile of these infamous criminals. [The Scotsman]
Meta Description: [ EDINBURGH flourished in the early 19th century. Basking in the afterglow of the Scottish Enlightenment, the city’s reputation as a centre of science and progress was assured. The Industrial Revolution was generating wealth and improving the city. Even... ]
Burke, William (1792-1829) - Biographical entry on the convicted murderer, from the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica.
Meta Description: [ WILLIAM BURKE (1792–1829) - Online Information article about WILLIAM BURKE (1792–1829) ]
Graverobbers and Dr. Robert Knox - Two-part essay on Burke and Hare follows up on the murderers' best customer and their female companions, after William Burke was hanged.
Meta Description: [ About a series of murders and graverobbings in Scotland, Dr. Robert Knox's place in the crimes and life after the trials. ]
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Graverobbers! The Trial of Burke and Hare - Introduction to the partners with a gruesome trade, and information on movies based on their deeds.
Meta Description: [ The sensational 1828 trial of Scottish graverobbers William Burke and William Hare, criminals who supplied dead bodies for Dr. Robert Knox, an Edinburgh's anatomy instructor. ]
Haunted Edinburgh: Burke and Hare - Breezy account of the serial murders.
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History Sphere: Burke and Hare - Richard Cussans of the Edinburgh City Libraries outlines this pair's murderous career. With nineteenth-century illustrations.
Meta Description: [ Advice, information and services from the City of Edinburgh Council. Covers all aspects of life in Edinburgh from Business to Leisure. ]
The Corpus and the Hare - Supply rose to meet demand in nineteenth-century Edinburgh. Unfortunately, the demand was for fresh corpses. [Modern Drug Discovery]
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The Crime Web: William Burke and William Hare - Biographies of the killers and of their customer Dr. Robert Knox. Recounts the story of the murders, the trial, and the aftermath.
The Resurrectionists - The dark side of Edinburgh's fame for its medical schools was the trade in cadavers. Photographs of city landmarks accompany the story of Burke and Hare.
Meta Description: [ Resurrectionists the story of William Burke and William Hare, Edinburgh's, if not Scotland's most infamous body snatchers (grave robbers) come serial killers. ]
The Story of Burke and Hare - Thumbnail sketch of the crimes and capture of these infamous Edinburgh murderers.
Wikipedia: William Burke and William Hare - Biographical article on the immigrant laborers who briefly had a lucrative trade in murder.
William Burke - Lurid and moralizing account of his crimes, trial, and execution. Includes excerpts from an interview with the condemned murderer. From the Newgate Calendar.
| Ian Rankin meets Burke and Hare at MUSA | |
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