The mysterious story of the killer under the pseudonym “Jack the Ripper”, who operated in the East End adjacent to London, is familiar to the whole world. Despite the fact that all the events that make your blood run cold took place in the distant 19th century, some forensic experts present time trying to unravel a mysterious string of murders in Whitechapel.

There are a huge number of incredible guesses about who Jack the Ripper was, but none has been confirmed to this day.

The 19th century was a time of great power for the British Empire. One successful military campaign followed another, so the vast territory belonging to the power was scattered across all corners of the world. However, in the heart of the empire, in London, there was a place that was avoided for several kilometers, because it was the very symbol of shame, depravity and everything that should be hated and despised. This area was called the East End. There was unbearable chaos here, children were dying of hunger and poverty on the streets of the area, prostitution and murder were the order of the day. It seems that there is no more attractive place for the most cruel and bloody killer, whose fame has reached through centuries and time to the present day.

Dark corners of the streets and hidden narrow passages between houses became the sites of the bloodiest abuses. None of the murders of the 20th century can compare with the cruelty that Jack the Ripper used as his signature. His victims were only five female night harlots operating in the East End. Today there are two questions: were these women random victims, and who was Jack the Ripper? There is a version that he belonged to the upper echelon of British society. Therefore, interest in this matter has become widespread.

The first victim was a prostitute named Mary Ann Nichols, who made her living in a place called Whitechapel. A brutally torn corpse was discovered on August 31, 1888 in one of the alleys. This, in fact, was only the beginning of absolute hell and the temporary power of Jack the Ripper in this place.

“Pretty Polly” was unremarkable; she loved to drink and stayed out late in bars and pubs during her free time from work. The detectives involved in the case suggested that while Mary Ann, in a “drunken stupor,” approached the tall gentleman and offered her services, he grabbed her by force and dragged her into a secluded dark alley, which became the crime scene. Upon examination, medical doctor was amazed that the victim's face was ripped open from ear to ear. The conclusion stated that only a person who confidently uses a knife can kill in this way. Since the crime rate in this place exceeded all unimaginable indicators, the police did not proceed with the case, because they considered that there was nothing unusual in this crime.

A week later, a second body of a woman named Annie Chapman was found. Although the police medic was unable to determine whether rape had occurred, it was clear that Jack had stabbed and disemboweled the victim in sexual arousal. The fact that the woman’s entrails were laid out next to the corpse itself indicated that the maniac had sophisticated knowledge of the anatomical structure of the human body. Therefore, the version that it could be an ordinary abnormal prisoner or a criminal disappeared by itself. The brutal maniac-killer, shortly after committing the second murder, sent a mocking letter to the police station, where he made known his plans to cut off the ears of his next victim and send them to the police for fun. At the end he signed himself as Jack the Ripper.

The second letter turned out to be much worse than the first, since it contained half of the cut out kidney from the victim, and the second half, according to his beliefs, he ate himself.

The third victim of the restless killer was a woman nicknamed “Long Liz.” When a ragpicker was passing by one of the alleys, he saw a strange bag and immediately contacted the police. Presumably, the victim was killed from the back, as evidenced by the woman’s specifically ripped throat.

Just a few hours later, a fourth woman was found dead. The victim's name was Catherine Edows. Her face was severely cut and disfigured, and both ears were cut off. In addition, her entrails were gutted and placed in the area of ​​her right shoulder. At that time, all of London already knew about the brutal murders taking place and was seriously scared. On the wall, next to the corpse, a message was left in blood that said that “Jews are not people who can be blamed for anything.” The senior chief of the police station, named C. Warren, personally destroyed the inscription, which could have been significant evidence in the case.

The fifth murder was different from the others, as the victim was a wealthier prostitute and could even afford a private room. Her name was Mary Kelly. Her corpse was also brutally mutilated and cut up in the little room she rented. An autopsy revealed that the woman was pregnant. This was the latest in a series of brutal murders.

Scotland Yard had a huge number of guesses, among which there was even a version that the maniac was a Russian doctor named M. Ostrog, who was performing an important task royal family and fuels conflict between the local population and Jews arriving from Eastern Europe. I wasn't and latest version that the maniac is a talented surgeon and professional who belongs to the secret Franco-Masonic order, which is why the head of the police erased the inscription in order to save an important person from exposure.

The most interesting version of who Jack the Ripper was was the assumption of involvement royal family to these murders. The suspect was the queen's grandson, Prince Albert Victor, who had some specific sexual needs. However, he was soon sent to a psychiatric hospital, as he went crazy due to the discovery of syphilis. However, it is worth remembering that the victims were killed by a hand that wields a knife well. With syphilis, severe tremor is observed, which refutes this version.

Currently, there are a huge number of guesses about who Jack the Ripper was. Unfortunately, none of them could be confirmed. But one thing became clear: this was a man who could not be an ordinary butcher or peasant, for such colossal knowledge in anatomy can only be acquired through study.

No related links found

 March 29, 2017, 13:40

I don't know if anyone has made a post on Gossip Cop about Jack the Ripper. I decided to make a post about these murders after about three weeks ago, in foreign media appeared a new version who the slum prostitute killer really is. And then I thought, what do I even know about these murders? I know that a certain maniac killed prostitutes in a disadvantaged area of ​​London at the end of the 19th century. (My post contains photos and details of the crime that are not recommended for particularly impressionable people.)
According to Wikipedia: Jack the Ripper was the alias given to a serial killer who operated in Whitechapel and surrounding areas of London during the second half of 1888. The nickname is taken from a letter sent to the Central News Agency, the author of which claimed responsibility for the murders. Many experts consider the letter to be a falsification, created by journalists to stir up public interest in history. The Ripper is also known as the Whitechapel Murderer and the Leather Apron.
The victims attributed to Jack the Ripper were slum prostitutes whose throats were slashed by the killer before cutting open their abdomens. The removal of internal organs from at least three of the victims led to the assumption that the killer had certain anatomical knowledge characteristic of a professional surgeon (i.e., he was an educated person for that time). Rumors that there was a link between the murders intensified between September and October 1888, and many letters purporting to be in the killer's handwriting were received by various publishing houses and Scotland Yard.
Victims.
The exact number of Jack the Ripper victims is currently unknown and is the subject of debate and ranges from 4 to 15. However, there is a list of five "canonical" victims that most researchers and those involved in the investigation of the case agree on. In particular, the Chief Constable of the Criminal Investigation Department, Melville McKnighten, adhered to the version of the five victims. It is highly likely that Martha Tabrem also died at the hands of the killer; Inspector Abberline, one of the leaders of the investigation into the Jack the Ripper case, added her to the list of five canonical victims. On my own behalf, I will add that according to some sources (there are also such versions), the victims of the killer were children.

Mary Ann Nichols (known as "Polly"), born August 26, 1845, killed August 31, 1888. Mary Nichols' body was discovered at 3:40 am in Bucks Row (now Durward Street).
Annie Chapman (known as "Dark Annie"), born September 1841, killed September 8, 1888. Annie Chapman's body was discovered at about 6am in the back garden of 29 Hanbury Street, Spitalfields.
Elizabeth Stride (known as "Long Liz"), born in Sweden November 27, 1843, killed September 30, 1888. Stride's body was discovered at about one o'clock in the morning, in Duttlefields Yard on Berren Street, her earlobe had been cut off, as promised by the Ripper.
Catherine Eddowes, born April 14, 1842, murdered September 30, 1888, on the same day as another victim, Elizabeth Stride. Kate Eddowes' body was discovered in Miter Square at 1.45am.
Mary Jane Kelly, born in Ireland in 1863, killed November 9, 1888. Mary Kelly's mutilated corpse was found in her own room at 10:45 a.m. Mary Jane Kelly was the youngest and most attractive of all, and therefore earned more than the rest and had the opportunity to rent the room in which she was killed.
I deliberately did not include details of the murders in my post; all these victims are united by an identical method of murder - all had their throats cut, some victims had different internal organs.
Murder scene. Prostitutes found their clients on Whitechapel High Street, the main street of the area, and on Fieldgate Street, which intersects with it. Having agreed on a price, the prostitute and the client found a secluded place where they could not be disturbed by some random passer-by. It was in such “secluded places” that four Ripper victims were found.


(The map shows the places where the bodies of the victims were found, don’t be surprised at the 7 points, lately a lot of things have been attributed to the “Ripper”)
When I was preparing this post, I was faced with the fact that discrepancies occur not only in the interpretation of versions, but also a lot of unclear facts in the interpretation of police reports.
Almost a month before the series of murders, on August 10, 1888, in Whitechapel, the body of 40-year-old prostitute Martha Tabram was found (39 stab wounds in the body and intimate parts"). At 2:30 a.m., a constable patrolling the western part of Whitechapel and knowing by sight many representatives of the ancient profession saw Martha. The woman was walking at a leisurely pace along Whitechapel High Street. The constable did not pay much attention to her, because this was a common occurrence for that time of day and place - a prostitute was looking for a client. After 1 hour and 15 minutes he came across a lifeless body lying on Gunthorpe Street, near the fence, opposite the Victorian terrace.

First victim Mary Ann Nichols 43 year old prostitute. She had a husband and five children, but “Polly” (as her friends called her) became an alcoholic and last years spent her life at the bottom of society. On the night of her death, she did not have enough money for a place to stay. She went out into the street, telling her friends that she would soon earn the 4 pence she was looking for “with the help of her new hat.” Her body, according to some sources, was discovered by a random passer-by and driver Charles Cross (and here the first discrepancies began. I found an article by M. Popov, who was able to synchronize those protocols that have survived to this day). At 4 a.m., Charles Cross saw a woman lying on the ground with her skirt pulled up. The driver thought that the woman had been raped and, in order not to later become the main suspect, Charles called a man passing by, he was Robert Paul. And here Cross still becomes a suspect, because... according to Robert Paul, who approached Mary Ann’s body a little later than Cross, the victim’s eyelids were still twitching, which means she was killed only a few minutes earlier, but Cross, according to him, did not notice this: “For some reason Cross strongly resisted the idea of ​​calling police, then, citing haste, left the scene." Having met policeman (const. John Neil) on the road, Cross told him about the corpse. The oddities in Cross's behavior were never investigated by the police. Dr. Rhys Llewellyn, who arrived at the crime scene, discovered that death was caused by two huge cuts in the throat (from ear to ear), and this happened a maximum of half an hour ago, since the body was still warm. A little blood flowed out, most of it was absorbed into the clothes.


Second victim Annie Chapman. A prostitute and homeless alcoholic who suffered from tuberculosis and syphilis. At the time of her death she was not quite 47 years old and 20 years old." length of service" A few days before her death, she got into a fight with a woman over a bar of soap, received a black eye and lost her “marketable appearance.” That is why, on the night of September 7-8, 1888, “Dark Annie” did not have the money to pay for the overnight stay. Annie wandered the streets in search of a "client". She was last seen at 5 am, talking with some man (the witness caught only one of her remarks - “No”).
At 6 o'clock her body was found in the back yard of 29 Hanbury Street. This place is located next to the market, so in the morning it is quite lively - people go to work, carts with goods drive along the roads. Dr. Phillips, who examined the corpse, stated that the internal organs were dissected very professionally. He himself would have needed at least 15 minutes to do this in a calm environment, and most likely about an hour. He also sets the estimated time of death: 4-4.30 am. But this contradicted the testimony of witnesses. The first witness was Albert Kadesh, who lived in the house next door to the one in whose yard the murder took place. He suffered from rheumatic pains all night, and also kept the window ajar. The man claimed that he heard a woman's frightened exclamation at 5 o'clock in the morning. The second witness was Elizabeth Long. The owner of a small shop in a shopping area was passing through the ill-fated courtyard at 5:30 a.m. The woman firmly stated that she had not seen any corpse, but on the corner of the house she met the late Annie Chapman in the company of a man: “The prostitute had a nice conversation with this gentleman. He looked normal. Hat, jacket, trousers. In his hands he held a dark bag. The clothes were also dark. Nothing special. The stranger was of average height - around 5 feet and 7 or 8 inches (a foot is 30.48 cm; an inch is 2.54 cm).” It seemed to Elizabeth Long that the stranger was most likely a foreigner, perhaps Italian or French.
The murder of Annie Chapman matched the murder of Mary Ann Nichols and Scotland Yard combined the two cases into one proceeding. The investigation was led by Chief Inspector Joseph Chandler of the London Police. In his investigation, he tried to be guided by materials forensics, and not the testimony of witnesses.
First letter. Letter “Dear Boss...”, dated September 25; postmarked 27 September 1888 by Central News Agency, delivered to Scotland Yard 29 September. Initially believed to be a forgery, when Eddowes was found three days after the date on the postmark with her ear partially cut off, the letter's promise to "cut off the lady's ears" came to the attention of the police. Police released the letter on October 1 in the hope that someone would be able to recognize the author's handwriting, but to no avail.
This letter was also lost, like the others. Only a copy of it was preserved in the police file.


On the night of September 29-30 on Berener Street, near a late-night eatery. The woman's body lay face down on the sidewalk. He was discovered at one in the morning by the Russian Jew Louis Demschutz (to his misfortune, he lit a match). The man saw "Long Lizzie" lying on her back on the ground. Blood was still flowing from her throat. And this meant only one thing - Demshitz involuntarily scared off the killer, preventing him from opening the victim’s stomach. Demshitz entered the diner, invited two customers with him, and the three of them headed towards the body. Later, one of them ran after the police.
A doctor and local police authorities arrived at the scene of the crime and as soon as they began to examine, one of the constables patrolling the area near Miter Square, located 500 meters from Berener Street, appeared. Constable Edward Watkins, 45 minutes later, while patrolling Miter Square (a quarter of a mile from the previous crime scene), discovered the gutted corpse of Catherine Eddowes (and this time the maniac had taken the uterus and kidney).
Prostitution was not the main income for Katherine; she had three adult children, whom she left in the care of her ex-husband, and she lived with her partner. She had problems with alcohol, and maybe that was what ruined her. There was no booze at home, and no money either, so Katherine decided to go to her daughter and borrow money for alcohol. On the way, she manages to get drunk (it’s unclear how without money) and end up at the police station, which, in the light of subsequent events, could easily be called a “gift of fate,” if not for the excessive talkativeness of the “detainee.” She annoyed the duty officer so much that at 12.30. night, he took her out into the street, where a little over an hour later they would find her, but already dead.
The police authorities were furious, firstly, a double murder had occurred, and secondly, at the alleged time of the crime, at least three constables were patrolling the square :) and the killer had no more than 15 minutes to do everything about it, and even with the presence of lighting .





On the night of the double murder, when Elizabeth Stride and Catherine Eddowes died at the hands of the Ripper, police constable Alfred Long, who discovered Catherine's body, made another discovery. He found a piece of bloody apron against the wall of one of the houses on Goulston Street, not far from the scene of the murder, and on the wall itself there was a chalk inscription with many spelling errors that read: “The Jews are not people who can be blamed for anything.” They wanted to photograph her, but Commissioner Charles Warren ordered the evidence to be erased, supposedly so that it would not provoke pogroms of the Jews. This, and the fact that the word "Jews" was misspelled (juwes), supposedly characteristic of the Freemasons, gave rise to the legend that the Ripper belonged to the "masons' lodge", and Warren - also a Freemason - defended him. But its existence became known anyway.
If previously only locals, that is, the inhabitants of the area themselves, knew about the murders in Whitechappel, because... newspapers mentioned these “incidents” in passing, but after the double murder everyone began to write about the Ripper. And the whole world learned about the Whitechappel area. A hail of criticism fell on the police. The Queen herself publicly expressed dissatisfaction with the work of the London police to the Prime Minister. On Mailbox The police received a flurry of correspondence, in which some wrote on behalf of “Jack the Ripper,” while others vilified the negligent police for no reason. The police were forced to check every letter; this wasted a lot of precious time, and most importantly, human resources.



Second letter. The From Hell Letter, also known as the Lusk Letter, is postmarked October 15, received by George Lusk from the Whitechapel Vigilance Committee on October 16, 1888. Opening a small box, Lask found half a human kidney in it (according to a later statement by a medical expert, preserved in “wine alcohol” ethanol). One of Eddowes' kidneys was cut out by the killer. The letter notes that he "roasted and ate" the other half. However, there is disagreement among experts about the kidney, with some arguing that it belonged to Eddowes, while others argue that it was "a dark joke and nothing more."
DNA tests carried out on the surviving letters may provide results that shed light on the circumstances of the case. Australian professor of molecular biology Ian Findlay, examining the remains of DNA, came to the conclusion that the author of the letter was most likely a woman. It is noteworthy that at the end of the 19th century, a certain Mary Piercy, who was hanged for the murder of her lover’s wife in 1890, was mentioned among the candidates for the role of the Ripper. And here the question arises: where was the DNA sample taken from, if the original letters have not been preserved?


(Photo of the knife found at the scene of the murder of Catherine Eddowes)
Fifth victim. Mary Jane Kelly was 25 years old at the time of the murder and had an attractive appearance. “Colleagues at work” characterized Mary Kelly as a very strange girl. Periods of deep apathy and despondency were easily replaced in her behavior by attacks of hysterical gaiety. Her friends saw the reason for this as Mary smoking opium. Furthermore, a year before tragic events 1883 The police detained Mary Kelly because she rushed at her with a razor in her hand during a quarrel with a friend in one of the bars.
On the morning of November 9 at 10.45 am, the owner of number 13 Millers Court sent his assistant Thomas Boyer to collect the rent from Kelly. The assistant touched the door, it gave way and opened, and then a monstrous picture appeared to Thomas. Mary Callie's body was brutally tortured. The internal organs were spread out around the room. The heart was missing.
It was last victim"Jack the Ripper".


Versions. Rumor accused Queen Victoria's grandson, Prince Albert Victor, of the series of murders. What were these suspicions based on?
According to the testimony of one prostitute (only drafts of the testimony have been preserved), November 3, 1888: “An unknown person approached on the street a tall man with curly blond hair. He looked very respectable. He smelled of money, prosperity and nobility. He started talking to the prostitute, and then suddenly grabbed her by the throat and began to choke her. A random passer-by appeared in the distance. The man immediately loosened his grip, hit the woman on the head with the cane and ran away. The cane was not some cheap one, but with a gold knob depicting the head of a lion. This is exactly the accessory that had crown prince Albert Victor." But the thing is that any wealthy Englishman could afford to have a similar cane, and on the day of the murder of the third and fourth victims, the Prince was actually in Scotland (and during the remaining murders he was also outside London).
Sir John Williams, the surgeon who treated Queen Victoria, was accused of the murders. Hollywood combined these two versions into one (“From Hell” with the brilliant Johnny Depp and Heather Graham).
John Williams' wife, Lizzie Williams, came under suspicion. Following some incredible logic, people thought that Lizzie killed prostitutes, because... she herself could not have children.
There was a version that the “Ripper” was the 5th victim - Mary Jane Kelly. She killed her friends with particular cruelty, and in the end one of her roommates found out about this, tracked her down and dealt with her. The argument in favor of this version is that after Mary Jane's death the killings stopped.
According to one version, the mentally ill Polish emigrant Aaron Kosminsky was hiding under the name of Jack the Ripper. This version may have been confirmed by analysis of DNA samples, the results of which were published in the media in 2014. The research was carried out by Jari Louhelainen, associate professor of molecular biology at Liverpool John Moores University. He took the genetic material needed for the tests from a shawl allegedly found near the body of Catherine Eddowes, one of the victims of Jack the Ripper. This shawl, which has not been washed since the murder, was provided by businessman Russell Edwards, who bought it at auction in 2007. According to the businessman, one of the police officers working at the crime scene took the scarf home for his wife. As a result of the analyzes performed, Louhelainen, who compared the samples found on the shawl with the DNA of the descendants of the victim and the murder suspects, came to the conclusion that the DNA fragments found belonged to Catherine Eddowes and Aaron Kosminsky.
According to Russell Edwards, who published a book about his investigation, Naming Jack the Ripper, in 2014, the serial killer worked as a hairdresser in the Whitechapel area of ​​London. Kosminsky was one of the suspects in the Whitechapel murders, but the police were never able to prove his guilt. At the time of the first crimes (in 1888), Kosminsky was 23 years old. Later, Kosminsky was also accused of trying to kill his sister, was declared mentally ill and in 1891 was sent to prison. compulsory treatment, spending the rest of his life in psychiatric clinics. The murders never happened again. The results of the research by Edwards and Louhelainen were not properly published and were not subjected to scientific peer review, and the correctness of the conclusions of genetic examinations also raised questions among experts.



"Irises", Van Gogh.
The author of the book "Vincent, nicknamed Jack" Dale Larner compared the facts known about mysterious Jack The Ripper, with some facts concerning the great artist Van Gogh, and came to the conclusion that this is the same person. According to the author, Van Gogh “hid” the image of the Ripper’s victim in one of his paintings. Dale Larner found outlines in Van Gogh’s painting “Irises” that resemble the position of the body and mutilated face of one of Jack the Ripper’s victims, Mary Kelly. Secondly, similarities were discovered in the spelling of some letters taken from the letters of Van Gogh and the Ripper. Thirdly, according to Larner, a connection was found between the date of the murders and the birthday of Vincent van Gogh’s mother - four victims of the London killer were discovered a few days before the birthday of the painter’s mother (she was born on September 10). In addition, the Dutch artist moved from Holland to London at the age of 20. A dismembered female body was fished out of the Thames just a couple of months after his arrival. This was the first murder. The second followed another nine months later, just when Vincent was rejected by his landlord's daughter. Between September 24 and December 23, 1888, Jack the Ripper wrote numerous letters to the police. The longest break was five days. The next period of writing messages was December 23, 1888 - January 8, 1889. The break was 16 days. And on December 23, Vincent Van Gogh cut off his ear in an attack of schizophrenia. He remained in the hospital until January 7, from where he could not send a letter. At the age of 37 in 1890, Vincent van Gogh committed suicide.
And here is the version that prompted me to write this post. Crime writer from the USA Patricia Cornwell in her book “Portrait of a Murderer: Jack the Ripper. Case closed" suggested that Walter Stikkert may have been involved in the Whitechapel murders. This version is “young” from 1993. According to various sources, Cornwell spent about $5 million on her research. Cornwell (according to some sources) bought 32! Stikkert's paintings and his desk. What is her version based on?

Here is an excerpt from an article by Trevor Marriott. Cornwell came up with the idea because Sickert, as his son revealed on a BBC television program twenty years ago, was associated with Prince Albert Victor and senior government officials at the time of the murders.
According to Cornwell, Sickert rented several premises in the slums of the East End. This has not been proven, but the author knows that he rented premises in Camden Town, north London. Sickert's models were poor, unattractive female prostitutes. One of these paintings, which aroused Cornwell's suspicions, was called "Murder in Camdentown".

The scene depicted by the artist was similar to the murder scene of Mary Kelly, according to photographs taken by police. However, this picture, like other similar works by Sickert, was painted only many years after the Whitechapel nightmare, when anyone could see photographs from the scene of Kelly's murder.
But Cornwell’s greatest suspicions arose after studying the letters of numerous “Rippers”. The sender has repeatedly stated that he despises prostitutes and wants to cleanse the world of them. Cornwell suggested that Sickert had ample reason to hate prostitutes: his grandmother was one when she worked in a dance establishment, and her daughter, Sickert's mother, was illegitimate. IN Victorian era there was an opinion that if a girl worked as a prostitute, then she had a genetic defect that was inherited. According to Cornwell, Sickert was born with a genetic defect of the penis, which is why he adolescence he needed surgery.
According to the writer, this would prevent him from having children. She had no direct evidence linking Sickert to the Whitechapel murders. But that didn't stop her from speculating that he might be the Ripper.


Cornwell believed she would find confirmation of her theory if she obtained DNA traces left on letters allegedly sent by the Ripper. Despite the fact that many considered absolutely all the letters to be fakes, she still came to London with a group of forensic experts. There she was given permission to study letters from State Archive. However, she discovered that they had been sealed in plastic for preservation, which destroyed the original DNA. No traces of DNA were found on any of them. But Corunell did not give up. She did find a letter, which, oddly enough, was not transferred to the archives, avoided contact with hot plastic and was suitable for DNA testing. The first test showed that there were no traces of primary DNA left on the letter. But Cornwell noticed something that no one paid attention to - the watermark of Pirie and Sons, a manufacturer of first-class stationery of the time. In Sickert's archives, Cornwell found information that in 1888 the artist used precisely these stationery items. After examining other letters from the archive, she discovered four more watermarks that could also be found on the stationery of Sickert and his wife. Wanting Sickert's DNA, Cornwell purchased one of his paintings, cut it up, examined the canvas and frame for fingerprints or blood, but found nothing. She also found nothing on his drawing table.
After the first analysis did not reveal DNA particles on the unsealed letter, Cornwell's team decided to look for secondary, or mitochondrial, DNA on the letter. And they did it! Traces of secondary DNA were also found on Sickert's letters, but it was a mixture of DNA different people. There were slight similarities between the secondary DNA on the Ripper letter and the Sickert letters. Cornwell suggested that the mitochondrial DNA particles from Sickert and the Ripper belonged to the same person, but experts disagreed with her.
So is there any evidence to refute Cornwell's theory that Sickert was the Ripper? Well, there are unconfirmed reports that Sickert was not in the country at all when some of the murders took place. He is said to have been painting in France from August to October 1888, although Cornwell claims that he was a secretive man and that even his close friends did not know where he was at any given time. But she has no evidence. But the writer claims that “The case is closed” and “If you have evidence of Stikkert’s non-involvement, bring it to me.”

Who is Jack the Ripper

Jack the Ripper(English) ) - an alias assigned to a serial killer who operated in Whitechapel (London area)

and surrounding areas in the second half of 1888. The nickname is taken from a letter sent to the Central News Agency. Central News Agency), whose author claimed responsibility for the murders, Jack the Ripper is also called the "Whitechapel Murderer" and the "Leather Apron". Jack the Ripper's victims were slum prostitutes whose throats were slashed by the killer before ripping open their abdomens. Metropolitan Police Service documents indicate that detectives' investigations included a review of 11 murders of women that occurred between 1888 and 1891. Five of these, the so-called "canonical" victims: Mary Ann Nichols, Annie Chapman, Elizabeth Stride, Catherine Eddowes and Mary Jane Kelly, are generally accepted, and six others: Emma Elizabeth Smith, Martha Tabram, Rose Mallett, Alice Mackenzie, Frances Coles and an unidentified woman are said to be possible. The speed of the attacks and the damage to the victims' bodies suggested that the killer may have had the skills of a doctor or butcher.

Jack the Ripper. Still from the film “From Hell”

At the end of the 19th century British Empire experienced times of greatest prosperity. Its possessions were scattered throughout the globe, they were inhabited by people of various races and religions. But in the center of this huge empire there was a place where, as journalists wrote, the sun never looked. The East End of London was a disgrace to Britain and the entire civilized world. People lived here in poverty and squalor. Infant mortality in the area British capital doubled average level around the country. Prostitution and binge drinking, child sexual abuse, murder and fraud have become common features of the local way of life. All this turned out to be a well-manured breeding ground for a killer whose black fame has reached our days. The streets and alleys of the East End became the scene of his bloody deeds.

The crimes of Jack the Ripper are incomparable, of course, with the massive horrors that the twentieth century presented to humanity. He killed, however, with savage cruelty, only five women. But in this case, the question is who the perpetrator was. There are strong suspicions that Jack the Ripper was a member of the upper echelons of British society. It was these suspicions that aroused such enormous public interest in the “Beast of the East End”... In October 1888, “ City government London Police revealed that there are more than 1,200 prostitutes working in the city and 62 brothels operating. The decline in the economy influenced the development of various social trends. In the period from 1886 to 1889, England was rocked by a wave of public demonstrations, in which city authorities were forced to intervene. Racism, high crime and extreme poverty - this is what characterizes Whitechapel at that time Moscow

Jack the Ripper victims

The exact number of Jack the Ripper victims is currently unknown and is the subject of debate and ranges from 4 to 15. However, there is a list of five "canonical" victims that most researchers and those involved in the investigation of the case agree on.

Jack the Ripper victims: Mary Ann Nichols, Annie Chapman, Elizabeth Stride, Catherine Eddowes, Mary Jennette Kelly. London police photographs 1888

Five canonical victimsJack the Ripper

Police photograph taken after Mary Kelly's murder

It was established that five murders were the work of the Ripper. His victims were:

Mary Ann Nichols

Annie Chapman

Elizabeth Stride

Jack the Ripper's third victim - "Long Lizzie" (Elizabeth Stride)

Catherine Eddowes

• Catherine Eddowes (ur. Catharine Eddowes), born April 14, 1842, killed September 30, 1888, on the same day as another victim, Elizabeth Stride. Kate Eddowes' body was discovered in Miter Square at 1.45am.

Fourth victim - Catherine Eddowes

• While patrolling Miter Square (a quarter of a mile from the previous crime scene), the constable discovered the gutted corpse of Catherine Eddowes (this time the maniac took the uterus and kidney). Realizing that a double murder had occurred, the police raided the entire area but found no one. This was almost incredible, because at the alleged time of the crime there were at least three constables patrolling the area.

Mary Jane Kelly

Is Jack the Ripper a highly skilled surgeon?!

One of the most controversial issues is the level of knowledge of Jack the Ripper in the field of anatomy. Disputes on this topic began even at the time when the murders were committed, and continue among researchers in the Ripper case to this day. The reason for this was the reports of medical experts who performed autopsies on the victims, who stated that the nature of some of the wounds and the professionalism with which the victims' organs were removed indicates that the killer may have been a highly skilled surgeon.

Almost all the doctors who performed autopsies on more than one of Jack the Ripper's canonical victims attributed to him some knowledge of anatomy and skill as a surgeon, but opinions about the level of knowledge varied widely - some said that such skills could easily have been possessed by an ordinary butcher, others argued that that it could only be a surgeon. Medical experts also determined that he was left-handed.

Dr. Phillips, who performed the autopsy on Annie Chapman, argued that the murder was the work of a professional who was literate enough in anatomy to not damage the organs he removed with a knife. Dr. Phillips also added that he would have needed at least half an hour in a calm environment to perform such an organ removal, while the killer only needed 15 minutes.

The last and most brutal was the murder of Mary Jennette Kelly: the killer gutted the corpse, took out the heart and kidneys and carefully laid out the pieces of the body around the room.

Letters from the Ripper

During the investigation of the Ripper case, the police, newspapers, and representatives of other organizations received thousands of letters related in one way or another to the Ripper case. Sometimes they contained well-thought-out methods for catching the killer, but the vast majority of them were found to be inapplicable.

From the point of view of the investigation, much more interesting were the hundreds of letters that, as they claimed, were written by the killer himself. Most likely, they are all a hoax; however, the following three letters are singled out based on their exclusivity:

Letter “Dear boss...”

Postcard "Sassy Jackie"

Letter "From Hell"

DNA tests carried out on the surviving letters may provide results that shed light on the circumstances of the case. Australian professor of molecular biology Ian Findlay, examining the remains of DNA, came to the conclusion that the author of the letter was most likely a woman. It is noteworthy that at the end of the 19th century, a certain Mary Piercy, who was hanged for the murder of her lover’s wife in 1890, was mentioned among the candidates for the role of the Ripper.

Suspects in the Jack the Ripper case

Montague John Druitt

Montague John Druitt(August 15, 1857 - early December 1888), lawyer and, part-time, assistant school teacher. In 1888 he was fired, and a little later his body was found in the Thames. Presumably, Druitt was homosexual, which is why he lost his job, which, in turn, pushed him to commit suicide. It is also known that Druitt's mother and grandmother suffered from mental disorders, the appearance of symptoms of which in Druitt could also be the reason for his dismissal from school. His death shortly after the murder of the fifth canonical victim attracted the attention of the Chief Constable, Sir Melvyn Macnaghten, who in 1894 named Druitt as the prime suspect in the case. Druitt's innocence is supported by the fact that the day after the first canonical murder, Druitt was seen playing cricket in Dorset, and also that Druitt lived on the other side of the Thames in Kent. The killer was believed to have lived in Whitechapel at the time of the crimes. Inspector Frederick Abberline later removed Druitt from his list of prime suspects. The only fact in favor of Druitt's guilt was that the murders in Whitechapel stopped with the death of the suspect and, perhaps, the suicide of Druitt himself seemed to complete the series of murders of Jack the Ripper if he was Montague John Druitt.

Severin Klosowski

Severin Antonovich Klosowski also known as George Chapman (has nothing to do with)(14 December 1865 – 7 April 1903) was a Polish emigrant who came to England sometime between 1887-1888, shortly before the killings began. In 1893 or 1894 he took the surname Chapman. He poisoned three of his wives in succession and was hanged in 1903 under the name George Chapman. At the time of the murders he lived in Whitechapel, where he worked as a hairdresser. H. L. Adam, who wrote a book about the English poisoners in 1930, mentioned that Inspector Frederick Abberline suspected Klosowski of the Ripper murders, but Klosowski himself could not obtain a confession. Klosowski's innocence is supported by the fact that he was a poisoner, and to kill prostitutes in Whitechapel, he would have to radically change his killing methods, which is unlikely.

Aaron Kosminski Moscow

Aaron Mordke Kosminski(11 September 1865 – 24 March 1919) was a Polish Jew who was admitted to the Colney Hatch Lunatic Asylum in 1891 without a personal name and under the surname "Kosminski". The Chief Constable, Sir Melvin Macnaghten, considered Kosminski to be one of the main suspects, as did Chief Inspector Donald Swanson. Assistant Commissioner Sir Robert Anderson, in his memoirs, wrote that Kosminski was allegedly caught at the scene of one of the crimes, but another witness, who also turned out to be Jewish, refused to testify against him. In turn, McNaghten said that no one had ever been detained by the police at crime scenes, which contradicts Anderson’s recollections. Also, in the documents of the London police there is not a single document related to this case. In articles and printed publications, it is Aaron Kosminski who is most often called Jack the Ripper.

The version that Aaron Kosminski was the killer was confirmed in 2014 by DNA analysis of sperm stains on the shawl of one of the victims, Catherine Eddowes.

The research was carried out by Jari Louhelainen, associate professor of molecular biology at the University of Liverpool. He took the molecules needed for the tests from a shawl found near the body of Catherine Eddowes, one of the victims of Jack the Ripper. The shawl, which appears to have never been washed, was provided by businessman Russell Edwards, who bought it at auction. According to the businessman, one of the police officers who worked at the murder scene took the scarf home for his wife.

At the time of his first crimes (in 1888) he was 23 years old.

According to the scientist, the serial killer worked as a hairdresser in the Whitechapel area of ​​London, where in his free time he dealt with victims, first cutting their throats and then ripping open their stomachs. Kosminski was one of the suspects in the brutal murders, but the police were never able to prove his guilt. Later, Kosminski, who was also on trial for attempting to stab his sister to death, was declared mentally ill and sent for compulsory treatment to a Brighton clinic, then spending the rest of his life in Moscow clinics

Aaron Kosminsky was among the suspects in the Jack the Ripper case back at the end of the 19th century. In 1891, a 26-year-old barber ended up in a mental hospital after attempting to stab his sister to death. Doctors, having examined Kosminsky and talked with his family and friends, came to the conclusion that the first signs of mental illness appeared in him back in 1885, that is, three years before the first murder attributed to “Jack the Ripper.” British doctors' interpretation of the cause of the disease is also curious - according to medical records, Aaron Kosminsky went crazy due to an addiction to sexual self-gratification.

Once in a psychiatric clinic, Kosminsky spent the rest of his life in institutions of this type. The hairdresser died on March 24, 1919 at the age of 53.

Kosminsky actually lived and worked near the place where the murders were committed, but the London police were never able to find convincing evidence of his guilt.

After the arrest of Aaron Kosminsky, the murders did not occur again.

Thomas Neil Cream

Thomas Neil Cream(27 May 1850 – 15 November 1892) British serial killer and poisoner. He was sentenced to hang after killing 5 people. The famous executioner James Billington, who hanged Cream, claimed that on the way to the scaffold the killer said “I am Jack...” (eng. I am Jack The…).

Jack the Ripper movie

If you find an error, please select a piece of text and press Ctrl+Enter

Share on social networks

In contact with

Classmates

These bloody and terrible events took place on the shores of Foggy Albion back in 1888. Prim, respectable and law-abiding England was shocked by the atrocities that, savoring the details, the sensationalist press brought down on the heads of its readers. Journalists, competing in awareness, described the terrible events. They took place in one of the poorest eastern districts of London, Whitechapel, and the victims were women of mature years, thrown by a merciless fate to the margins of life.

The unfortunate people were representatives of the oldest profession - prostitutes. As a rule, they looked for clients on Whitechapel High Street, the main street of the area, and on Fieldgate Street, which intersects with it. Closer to dusk, men came here, eager for short-term love pleasures for little money.

Having agreed on a price, the prostitute went with the next sufferer to a secluded place. It was like a dark alley where there was no light or passers-by. Here a hasty intercourse took place, after which the woman returned to the noisy street, and the man disappeared into the darkness.

It was a worked out scenario. He was followed steadily by both prostitutes and their clients. On the same fateful evening of August 10, 1888, everything went wrong for Martha Tabrem, a forty-year-old woman who had been leading a similar lifestyle for many years.

At 2:30 a.m. she was seen by a constable who was patrolling the western part of Whitechapel and knew by sight many representatives of the ancient profession. The woman was walking at a leisurely pace along Whitechapel High Street. Apparently she was looking for another client among the rare passers-by at this time. early time days.

The policeman watched the lonely figure and continued along his route. It never even occurred to him that exactly 1 hour and 15 minutes later he would stumble upon the lifeless body of this woman on Gunthorpe Street. She will be lying near the fence, just opposite the Victorian terrace, with a terrible gaping wound on her throat. A little later, doctors count 39 stab wounds on her body.

The brutal killer literally hacked the woman's body to pieces with sharp steel. Such pathological cruelty clearly indicated his abnormality. Although it could have been the work of pimps. Martha Tabrem, by refusing to pay them or owing a large sum of money, doomed herself to a terrible death. The villains committed this crime to intimidate other prostitutes.

However, the deceased’s friends completely dismissed this version of the police. Local constables, who knew firsthand the entire public who made money from intimate services, agreed with the prostitutes. The brutal murder was an absolutely senseless matter, and also dangerous, as it attracted increased attention from the guardians of the law. For the unrequited, dejected woman, a few strong blows would have been enough.

As the investigation built facts and assumptions, August 31st arrived. It was at the beginning of this last summer day that another terrible atrocity occurred on the territory of small and poor Whitechapel. The victim in this case was 43-year-old prostitute Mary Ann Nichols. Her torn body was discovered by a passer-by on Bucks Row Street.

In the twilight of the night, the man mistook the woman for an ordinary drunkard lying on the side of a narrow street. In those years, such a sight in poor neighborhoods was quite common and did not surprise anyone. Therefore, the passerby reacted quite calmly to this fact. His only concern was that the nights were already becoming cold, and the lady was lying on the bare ground.

The man hurried to find a constable patrolling the night streets and told him about the unfortunate woman who could have contracted a serious complication. In this case, he showed nobility and concern for his neighbor - the same can be said about the policeman.

The guardian of the law immediately headed to the indicated place. His gaze met the motionless body of a representative of the fairer sex, who had clearly taken too much on her chest.

The constable lit the lantern. A bright beam of light picked out from the darkness a deathly pale face, disheveled hair and a terrible bloody wound on the neck. The woman was not drunk: they killed her, and they did it in the most brutal way, cutting living flesh from ear to ear.

Soon police and onlookers appeared at the crime scene, and a doctor arrived. During the preliminary examination, it turned out that the unfortunate woman’s stomach was also ripped open. The body was immediately taken to Old Montague Street Mortuary for a more thorough examination.

Priestess of love
late 19th century

The identity of the murdered woman was established only at the end of the day on August 31. Based on her description, she was identified by one of the owners of cheap furnished rooms. He gave her a nickname - Polly. The name sounded more respectable and attractive - Mary Ann Nichols.

They quickly found out: the woman was married and had five children. Due to her depravity of nature and craving for alcohol, she had not lived with her family for three years, leading the dissolute life of a cheap prostitute. The husband, who was invited to the morgue, identified the body. Apparently, the man was not surprised by such a sad end. The entire lifestyle of his late wife indicated that she would end up with something similar.

The investigation into this murder was assigned to Chief Police Inspector Frederick Abberline. He, together with the doctors, managed to find out that the woman was inflicted with a terrible wound on her throat while she was lying down. This was indicated by traces of blood on the victim’s body. Red streaks were clearly visible on the cheekbones, hair, and shoulders of the dead woman. There were no traces of blood on the chest - this could not have happened if the victim had been in an upright position.

So Mary Ann Nichols was attacked while she was lying drunk on the ground, or she was knocked to the ground and only then stabbed. But in this case, according to the logic of things, she should have screamed. At night, any sound can be heard perfectly, but residents of nearby houses were not awakened by cries of indignation or desperate calls for help.

Most likely, the killer first strangled the victim, squeezing her throat with enormous force, and only then, when the unfortunate woman was on the ground, he completed the crime with a sharply sharpened knife. In this case, the conclusion suggested itself: the criminal was physically very strong, since he was able to almost instantly neutralize Mary Ann Nichols.

The question was raised by a deep wound in the groin area. The villain lifted the victim's dress and ripped open the lower abdomen while the woman was already lying with her throat cut. Why was it necessary to mock an already obviously dead person? Detectives soon received an answer to this question.

In the first ten days of September, or rather on the 8th at 6 o’clock in the morning, a torn female body was discovered in the courtyard of house number 27 on Handbury Street. The first person to see him was the resident of the house, who was leaving for work at that early hour. He immediately notified the police, who immediately appeared at the scene of the terrible crime.

Local constables immediately identified the victim. She was a well-known prostitute in the area, nicknamed Dark Annie. The lady was already in mature age: She was only five days shy of her 47th birthday. Her name was Annie Chapman, and her experience in the relevant work was estimated at 20 years.

The woman was a real professional. She had a great understanding of people and could easily determine their psychotype potential client. In this situation, the prostitute showed amazing frivolity, or the cruel killer was also a good psychologist and skillfully hid his true face under an external decent guise.

Whatever it was, Dark Annie's demise was terrible. Her thin body was a terrible sight. In addition to the terrible wound on the neck, there was a cut in the abdominal area that split the entire lower part of the body into two parts. Simple things that belonged to her during her life were neatly laid out next to the murdered woman.

It was a comb, a crumpled postal envelope, a handkerchief, two cheap copper rings and a thin silver chain. The killer also removed the shoes from the victim's feet and carefully placed them aside. All this indicated that the villain acted slowly, prudently, and accordingly had enviable composure and restraint.

The police were surprised by the fact that the residents of the house did not hear any sounds, although the terrible murder took place right under their windows. In addition, according to the preliminary conclusion of the doctor, the entire act of atrocity was committed in the time interval from 4 hours to 4 hours 30 minutes in the morning. In September it is the time of dawn - it is already possible to distinguish not only figures, but also individual details. Around 5 am it is already quite light. By the way, by this time Handbury Street was always quite crowded.

Night street
in London

The point was that at the end of the street there was a shopping area. She started her work at 6 am. Traders arrived an hour earlier to have time to distribute their goods. Amazingly, not one of them saw a passerby in clothes spattered with blood. Judging by the amount of this liquid on the corpse, the killer simply could not help but get dirty.

The scoundrel seemed like some kind of mysterious invisible person. He killed silently and disappeared unnoticed. Already in the morgue, where the body was taken, another terrible detail became clear. The killer cut out the woman's uterus along with part of her vagina and bladder. He took all this with him, since nothing of the kind was found at the crime scene.

This terrible crime matched the handwriting of the murder of Mary Ann Nichols. High-ranking police officials from Scotland Yard, who occupied one of the houses in Whitehall Square, weighed all the facts and combined these two criminal atrocities into one proceeding. The investigation was led by Chief Inspector Joseph Chandler of the London Police.

First of all, the investigation concluded that the criminal had the knowledge and skills of a surgeon. He professionally and precisely cut out the internal body parts of the victim. At the same time, the organs located next to the removed ones were not damaged. The scoundrel apparently wielded a long and thin knife. Surgeons used similar instruments during operations at that time.

Soon two witnesses were found who gave interesting testimony. One of them was a certain Albert Kadesh, who lived in a neighboring house to the one in whose yard the murder took place. He suffered from rheumatic pains all night, and also kept the window ajar.

The man claimed that he heard a woman's frightened exclamation at 5 o'clock in the morning. This was contrary to the official medical report, which stated that the victim's death occurred between 4:00 and 4:30 am.

The testimony of a certain Elizabeth Long also added complete controversy. She was the owner of a small shop in a shopping area and passed through the ill-fated courtyard at 5:30 am. The woman firmly stated that she had not seen any corpse, but on the corner of the house she met the late Annie Chapman in the company of a man.

The prostitute had a nice conversation with this gentleman. The latter looked quite ordinary. Hat, jacket, trousers. In his hands he held a dark bag. The clothes were also dark in color. It was impossible to catch anything with your gaze. The stranger was of average height - around 5 feet and 7 or 8 inches (a foot is 30.48 cm; an inch is 2.54 cm).

Elizabeth Long also noted that the man's appearance did not meet the standards of a classic British man. Most likely it was a foreigner, maybe Italian or French. He did not look like a native of the northern countries.

All this evidence was generally interesting, but Chief Inspector Joseph Chandler was confused by the timing. In the end, he took the official medical report as a basis, and questioned the stories of witnesses, rightly suggesting that Elizabeth Long could have been confused and saw another prostitute, but she simply did not notice the body. As for Albert Kadesh, who suffers from rheumatism, the sick person pays more attention to his health than to the extraneous noise on the street. He could very well have misheard or it could be the voice of a completely different woman.

The investigation took its course, and the night streets of Whitechapel were flooded with reinforced squads of police. At a later time, the number of passers-by decreased noticeably. Bloody dramas played their role, and people preferred to stay at home at night so as not to put their lives in danger.

Increased patrols and interrogations soon brought results. Three days later, a certain Jones Pizer was arrested. At one time he served a prison sentence for assaulting a woman. The man cut her with a knife, and the court imprisoned him for one year for this.

However, the suspect, having confessed to various minor sins, provided a cast-iron alibi regarding the brutal murders. At the time of the attack on the prostitutes, he was in completely different places. This was confirmed by independent witnesses, and the detainee was released.

One of the victims
Jack
Ripper

Another terrible crime happened on the night of September 29-30 on Berener Street, very close to the night eatery. The woman's body lay face down on the sidewalk. He was discovered at one o'clock in the morning by a certain Louis Demschutz. He was leading a horse harnessed to a cart by the bridle, and saw a motionless body against the shabby wall of one of the houses.

For some reason, the man immediately thought that the woman lying there was dead. He walked into a diner and invited two customers with him. All three approached the woman and turned her over on her back. A gaping wound on the neck swept aside all doubts.

One of the men immediately ran after the police. The patrol was very close and immediately cordoned off the crime scene. Soon the doctor and local police authorities arrived. But as soon as they began their inspection, one of the constables patrolling the area near Miter Square, located 500 meters from Berener Street, appeared.

At the time described, it was a very small area. Its width was only 40 meters. Trading shops looked out onto this scant space with their windows. One of the sides was occupied by a high fence, behind which there were storage rooms.

It was near the fence at 1 hour 45 minutes that the constable came across a lifeless female body. The murdered woman lay on her back with her throat cut and her stomach torn open. It was noteworthy that literally 15 minutes earlier a policeman had already passed by this place. There was no trace of a corpse there.

It followed that the unknown killer committed his crime in a very short period of time. It took him 10-12 minutes to do everything. After that, the scoundrel disappeared into thin air. Reinforced police detachments, which almost immediately cordoned off the area, were unable to detect any suspicious persons.

Both corpses were quickly identified, since the dead were known to the police. The first victim was Elizabeth Strite, an unremarkable 44-year-old prostitute. The killer inflicted only one wound on her. He slashed the poor woman's throat just like all the previous victims. No further injuries were found on the unfortunate woman's body. Judging by the serene expression on her face, the murdered woman did not expect an attack until the last second of her life.

According to doctors, death occurred at approximately one o'clock in the morning. Consequently, the victim was discovered almost immediately after the crime was committed. However, the witness did not see any suspicious human figures near the body or nearby.

The second victim was Catherine Eddowes, a 46-year-old woman of easy virtue. Prostitution was not her profession. This lady had a partner and three adult children from her legal husband. She broke up with the latter eight years ago, leaving him in the care of their common offspring - two daughters and a son. She herself went to great lengths, but in the end she found a man she liked and by the time of her death she had lived with him for six years.

On that fateful night, she was tormented by a thirst for drink, but there was no money in the house. Catherine Eddowes tried to correct this unfavorable situation. In the gathering darkness, she left the apartment and went to her eldest daughter to get hold of a few shillings from her.

But the unlucky mother never managed to reach her destination. First, she managed to get drunk somewhere and then end up at the police station, because she had been insolent to the constable patrolling the streets. This could be considered a gift of fate, but the lady did not calm down within the official walls.

The duty officer got fed up with her talkativeness, and he escorted the obsessive drunkard out into the street. It happened at half past twelve, and 1 hour and 15 minutes later the torn body of Catherine Eddowes was found in Miter Square.

Body Detection
Catherine Eddowes

It looked much more terrible than the body of her predecessor Elizabeth Straight, who died some half an hour earlier. The only thing both corpses had in common was terrible wounds on the throat. But Catherine Eddowes also had her stomach ripped open. An unknown killer cut out her uterus, and then, making a deep incision in the abdominal cavity, removed her left kidney.

All this was done very professionally, and senior investigator Joseph Chandler finally formed the firm conviction that the scoundrel was directly related to surgical activities.

These two murders on the night of September 30 became a turning point in the investigation. If earlier the city press very sparingly mentioned the torn victims in Whitechapel, printing information on third pages, then here there was simply an information explosion. The reason for this was the statement of the Queen of England. She publicly expressed dissatisfaction with the work of the London police to the Prime Minister.

Journalists of all stripes flocked to the small, poor east London area. Within two days, not only the whole of England, but the whole world knew about Whitechapel.

A powerful stream of letters hit Scotland Yard in the ninth wave. Everyone who is not too lazy wrote to them different corners countries. There were tips on how to catch a criminal, and obvious ridicule of careless police officers. A special category consisted of letters in which anonymous authors admitted to committing these terrible crimes. Each of them claimed that he was the terrible killer.

Detectives were forced to carefully check such correspondence. Experienced experts dealt with this issue. According to their conclusion, all this writing was waste paper. The authors of such creations were mentally unbalanced people. Their morbid imagination excited the psyche, strained the nervous system, and demanded an outlet. Fortunately, he was realized only in verbal emotions splashed out on paper, which, as we know, endures everything.

However, on October 3, a courier delivered two letters from the Central News Agency to the police department. The first was received by mail by the agency's editor-in-chief on September 27, the second on October 1. The head of the country's most powerful information channel initially did not attach any importance to them. This was quite understandable, since they started talking about the murders in Whitechapel only on October 2.

In the first letter, the unknown author, addressing the editor-in-chief, called him “dear boss.” He pointed out that he had committed terrible crimes. His victims were women; they screamed in horror as he committed violence against them. The unknown person further stated that he did not intend to stop and during the next crime he would cut off the lady’s ears. Under this terrible text there was a signature - Jack the Ripper.

The second letter was placed on the editor-in-chief's desk on October 1st. This message spoke of a “double case.” The addressee claimed that number one screamed and therefore did not allow it to finish as planned. He didn't have time to cut off the ears to send them to the police. The signature was Saucy Jack.

These two letters were carefully studied by Scotland Yard specialists. They were written in red ink, and the handwriting matched. The second message directly indicated the details of the crime, which were not yet known on October 1 general public. However, more than a day had passed since the murders, and some cunning journalist could well have found out the details through friends in the police department.

Meanwhile, the search for the killer has assumed truly global proportions. In addition to patrolling with dogs, which was used for the first time in investigative practice, Scotland Yard released so-called “straw women” onto the streets of Whitechapel. These were male police officers dressed in women's clothing. This was also a new thing in catching dangerous criminals, so it was done ineptly: even the 5th child could guess at first glance that in front of him was a man in disguise.

Leaflets were posted on the streets of London. In them, the city authorities urged all those who have any information related to the murdered women on the specified dates of the crimes to immediately report this to the nearest police station or patrol constable.

This appeal worked. One Joseph Lavender contacted the police. He stated that at 1:35 a.m. on September 30, he was walking home from a late-night eatery. His path passed right through Miter Square. There a man and a woman caught his eye. The couple were talking animatedly, standing not far from the fence.

In the weak light of the lanterns, the passerby had difficulty seeing the people. He could say about the man that he was of average height, in a jacket, and on his head he wore not a hat, but a cap. The woman was in a state of obvious drunkenness, judging by the phrases she uttered.

Following these testimonies, it became clear that the killer committed his crime in 5-7 minutes. He slashed Catherine Eddowes in the throat with a knife, cut her stomach, cut out her internal organs and disappeared without a trace just before the patrol constable appeared.

All this once again pointed to the extreme composure and concentration of Jack the Ripper. This is how all London newspapers began calling the killer on October 4, immediately after two mysterious letters became known to the press.

Residents of the capital of England experienced another shock on October 16. It was on this day that the President of the Whitechapel Vigilance Committee, George Lusk, received a small parcel and a letter. In a small box lay half a human kidney in excellent condition. Apparently the criminal stored it in ethyl alcohol.

The letter was a short note. It was written with errors, commas were completely missing. The unknown author reported that he fried the other half of the kidney and ate it. He also promised to send the bloody knife with which he cut out this internal organ. There was no signature as such. Instead there was a phrase - if you can, catch me.

The next terrible crime occurred on November 9 in a tenement building on Fieldgate Street. Here, the victim of Jack the Ripper was a young prostitute named Mary Janet Kelly. The girl recently turned 25 years old.

At night, the residents heard some suspicious noise in her room. Early in the morning, someone knocked on the girl’s door for a long time - apparently it was either a pimp or one of the clients. This man never waited to be opened to him. He kicked the door in anger and left.

At 7 o'clock in the morning, a neighbor knocked on the ill-fated door, hurrying to work. She also did not receive an answer, although she had an agreement with the owner of the room to meet at that particular time.

At 10:45 a.m. the owner of the apartment building approached the girl. He pushed the door and it opened. The man entered and froze in place. The hair on his head stood up in horror. The room resembled a slaughterhouse. Things stained with blood were lying in disarray everywhere, and the hostess herself was lying on the bed among the crumpled sheets. Her body was a piece of torn meat.

The police appeared almost instantly. The scene of the incident was carefully examined, but no traces that could identify the criminal were found.

This time there was no time limit for the killer. He inflicted a terrible wound on the young woman's throat, which had already become the trademark of Jack the Ripper, then cut open the abdominal cavity. The scoundrel carefully laid out the internal organs around the body and on the table, and took the heart with him.

Apparently he had been playing with the corpse most of the night. The criminal most likely left the room between 7 and 10 am. He waited until there was silence in the corridor, opened the door and quietly slipped out into the street. None of the residents saw a stranger, much less one in bloody clothes.

Mary Janet Kelly, in fact, ends with the official list of people killed by Jack the Ripper. After November 9, no bloody or terrible crimes occurred in Whitechapel. At least that's what the police said. The maniac himself was not caught, although there were a huge number of suspects. Unfortunately, in this case, quantity did not translate into quality.

Suspects

Jack the Ripper disappeared into the streets of London. His identity has not been established to this day. There are 200 suspects. There is no point in listing them, since it is easy to get confused in this mass of people. You can only stop at a few figures, each of which with a high probability could become a terrible maniac. So let's start by seniority.

Crown Prince of Great Britain Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondale (1864-1892). The man was the grandson of Queen Victoria and was 24 years old at the time of the terrible crimes.

Prince
Albert Victor

How did it happen that such a noble person was on the list of suspects? There are certain facts here indicating that the prince led a dissolute and vicious life. We must immediately make a reservation - the facts are not documented and are based only on rumors. But since there is no smoke without fire, this information can be taken into account.

For example, there was a persistent rumor that Albert Victor liked to visit brothels and have relationships with prostitutes. In other words, there were people who saw a noble person in places where priestesses of love gathered. What the Crown Prince actually did in such places is unknown. Maybe his heart suffered from pity for the unfortunate women, and he helped them with heartfelt words and money, or maybe there was something else. No one held a candle over the prince, and only God probably knows how everything really was there.

There were also rumors that the prince suffered from syphilis. Again, these are just guesses and assumptions. Allegedly, someone once knew the doctors who treated Albert Victor for this disease. What kind of doctors they were, what their names were - no one can say anything specific here.

Again, one can point out that the noble man died at 28 years of age. Could it be from syphilis? No. There is an official medical report that the man died during the flu epidemic. This terrible infection still kills thousands of people today, let alone the end of the 19th century.

There is, however, a serious argument that indirectly points to Albert Victor’s involvement in the murders of the unfortunate fallen women. In this case, the eyewitness is a priestess of love who was attacked by an unknown man on November 3, 1888 in Whitechapel.

The name of the prostitute is unknown, the original testimony is also missing - all this has disappeared in the police archives. But a draft of the victim’s testimony has been preserved. It says in black and white that late in the evening of November 3, an unknown tall man with curly blond hair approached her on the street.

The gentleman looked very respectable. He smelled of money, prosperity and nobility. He started talking to the prostitute, and then suddenly grabbed her by the throat and began to choke her. The unfortunate woman was saved only by the fact that a passer-by appeared in the distance.

The man immediately loosened his grip, hit the woman on the head with the cane and ran away. The cane was not some cheap one, but with a gold knob depicting the head of a lion. Crown Prince Albert Victor had just such an accessory.

For the sake of objectivity, it should be noted that at that time almost all men who had sufficient money and a corresponding position in society had similar canes. This could be a lawyer, a banker, an entrepreneur, or just a young rake living off his father’s capital.

The second suspect can be called the American Francis Tumblety (1852-1921). He is of Irish descent. He came to the States at an adult age. He practiced medicine, but did not have a medical license. She arrived in London at the beginning of 1888. Settled in Whitechapel at 22 Betty Street. This is very close to Berener Street and Miter Square, where the two unfortunate women were killed.

At the time of the crimes, Francis Tumblety was 36 years old. He was of average height, stocky, and in good physical shape. On the shores of Foggy Albion he was detained by the police twice for illegal medical practice. He had a stable psyche and sufficient composure. Adhered to non-traditional sexual orientation.

He was a suspect in the Jack the Ripper case, but managed to prove to the police that during the commission of the crimes he was either at home or in places where many people saw him. At the end of November 1888 he left for America. He died in 1921 from a heart attack.

Next in line is Thomas Hein Cutbush (1864-1903). A native Londoner, he was brought up without a father. He was interested in medicine, but did not receive the appropriate education. The man was 24 years old at the time of the crime.

From the end of 1887, his behavior began to show signs of mental illness. At the beginning of 1888 he was placed in psychiatric clinic. He escaped from it at the end of July. Immediately after escaping, he attacked two girls - he beat one, and stabbed the second.

The police detained him only at the end of November 1888. This means that at the time Jack the Ripper committed his crimes, Thomas Hein Cutbush was at large. After his arrest, the killings in Whitechapel stopped.

The man was declared insane, and he spent the rest of his life in a psychiatric hospital. He was extremely aggressive. He even attacked his mother during meetings with her. He died in 1903 from a cerebral hemorrhage.

We cannot ignore Walter Sickert (1860-1942), an impressionist artist. He was born in Munich and lived in England from the age of 8. At the time when Jack the Ripper rampaged through Whitechapel, this gentleman crossed the 28-year-old mark.

Walter Sickert was a member of the upper echelons of society. He had a wife and many respectable friends. Over time, he became the head of the British Impressionists.

So why did he end up among the suspects? Thanks to your paintings. Many of his canvases and sketches depict women lying on beds. Nearby, as a rule, there is a half-naked man. Some women appear to be dead judging by their poses.

In addition to this, Walter Sickert had a brilliant gift of transformation. He put on the clothes of a poor man and went to wander through the London slums. It is quite possible that he visited Whitechapel. Moreover, during the time of Jack the Ripper, the artist lived in London all the time.

And finally, another suspect is, alas, a woman. Her name was Mary Piercy (1866-1890) - she was hanged on December 23, 1890. English justice exacted fair retribution on her not at all for the crimes of Jack the Ripper. This lady committed no less terrible sacrilege.

Two months before her execution, on October 24, 1890, Mary Piercy killed a woman named Fawbe Hogue and her eight-month-old baby girl. She transported the body of the unfortunate woman to Hamstead, north-west London. Here she was abandoned in a deserted place near the warehouses. Then she took the child’s body to Finkley, north London, and left it in roadside bushes.

The criminal was identified literally the next day after the corpses were discovered. She killed at home, and the neighbors heard noise and screams. One of them reported to the police, and then there were just two dead bodies.

The police raided the suspect's house and searched it. Traces of blood were easily found on the floor and walls, and a bloody knife was found in a pile of garbage. The reason for such a terrible crime was Mary Piercy’s love affair with Frank Hogue. The latter was the husband of the murdered woman, who clearly interfered with her mistress.

The criminal suffered from depression, loved to drink, but apparently due to her youth she had not yet become an alcoholic. Otherwise she was an ordinary woman. She was 24 years old at the time of the Whitechapel murders.

This concludes the list of suspects. Which of them would most likely be Jack the Ripper will be discussed below.

Who was Jack the Ripper?

Let's start with the lady. For some reason, Mary Piercy is considered one of the most likely candidates to bear the name Jack the Ripper. She committed a terrible crime, which in its cruelty is in no way inferior to the atrocities of a terrible maniac. This is precisely what gave rise to many specialists involved in the matter serial killer, consider her a fiend of hell, capable of bloody atrocities against unfortunate prostitutes.

Mary Piercy's house was 6 kilometers from the scene of the terrible murders. In other words, she was not a resident of Whitechapel. At the same time, this is not a distance that could prevent a woman from reaching this area. She was quite capable of appearing on its night streets, tracking down the priestesses of love, ripping open their throats and cutting out their entrails.

A woman on dark streets always causes much less fear than a man. Mary Piercy's build also left much to be desired. She was thin and 5 feet 6 inches tall. These are not God knows what dimensions. Therefore, prostitutes fearlessly came into contact with her, not even suspecting the true intentions of this short, thin young girl.

However, the facts indicate that Jack the Ripper had enviable composure and restraint. In addition, he had the skills of a surgeon. Mary Piercy could not boast of anything like that. She was emotional and did not understand medicine at all. We can say with a high degree of certainty that this girl could not have been brutal killer with iron endurance. The crime she committed in 1890 was her first and, fortunately, last crime in this world.

There really is one argument indicating that Jack the Ripper could have been a woman. It all depends on DNA analysis. At the beginning of the 21st century, geneticists tested the same letter that was attached to half of a human kidney. They analyzed an ordinary postage stamp from this terrible message, the kind that is always stuck on envelopes or postcards. The tested stamp contained traces of saliva belonging to a female person.

This, of course, does not prove anything, but it does lead to certain thoughts. At the same time, we must not forget that Jack the Ripper first strangled his victims, and only then used a knife. Can a woman of average build strangle another woman if she violently resists? Maybe, but only if the killer sits on top and the victim lies down.

In the cases of the Whitechapel prostitutes, it is impossible to say which of them were strangled while standing and which while lying down. So the scales still tip towards the fact that Jack the Ripper was a male person.

There are as many as four men among the suspects. The same Walter Sickert could well be Jack the Ripper, provided that he had the skills of a surgeon. This gentleman in his own way professional activity was an artist. Any artist simply must understand anatomy. He paints people, often in a nude or semi-nude form.

Not knowing how it works human body, such a servant of art will not be able to capture it believably and naturally on canvas. But it’s one thing to know anatomy, and quite another to have the skills of a surgeon. Walter Sickert never engaged in such practice. At least there are no facts confirming this.

But Francis Tumblety had perfect surgical skills. The man was not just interested in medicine, it was his pathological passion. Already in the 20th century, after his death, grieving relatives found in the house of the deceased many jars in which this gentleman kept fragments of human entrails. He apparently mined them in local morgue, but the fact in itself is remarkable and gives rise to some thoughts.

Francis Tumblety lived very close to the crime scenes during that terrible period of time. If we assume that he was Jack the Ripper, then it was not difficult for the killer to hide in his apartment after another bloody act.

Many note his composure, restraint and a certain charm. The latter helped to gain the trust of the next victim, and then commit a terrible crime without losing his presence of mind and keeping a clear head.

All this is guesswork and speculation, but there are also facts. Photocopies of Jack the Ripper's first two letters were carefully studied by American handwriting specialists. They also got acquainted with samples of Francis Tumblety's handwriting. Their conclusion was unequivocal: the probability that this gentleman wrote messages to the Central News Agency is 90%.

This figure does not correspond to 100%. The difference of 10% can be attributed to the state of mind of the writer. He could be in a state of excitement or euphoria when he wrote ominous words in red ink on a white sheet of paper. This affected the Irishman’s handwriting and, by the way, served him well during the investigation. After all, Scotland Yard carried out a corresponding handwriting examination: its employees compared handwriting samples from all suspects.

There is only one fact against the fact that Francis Tumblety was Jack the Ripper. This is a non-traditional sexual orientation of a medical lover. Homosexuals, as a rule, do not kill women. Their likes and dislikes are directed only at males. Beautiful creatures are of little interest to such people and do not evoke strong feelings in them that can provoke hatred and aggression.

But Prince Albert Victor did not experience unconventional attraction to men. He was not a homosexual; on the contrary, he preferred to flirt with the fair sex. This is precisely his iron-clad alibi.

At the time of the terrible crimes in Whitechapel, the Crown Prince was organizing his personal life. He was looking for a life partner, and, while Jack the Ripper mercilessly chopped up the bodies of unfortunate prostitutes, he was at the feet of Alice of Hesse (1872-1918) - the future Russian Empress Alexandra Feodorovna. She was one of the few candidates for his bride.

The girl did not like this handsome young man, but Maria Teck (1867-1953), the future wife of King George V (1865-1936), reciprocated his feelings. Albert Victor developed a very good and sincere relationship with her. In this situation, it is important for us to know that at the time of the bloody crimes, the crown prince was many kilometers from London. So this young man was not Jack the Ripper.

Thomas Hein Cutbush remains. This man is good for everyone. As they say, he came out in both height and face. Serious mental disabilities, cruelty, aggressiveness, bloodthirstiness, and was also interested in medicine. Full bouquet- I just start drooling with pleasure. But there is one small “but”.

As already noted, Jack the Ripper had amazing composure. In just a few minutes, he killed a woman, cut her body, separated her internal organs and disappeared. Moreover, the maniac cut out the insides so carefully that he did not damage other nearby areas of human flesh.

Thomas Hein Cutbush did not have the appropriate qualities. He was a twitchy, nervous person. Moreover, her actions were never distinguished by logical consistency. In other words, the man himself had no idea what action he would commit in a minute. Everything about his behavior was unpredictable and impulsive.

This gentleman could not possibly be Jack the Ripper. He would not be able to carefully “operate” on a victim and then instantly disappear. In any case, either passers-by or police would have noticed him. In addition, he could easily rush at them with a knife in his hands.

So who was Jack the Ripper? Most likely he was Francis Tumblety. Graphological examination is a very serious thing in a series of evidence. In addition, jars with entrails and very good medical skills. We must also not forget that after the Irishman left for the States, the terrible murders in London stopped. But on distant American soil, this sometimes happened at the beginning of the last century.

However, this statement is not the ultimate truth. There is a good chance that the real Jack the Ripper never came to the attention of the police. He ended his life safely in bed and took a terrible secret to the grave.

We are all interested in Jack the Ripper primarily as the first serial maniac against whom an official investigation was initiated according to all the rules of criminal science. After this fanatic, there were a huge number of flayers on earth, to whom the London Ripper is no match. However, he was the first, which is why he is so famous and arouses keen interest among researchers.

In conclusion, I would like to say that after such a long period of time, it doesn’t matter who Jack the Ripper was, it is important that such non-humans appear among us as rarely as possible. And ideally, they should not be born on our land at all. How great it would be if we could all calmly exist on the planet, without fear that at any moment a terrible maniac might appear around the corner. Unfortunately, this is probably only possible in a fairy tale.

The article was written by ridar-shakin

Based on materials from foreign publications

Surely everyone has heard about the ruthless killer Jack the Ripper. They say that his victims were exclusively girls selling their own bodies. But is this really so?

Who's hiding underneath known pseudonym? Is he really a killer and what goals did he pursue? Let's try to figure it out.

In fact, there are many theories regarding the identity of the mysterious killer Jack the Ripper. According to one version, he was an emigrant from Poland. But he cannot be called a completely ordinary person. He's schizophrenic. The motives for the murder are completely unclear. Why the prostitutes bothered him remained a mystery.
There was an opinion that the person hiding under the pseudonym Jack the Ripper could be a woman. However, her motives are clear. The woman was selling her body. And other girls of the same profession interfered with her, creating competition. But she killed selectively - only those who were in high demand among clients. The killer just wanted to take their place. And in order to ward off suspicion, she came up with such a terrible pseudonym.

But one of the most popular versions says that Jack the Ripper was a hairdresser named Kosminsky. This was evidenced by the research of scientist John Maurice. He was testing blood that was found on a shawl belonging to the killer's victim. Police also found a witness watching the ferocious killer. He was able to identify the hairdresser, but later retracted his words. Apparently, the Ripper threatened him with violence.

What did Jack the Ripper use and how did he kill?

The opinion that the killer had excellent anatomical knowledge is not erroneous. After all, the brutal murders of the Ripper indicate that he was well versed in the “insides” of a person. He knew what each organ was needed for and what would happen if it were lost.
The most “popular” method of murder was strangulation. After all, there is nothing simpler than to stalk a weak woman in a dark alley, cover her mouth with your hand and strangle her. Jack did this so that the victims would not scream as they approached death. Only after the final loss of consciousness did he begin to dismember the bodies, which inevitably led to goodbye to his own life.
Another way to settle scores with someone else's life is to cut their throat. It would also seem simple - he ran a knife across his throat, and the man fell without an extra cry. An interesting fact is that Jack struck the throat strictly in a certain direction - from the left to the right side. Not the other way around. The Ripper never got dirty with blood, because the victim’s head was always tilted to the right. The victims had deep wounds, indicating that the killer had a large knife and high physical characteristics. It is this moment that forces us to say that Jack the Ripper is a man.
After the person was already dead, the cruel torturer cut open the person's abdominal cavity, removing certain organs. Most often, women were deprived of their reproductive organs. But there were also cases when the killer cut out the hearts and kidneys of all the killed girls.

Who did Jack the Ripper kill?

All researchers agreed that Jack the Ripper killed exclusively prostitutes from the slums. Reportedly various sources, involved in the investigation, the number of killed ranges from four to fifteen people. But there is a certain list of five people whom Jack killed. And it is precisely this quantity that all scientists clearly agree with.

The first victim is Mary Nichols. She was only 33 years old. A young prostitute nicknamed Polly is killed after being stabbed twice in the throat. Abdomen ripped open, but on the body there are traces of several more stabbing wounds that were inflicted by the same weapon.

Annie Chapman, nicknamed "Dark Annie", was found dead at the age of 47. As in the previous murder, Jack killed Annie with two stab wounds to the throat. The killer opened the chest, then cut out the uterus.
Next in line for the murders was Elizabeth Stride, who in narrow circles was known as Long Liz. She was killed by Jack in the same way - by cutting her throat. But, compared to others, this murder was “softer” - the Ripper deprived the victim of his earlobe. All organs are in their places.
The fourth officially recognized victim was Catherine Eddowes. Compared to the previous victims, she did not have any nicknames. Killed at the same time as Elizabeth Stride - September 30th. She was 46 years old. The story is the same - a slit throat. One kidney was removed from the victim's body. According to some researchers, part of this particular organ was sent to the police station as a souvenir.
The last victim, according to researchers, was Mary Jane Kelly. Among all those killed, the girl was the youngest - she was only 25 years old. She was killed in her apartment. Jack, apparently, was very angry with this girl that he mutilated the murdered woman to such an extent that the police could not immediately identify her. According to the police, the girl was one of the highly paid and attractive prostitutes. This allowed her to receive clients from the upper classes, as well as have her own apartment at her disposal. It was this fact that most likely angered the serial maniac.

Police everyday life
The best police officers in England took part in the investigation of brutal and bloodthirsty murders. But, of course, as many people there are as many opinions. Everyone had their own version as to who Jack the Ripper really was.
Often, police departments in England received letters signed “Jack the Ripper.” Analysis of the handwriting did not reveal who the killer was. Law enforcement officials even persuaded one print publication to place a copy of the message in their newspaper in the hope that readers would recognize Jack's handwriting. But no one did.
In total, the police departments received three letters signed by the killer. TO last letter A small “package” was included. Opening it, the policeman nearly fainted when he found part of a human kidney inside. And the message said that the second part of the organ was eaten by the killer, and this part was donated to the police department as a souvenir. A DNA test revealed that the kidney actually belonged to one of the victims. And the killer, most likely, was a woman, as evidenced by the remains of blood on the letter and neat handwriting.