Culturally, when we think of the lunatic asylum, we think of dark, haunting sites of abuse and neglect. More broadly, when we consider mental illness in the past, images are conjured up of ‘mad’ neighbours left to their own devices, or individuals confined away by relatives out of the gaze of the local community. Overwhelmingly, there is a sense of shame and maltreatment in these cultural depictions. But how true are they? In this post I delve into one case in 1873 of a family concealment of mental illness, and the consequences this had.
Recently, my research has taken me to examine the misdemeanours that resulted in prosecutions brought under the 1845 Lunatics Act. This legislation created the central regulatory body, the Commissioners in Lunacy, who had the power to inspect all residences and institutions that housed people certified as ‘insane’ to ensure they were being correctly treated in a humane and supportive manner. They also had the power to instigate prosecution proceedings against anyone who breached the law. Misdemeanours ranged from keeping an individual classed as insane without the correct certification and order, to severe neglect and abuse. Those prosecuted could be staff members of asylums found to have mistreated patients, or could be the general public guilty of some sort of wrongdoing on the part of the ‘insane’.
The case I want to highlight is that of Joseph E, of Brackenthwaite, Wigton, prosecuted in…1872 for keeping his 73 year old mother in his house illegally, as she was insane, and wilfully neglecting her whilst under his care. Detailed in the Commissioners in Lunacy 1873 annual report, they commented:
‘the superintendent of police visited…and found his mother shut into a room with a wet flagged floor, no fire, and little light, for the window had been boarded up. Her condition was excessively filthy, and evidenced utter neglect. With the exception of a nightcap, she was naked, and was found crouched on her bed…How long the woman has been kept in this state did not appear. She had been found wandering in a state of nudity in Wigton, in February or March preceding the visit of the superintendent, and had then been brought back to her son’s house. The police took proper steps for lodging the lunatic in the Cumberland Asylum with due expedition, and charged the son before the local bench with cruelty and neglect…He was committed for trial to the Quarter Sessions, and, on hearing what had occurred, we ordered our secretary to prosecute.’
When the case came to court, something curious happened, which the Commissioners referred to as ‘a complete failure of justice in a case of undoubted ill-treatment’. Although the evidence of mistreatment was proven, the relationship between the Joseph and his mother apparently removed his liability for prosecution, as he had a ‘natural obligation’ to keep her, rather than the fact being that he willingly took on her care and knowingly mistreated her. As a result, he was acquitted of all charges.
Therefore, although the presence of the Commissioners in Lunacy goes against the cultural portrayals of madness and asylums, as there clearly was a correct code of practice ensuring that abuse/neglect did not happen, incidents did arise whereby people severely mistreated the mentally vulnerable. Does this mean that our understanding of mental illness in the nineteenth century is skewed by a small number of incidences? Possibly so, or was it that the prosecutions were upheld as examples, with a view to combating more widespread breaches? In this case, as we have seen, prosecution wasn’t successful, but there were many more which did result in a fine or prison sentence. However, the maximum sentence brought in any of the prosecutions that I have studied (1845-1890), was seven years in prison, which was for the manslaughter of an asylum patient by an attendant. In reality then, was the law tough enough on breaches of the Lunatics Act? Did this leniency result in many more abuses later on, and into the twentieth century?
Thanks for taking the time to read this post. Stay tuned for more on prosecutions, as I am working on a book chapter on this area. Follow me on Twitter for full updates @caradobbing
If you liked this, you may also enjoy my
thesis, which is freely available to view - https://leicester.figshare.com/articles/The_Circulation_of_the_Insane_The_Pauper_Lunatic_Experience_of_the_Garlands_Asylum_1862-1913/10226480
