Historical True Crime

In July 1918, Russia's last emperor, Nicholas II, his wife Alexandra, their five children and four loyal attendants were murdered in the Ipatiev House in Yekaterinburg. For decades, the disappearance of their remains fuelled rumours that Anastasia Romanov had survived. From the family's final months in captivity to the investigation, disputed survival claims and eventual DNA discoveries, this episode explores the murders of the Romanov family and the mystery that endured for nearly a century. Support Historical True Crime on Patreon Love Historical True Crime? Support the podcast on Patreon for access to exclusive bonus episodes, including historical murders, mysterious disappearances and fascinating cases you won't hear on the main feed. Your support helps keep the podcast going and allows me to continue bringing these stories to life. Join us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/historicaltruecrime Source Materials Helen Rappaport, The Last Days of the Romanovs: Tragedy at Ekaterinburg (2008) Helen Rappaport, The Romanov Sisters: The Lost Lives of the Daughters of Nicholas and Alexandra (2014) Pierre Gilliard, Thirteen Years at the Russian Court Robert Wilton, The Last Days of the Romanovs (1920) Joshua Hammer, “Resurrecting the Czar,” Smithsonian Magazine (2010) Michael D. Coble et al., “Mystery Solved: The Identification of the Two Missing Romanov Children Using DNA Analysis,” PLOS ONE (2009) Michael D. Coble, “The Identification of the Romanovs: Can We (Finally) Put the Controversies to Rest?” Investigative Genetics (2011)

In 1877, Harriet Staunton died after months of isolation at a cottage in Kent. Her husband, his brother, sister-in-law and mistress were charged with her murder in a case that became known as the Penge Murder. But when doctors disagreed over whether Harriet had died from starvation or disease, the verdict sparked a controversy that would change the fate of all four defendants. Love Historical True Crime? Join us on Patreon for bonus episodes, extra historical mysteries and more stories that don’t make it onto the main feed. Your support helps keep the podcast going and means so much to me. You can find us at patreon.com/historicaltruecrime.Source Materials J. B. Atlay, Trial of the Stauntons (1911) Old Bailey Proceedings, Trial of Louis Staunton, Patrick Staunton, Elizabeth Staunton and Alice Rhodes (September 1877) J. E. Wilkinson et al., “Report of Post Mortem Examination, and on the Cause of Death, of Harriet Staunton, Aged Thirty-Five,” The British Medical Journal (October 27, 1877) Dr. J. F. Payne, commentary on the Staunton case, The British Medical Journal (October 27, 1877) Dr. W. S. Greenfield, “Some Remarks on the Medical Evidence in the Staunton Case,” The Lancet (October 6, 1877) The Lancet, contemporary commentary on the Staunton verdict and medical evidence (1877) The Daily Telegraph, contemporary reporting and correspondence on the Penge Murder (1877) Lilly Library, Indiana University, Off the Pedestal: Images of Women in Victorian Broadsides, Ephemera, and Books

In 1924, George Mallory and Sandy Irvine disappeared high on Mount Everest, leaving behind one of mountaineering’s most enduring mysteries. A century later, new discoveries have added clues but still no definitive answer. Did they reachthe summit nearly 30 years before Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay? In this episode, we trace the 1924 Everest expedition, Mallory and Irvine’s final climb, the evidence found in the decades since, and the 2024 discovery believed to be linked to Irvine. Love Historical True Crime and want more? Join me on Patreon for bonus episodes and extra historical deep dives that don’t make it onto the main feed. Your support also helps keep the show independent and makes it possible for me to keep researching and producing new episodes. Patreon.com/historicaltruecrime Source Materials Wade Davis, Into the Silence: The Great War, Mallory, and the Conquest of Everest E. F. Norton et al., The Fight for Everest: 1924 Noel E. Odell, “The Last Climb of Mallory and Irvine,” The Geographical Journal (1924) Royal Geographical Society, “The Mount Everest Expedition of 1924,” The Geographical Journal (1924) Grayson Schaffer, “Exclusive: Remains of Andrew ‘Sandy’ Irvine Believed to Have Been Found on Everest,” National Geographic (2024) Tessa Wong and Flora Drury, “Family Tells of ‘Relief’ After 1924 Climber’s Foot Found on Everest,” BBC News (2024) Mark Synnott, “The Mystery of Mallory and Irvine,” Artful Living (2024) Aberdeen Press and Journal, “More Light on Everest Disaster: Mr Odell’s Last View of Lost Climbers” (1924)

When Sarah Hart died suddenly in 1845, suspicion quickly fell on John Tawell. His attempt to leave by train became one of the earliest famous examples of the electric telegraph being used to track a murder suspect. But behind the technological milestone was a complicated case involving poison, disputedforensic evidence, and a woman whose story was often overshadowed by the method used to catch her killer. For more exclusive content, check out our Patreon at patreon.com/historicaltruecrime Source Materials Carol Baxter, The Peculiar Case of the Electric Constable: A True Tale of Passion, Poison & Pursuit (Oneworld, 2013) David Skae, Trial of John Tawell for the Murder of Sarah Hart by Prussic Acid: With Remarks (1845) G. L. Strauss, Remarks and Comments on the Medical and Chemical Evidence Adduced at the Trial of John Tawell (1845) G. Lathom Browne and C. G. Stewart, Reports of Trials for Murder by Poisoning (1883) Iwan Rhys Morus, “‘The Nervous System of Britain’: Space, Time and the Electric Telegraph in the Victorian Age,” British Journal for the History of Science, Vol. 33 (2000) The Sydney Morning Herald, “English News / Trial of John Tawell,” July 11, 1845 The Commercial Journal and Advertiser (Sydney), report on the trial of John Tawell, July 12, 1845 The Melbourne Courier, “Trial of John Tawell,” July 21, 1845 The Australian, “The Convict John Tawell,” July 1845 The Australian, “John Tawell,” July 22, 1845, reprinted from the Hampshire Advertiser The Launceston Advertiser, “Execution of John Tawell,” July 10, 1845 Contemporary 1845 biographical accounts of John Tawell reprinted in the Australian press Andrew Wynter, “The Electric Telegraph,” The Quarterly Review (1854)

In 1817, twenty-year-old Mary Ashford was found dead after attending a dance near Birmingham. Abraham Thornton was tried and acquitted of her murder, but the case was far from over. What followed was an extraordinary legal battle involving an ancient appeal of murder, a demand for trial by combat, and a law England had somehow never abolished. Check out our Patreon at patreon.com/historicaltruecrime Source Materials Naomi Clifford, The Murder of Mary Ashford: The Crime That Changed English Legal History (2018) John Cooper, A Report of the Proceedings Against Abraham Thornton at Warwick Summer Assizes, 1817, for the Murder of Mary Ashford; and Subsequently in the Court of King’s Bench (1818) John Fairburn, The Affecting Case of Mary Ashford (1817) John Fairburn, Thornton’s Second Trial: The Whole Proceedings of the Extraordinary Trial of Abraham Thornton, for the Murder of Mary Ashford (c. 1818) Edward Holroyd, Observations upon the Case of Abraham Thornton, Who Was Tried at Warwick, for the Murder of Mary Ashford: Shewing the Danger of Pressing Presumptive Evidence Too Far (1819) Ashford v. Thornton (1818), 1 Barnewall & Alderson 405; 106 English Reports 149 Robert Megarry, A New Miscellany-at-Law: Yet Another Diversion for Lawyers (2005) Michael Lobban, “The Glorious Uncertainty of the Law: Life at the Bar, 1810–1830” 59 Geo. III c. 46 (1819)