Bodysnatching & Anatomy in London, c.1780-c.1845
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- Start Date: 01 Nov 2025End Date: 01 Nov 2025Sat (Daytime): 10:00 - 16:00In PersonFull fee £69.00 Senior fee £55.00 Concession £45.00
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What is the course about?
Using images, maps and extracts, we will explore the world of the London anatomy schools and the ‘resurrection men’ who supplied the corpses they required as teaching material. Despite this being a highly secretive, and indeed illegal trade, much information has been uncovered, allowing us to recreate the London underworld at the end of the 18th century through to the middle of the 19th century.
What will we cover?
London’s hospital anatomy schools and their small private rivals.
The various bodysnatching gangs of London, and the pubs they frequented.
The graveyards and mortuaries of London which were pillaged by the ‘resurrection men’.
How the illegal trade was put a stop to, with the passing of the 1832 Anatomy Act; and the subsequent problems implementing a fair ‘supply’ to surgeons. Whose bodies were the most commonly commandeered as teaching material under the new Act.
What will I achieve?
By the end of this course you should be able to...
* Define the main theoretical arguments about the body, its ownership, scientific progress and concern for the rights of the deceased and their bereaved families/friends.
* Identify the London sites in this history – the hospitals, graveyards, pubs.
* Pursue further reading on these subjects, with a detailed bibliography/secondary reading list handout.
What level is the course and do I need any particular skills?
No previous skills or knowledge is required - only a curiosity and a willingness to engage with any class discussions/debates.
How will I be taught, and will there be any work outside the class?
Teaching will be delivered via mini-lecture and seminar, with illustrated PowerPoints, with group discussion strongly encouraged. Extracts will be sent out ahead of sessions, so that learners can formulate views and questions in advance of the class.
Are there any other costs? Is there anything I need to bring?
No other costs - bring a notebook and pen if you wish to take notes.
When I've finished, what course can I do next?
An introduction to the history of 19th & early 20th century mental health (with Sarah).
Sarah Wise is an award-winning writer and historian, with an MA in Victorian Studies from Birkbeck, University of London. She teaches social history and literature at the University of California’s London Outreach Center. Her interests are urban history, working-class history, medical history and nineteenth-century literature and reportage. Her most recent book, Inconvenient People: Lunacy, Liberty and the Mad-Doctors in Victorian England, was shortlisted for the Wellcome Book Prize. Her 2004 debut, The Italian Boy: Murder and Grave Robbery in 1830s London, was shortlisted for the 2005 Samuel Johnson Prize for Non-Fiction and won the Crime Writers’ Association Golden Dagger. Her follow-up The Blackest Streets: The Life and Death of a Victorian Slum (2008) was shortlisted for the Royal Society of Literature's Ondaatje Prize. She was a contributor to the volume Charles Booth's London Poverty Maps, published by Thames & Hudson/London School of Economics, and appeared on BBC Radio 4's In Our Time to discuss Booth's work https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000wsxf For reviews www.sarahwise.co.uk/reviews.html
Please note: We reserve the right to change our tutors from those advertised. This happens rarely, but if it does, we are unable to refund fees due to this. Our tutors may have different teaching styles; however we guarantee a consistent quality of teaching in all our courses.