Damn His Blood: Being a True and Detailed History of the Most Barbarous and Inhumane Murder at Oddingley and the Quick and Awful Retribution

by Peter Moore

'Damn him!' he swore. 'There is no more harm in shooting him than a mad dog!'

The brutal murder of the Reverend George Parker in the rural village of Oddingley on Midsummer's Day in 1806 - shot and beaten to death, his body set on fire and left smouldering in his own glebe field - gripped everyone from the Home Secretary in London to newspapermen across the country. It was a strange and stubborn case. The investigation lasted twenty-four years and involved inquests, judges and coroners, each more determined than the last to solve Oddingley's most gruesome crime - or crimes, as it turned out.

Damn His Blood is a fascinating glimpse into English rural life at the beginning of the nineteenth century, so often epitomised by the civilised drawing rooms of Jane Austen or the rural idylls of Constable. England was exhausted and nervous: dogged by Pitt's war taxes, mounting inflation and the lingering threat of a French invasion, violence was rife, particularly in rural communities where outsiders were regarded with deep suspicion.

With a cast of characters straight out of Hardy, Damn His Blood is a nail-biting true story of brutality, greed and ruthlessness which brings an elusive society vividly back to life.

Genres: Nonfiction, True Crime, History, Crime, British Literature, Historical, Audiobook

384 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2012

About the author

Peter Moore is an English writer, historian and lecturer. He is the author of Endeavour (2018) and The Weather Experiment (2015), which were both Sunday Times bestsellers in the United Kingdom. The Weather Experiment was also chosen as one of the New York Times 100 Notable Books of 2015. He teaches at the University of Oxford, has lectured internationally on eighteenth century history, and hosts a history podcast called Travels Through Time.

Reviews

[Bettie · Rating 2 out of 5]

BOTW

'Damn him!' he swore. 'There is no more harm in shooting him than a mad dog!'

blurb - The brutal murder of the Reverend George Parker in the rural village of Oddingley on Midsummer's Day in 1806 gripped the nation. It was a strange and stubborn case in an isolated Worcester village still bound by superstition and folklore. The investigation, in a time before Robert Peel's police force, lasted nearly a quarter of a century, and involved inquests, judges and coroners, each more determined than the last to solve Oddingley's most gruesome crime - or crimes, as it transpired.

Peter Moore's account of the infamous case is a also fascinating glimpse into the darker side of English rural life at the beginning of the nineteenth century, far away from the civilised drawing rooms of Jane Austen. The country was exhausted and nervous: dogged by Pitt's war taxes, mounting inflation and the lingering threat of a French invasion, violence was rife, particularly in rural communities where outsiders were regarded with deep suspicion. With a cast of characters straight out of Hardy, 'Damn His Blood' is also a gripping true story of brutality, greed and ruthlessness in a rural community gone wildly astray.

Peter Moore is a young literary historian and journalist, who is currently teaching Creative Writing at City University in London.

Abridger: Viv Beeby Producer: Justine Willett The Reader is Alex Jennings, who is currently appearing in The Collaborators as Mikhail Bulgakov at the National Theatre and is currently starring in Silk on BBC One.

Anyone see an unsubtle similarity between this and this:



Riding on the back of...

[David Lassman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable and informative read. At times slightly repetitive and superfluous, but overall very well-written and researched. Read it for pleasure and professional interest - as much of my own writing is set in the nineteenth century - and in both cases it was a satisfying experience. If you like historical true crime you will no doubt like this book.

[Martine Bailey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was prompted to read this by a forthcoming course to be held by Peter Moore at Gladstone Library on writing history. Listening to the audio version, I very much enjoyed this true crime account set in an English village in the long eighteenth century. In some ways it was the asides that I found particularly fascinating - an examination of the importance of oaths in daily life, the insights into rank and class and the reported speech of those involved. In fact because of the wealth of social observation in 'my period' I do intend to buy the book as a reference.
The only reason I didn't give it five stars is not really the author's fault - without wanting to spoil the end I will simply say that the facts didn't build up as dramatically as a novelist might have wished! But overall it is a great piece of writing that plunges you into a world of secrets and obsession in an isolated rural community.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

From BBC Radio 4:
The brutal murder of the Reverend George Parker in the rural village of Oddingley on Midsummer's Day in 1806 gripped the nation. It was a strange and stubborn case in an isolated Worcester village still bound by superstition and folklore. The investigation, in a time before Robert Peel's police force, lasted nearly a quarter of a century, and involved inquests, judges and coroners, each more determined than the last to solve Oddingley's most gruesome crime - or crimes, as it transpired.

[Kinga · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well structured retelling of the murders committed at Oddingley in the early part of the 19th Century.

[Mandy Setterfield · Rating 1 out of 5]

Unfinished. Too much history, rather dull. Shame.

[Abigail · Rating 4 out of 5]

This examination of the largely-forgotten murder of a village clergyman gives the opportunity for a thoroughly detailed glimpse into supposedly bucolic rural life in the early 19th century.

And detailed it certainly was, as the initial chapters slowly set the scene, but sometimes read as disjointed and a bit rambly. Once the setting was established and the community's complex relationships were clear, the pace picked up. The murder itself is described, but it was the aftermath, the legal complications and the trial which made this book particularly interesting.

As always with true crime, though, the climax and strength of the ending is always dependent on the truth (or the availability of the truth). There didn't seem much mystery about it, but the case fell apart due to poor investigation. It was revisited 24 years later after the discovery of a skeleton thought to be the murderer (who had himself, it became apparent, been murdered soon after the fact). Despite a confession from a witness (or participant) of this second murder, a legal loophole existed prevented suspects being convicted as accessories to murder until the principal was convicted. And y'know, the principal was quite deceased.

As frustrating as this was, it allowed us to see how village life had continued after the crime and how the suspects fell on misfortune, or were consumed with guilt, or... reinvented themselves as inn keepers.

There were links to the wider national situation, but more emphasis on this would have made it more than an intriguing rural tale of scheming and murder. The lack of policing, the relationship of the church and community, the changing rural affairs, mechanisation and labour - I feel any of these themes could have been explored in more detail and depth.

As an account of a rural community rife with friction and conspiracy, an intriguing and sudden murder, and the confusing legalities of the early 19th century, this was very good. Despite some digressions, this book kept me rivetted.

[Biggus · Rating 1 out of 5]

It's just boring. It doesn't work. Too much padding and filler. An example of how to take something potentially interesting, and make it into a snoozefest. Pulled the pin half way in. I think a better author could make this a great read, but this guy isn't the one to do it.

[Helen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy to read, fascinating story. Author brings history to life. Highly recommended

[Alex Husselbee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I live in Oddingley, this book was truly fascinating to read!!

[Bec · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Caroline · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have to confess, I love the recent spate of historical true-crime titles like this and The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher, for example. It's not ghoulish interest (I don't particularly enjoy reading modern true-crime novels at all) - there's something about the historical ones, the way a case can shed light on a particular time and place, can give you a snapshot of life one hundred or two hundred years ago.

This case, for examples, takes place in a small, bucolic English village in the early part of the 19th century. It involves a dispute over tithes between the parson and the local farmers, a dispute which ended in not one but two murders. It's the kind of story you could imagine Thomas Hardy writing - murderous passions running amok beneath a veneer of country gentility and peacefulness.

Moore spends a great deal of time setting the scene, laying out the historical, economic and social context of the village of Oddingley, establishing the dominant personalities in the story, tracing the roots of the dispute that ended in such violence. As such this book really does give you an insight into rural life in 1806, the lives of the farmers, dairymaids, labourers, and the close-knit, complicated relationships that entangled and complicated the subsequent murder enquiries.

I won't give away too much, as I always think these books are more engrossing when you don't know the outcome. But the Oddingley case was a most unusual one for its time, involving a great deal of legal intricacy and complications, and the final verdict was not at all what one might have expected.

[Sharon Kennedy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book to be very well written, and was very evocative of the atmosphere of the time.
On Midsummer's Day, 1806, the Reverend George Parker was murdered. Even though his murderer was seen, identified as Richard Heming, and pursued, he was never caught. The case remained unsolved for 24 years, when a skeleton was found in a disused barn, and this was identified as the remains of Richard Heming.
So what had happened in 1806? What had led to the villagers of Oddingley becoming so against their parson, that they would conspire to have him killed? What had subsequently led to the death of the murderer? All of these questions are answered in detail by Mr Moore, as he paints the escalation of the dispute over the tithes, and the clash of personalities, which led to the brutal events of 1806.
What I found to be intriguing is that, even though there was a confession of the events, because of the legal system at the time of the murder - which stated that an accessory could not be tried until the principal had been convicted - and then, once the skeleton was found, the fact that the prosecution pushed for an indictment of murder, rather than an accessory to events, meant that the men being tried had to be found to be innocent.
An excellent read.

[Andy Weston · Rating 4 out of 5]

A tremendous insight into life and particularly law and order in the early 1800's in rural England.

It is difficult to read this without wanting to go to the Fir Tree Inn in Oddingley, the village in which the murders took place, and enjoy a beer in The Murderer's Bar.

Note the word "detailed" in the title. Detailed it certainly is. The story ticks along throughout, but some parts of the book are particularly detailed and may be best hurried over unless the reader is looking at a cold case and trying to bring the miscreants to trial again.

[Alexander Van Leadam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Written like a chronicle, the book accounts for a couple of murders in the early nineteenth century, when proper policing (detection, forensics etc.) had not been invented yet. The contrast with today's detective stories and especially the flashy presentation of CSI will no doubt appeal to literary readers, despite the fairly simple plot. Otherwise, the main merit of this well-written book lies in the presentation of the people involved in the murders and their world.

[Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

When the oldies talk about how video/computer games are to blame for violence, tell them about this case. In 1806 the farmers of Oddingley conspired to murder their vicar who was subsequently shot, bludgeoned about the head and set on fire! This book sets the scene, tells about the murder and the search for the killer. Very interesting and worth reading.

[Bronwyn Mcloughlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fascinating insight into the rural English society of the early 18th century, and the corresponding legal practices. Entirely readable, but a bit of a microcosm, with legal minutiae taking over at times. Worth the read, for an understanding of some of our current phrases and social situations - to compare how things were with how they are now, and where they need to develop. Very interesting.

[Stephen Goldenberg · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting true murder history. It is strongest on the insight it gives into early 19th century English village life. But the whole book becomes rather long and drawn out in a case that went on for 25 years and there's no mystery or surprise as we know from early on who were responsible for the murders.

[Briar Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

A blood-curdling historical true crime. Slow to start, but once the murder has happened it picks up the pace. Written like a work of modern crime fiction (with a few historical digressions) this story is exciting, strange and disturbing. The coroner and courtroom scenes are especially good. A fascinating glimpse into a hidden part of late Georgian England.

[Andrew Pierce · Rating 5 out of 5]

Could the investigative mistakes made following the murder of the Revd George Parker happen today? The initial investigator wasn't up to it whereas the 2nd Coroner, 24 years later, made a far better fist of it. Inexperienced investigators could do the same now, the need for competence is as great today as it was then.

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic!!! Well written tale of true life events. Captures the time period and draws you in. Would definitely recommend this book.

[Jennifer Jorm · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nearly-perfect popular history.

[Stephen Rice · Rating 3 out of 5]

The portrayal of the day to day routine of rural living is as fascinating as the investigation of the murder itself.
Would have given it 3.5 stars if I could.

[Kim · Rating 1 out of 5]

Boring, not engaging..

[Bibliobee · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Dragged at times and had a bit too much filler, but also offers a lot of interesting details on England's judicial system in the 19 century.

[Naomi Clifford · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent factual account of a strange and brutal murder. The author vividly evokes the dynamics of village life in the early 19th century. Plenty of mystery and suspense.

[Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read. Most interesting and intriguing yarn. Real historical events told as a well written story. Enjoyable way to learn about life, events and people of rural 19th century England.