The Murderer of Warren Street: The True Story of a Nineteenth-Century Revolutionary

by Marc Mulholland

The true story of one of nineteenth-century London’s most notorious murderers.

On 8 December 1854, Emmanuel Barthélemy visited 73 Warren Street in the heart of radical London for the very last time. In just half an hour, two innocent men would be dead.

The newspapers of Victorian England were soon in a frenzy. Who was this foreigner come to British shores to slay two upstanding subjects? As Oxford historian, Marc Mulholland, has uncovered, Barthélemy was no ordinary criminal. Rather, here was a dedicated activist fighting for the cause of the oppressed worker, a fugitive shaped by the storms of revolution, counterrevolution and a society in the midst of huge transformation.

Following in Barthélemy’s footsteps, Mulholland leads us from the barricades of the French capital and the icy rooftops of a Parisian jail to the English fireside of Karl Marx, a misty duelling ground and the dangling noose of London's Newgate prison, shining a light into a dark underworld of conspiracy, insurrection and fatal idealism.

The Murderer of Warren Street is a thrilling portrait of a troubled man in troubled times - full of resonance for our own terrorised age.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction

384 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2018

Reviews

[Jo-anne Atkinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the mid 19th century a murder was committed in Warren Street in London. The victim, a well-to-do manufacturer of fizzy drinks, and the murderer, a French anarchist. By the time he killed in London, Barthelmy had already been sentenced twice for killings in France and was at the centre of scandal amongst the ex-pat population in London. Barthelmy was a member of a revolutionary group who had been integral in the barricade fighting in Paris in 1848 and had been pardoned from his first sentence to the galleys as part of political reconciliation. After his second killing Barthelmy escaped from prison and crossed the channel to London. He fought an illegal duel in which his opposition was killed but escaped the gallows on a technicality. His motive for the Warren Street murder remains unsure, as does the identity of his companion that night, but this time luck had run out for him.
This is a really fascinating book which takes a little known crime and explores the rich seam of history behind it. The story of the Paris Revolutionaries of the late 1840s is not particularly well known – they feature in Les Miserables – however Barthelemy is a character that surpasses fiction. It is obvious that this was a clever and driven man but his actions are wild and almost unbelievable. Sometimes the truth is stranger than fiction.

[S · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was really looking forward to reading and I was not disappointed,this is a really fascinating book about a murder I had never heard of before.

On the 8th December 1854 in Warren Street George More, fizzy drink merchant was killed by Emmanuel Barthelemy a French exile in London. He went Warren Street armed with two istory, 24 cartridges, a dagger and a ticker to get to Hamburg by boat. He was accompanied by a woman wearing a veil.

The book is about Barthelemy early life and the events leading up to that and and the consequences of the crime.

Recommended reading for the true crime enthusiast and lovers of History

[June · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a biography of the nineteenth-century French Republican Revolutionary Emmanuel Barthelemy, a former acquaintance of Karl Marx (whose wife disliked him intensely), and whose life briefly features in Victor Hugo’s Les Miserables. During the first few pages, the author tells of the crimes that Barthelemy commits, before heading back in time in order to examine his revolutionist and rebellious influences and thus trace his life up until its end at the gallows.

This man’s history is recounted in story-form; the first and final few chapters read almost like a novel with dialogue and description – of people and events - a heavy presence. The first chapter outlines the murders committed by Barthelemy in Warren Street, London, written in engaging prose. At this point, I was in no doubt that this could do well as my Prize nominee, particularly if the biography was told this way throughout. However, the majority of chapters 2 to 11 read more like a history text than a biography, and I ended up skimming these parts which, saving an exciting rooftop escape from prison scene, I personally found a little dry. While I acknowledge that background events are necessary for context, I felt that the biography of the man was being drowned out in the lengthy descriptions of social and political events in France during these chapters. The impetus in final few chapters (which feature the last duel performed on UK soil and a court scene – both of which feature Barthelemy) racks up a few notches again, not only providing an interesting ‘take’ on the frankly weird features of the nineteenth century judiciary system (prisoners could only be convicted for one murder, no matter how many they had committed), but also the different versions of the motivating factors which led to Barthelemy committing the murders for which he faced the gallows (as Barthelemy did not leave a written autobiography – as he had promised a friend that he would – the true reasons for his crime have remained a mystery).

On the whole, it is a very well-researched book and it was, for me, mostly enjoyable.

[Olive Sparrow · Rating 4 out of 5]

I very rarely read non-fiction and as much as I love history, I find reading an entire book on it overwhelming. I struggled a little in some of the early chapters which focused more on French history than Barthelemy himself but I don't see this as a reflection on the writing style, but rather my own difficulty absorbing so much new information at once. Overall, it was an interesting read that was quite comical in places. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who has an interest in the period, particularly early 1800's politics.

[Sangita · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an exciting read about Emmanuel Barthelemy, the 19th century revolutionary who played a critical role in the struggle of the proletariat.
The book has been written in an elaborate manner akin to a research paper, though it does not take away from the happenings in Barthelemy's life, first in France and then in England.
A bit of patience is however required to get towards the end. But this is an extremely informative read. Gives us insights about the lives and times of people in France and England then.

[Emily Basford · Rating 3 out of 5]

So when I picked this up, I didn’t realise it was non-fiction and I’m not the biggest non-fiction reader. However… the story itself is really good! The only thing I would say is that whilst it surrounds murder and conspiracy, it’s heavily political so again, not my bag.

The true story of one of 19th century London’s most notorious murders. On 8 December 1854, Emmanuel Barthélemy visited 73 Warren Street in the heart of radical London for the very last time. In just half an hour, two innocent men would be dead.

[Dean Jobb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oxford academic Marc Mulholland knows his French history, and guides readers through the dense thicket of players and political factions that serve as a backdrop to French revolutionary Emmanuel Barthélemy’s short, violent life – and culminated in the murders of two men in London in 1854. Mulholland paints vivid portraits of tumultuous, post-Revolution Paris and the extremes of wealth and poverty in Victorian London, making this a true tale of two cities.

[Marie (UK) · Rating 1 out of 5]

This did nothing for me really. It started so well but became just a drone in my head of conflicts and uprisings. I found it difficult to really take in.

[Simon Berryman · Rating 5 out of 5]

So much fun. I guess quite a simple story of a true crime from beginning to end.

[Jonas Feind · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had to read this for class and do a performance based on it. All I got from it were the lyrics to the French national anthem…