Victoria Cross & MURDER

 This blog will be the first of two, about a Victoria Cross and Murder.  This will be the latter – Murder.

Thomas Sylvester, a Swansea Surgeon, was asked by the Swansea Coroner, Gabriel Powell, to assist in examining the body of Mary Gordon.  Mary had been murdered.  Thomas’s findings were “on examining the deceased’s head he found a small tumor a little above the right temple……..upon further opening of the skull quite bare he discovered no fracture or injury thereto and that he believes that nothing he saw could be the occasion of the deceased’s death”.

So, let’s go back to the beginning.

Llanrihidian Church

Cornelius Gordon was born in 1750 and baptised that April at Llanrihidian Church. He was the 8^th child of Elisha and Margaret Gordon. The Gordon family came from Weobley Castle, where Cornelius’ parents lived at the time.

January 1780, Cornelius married Mary Bevan at Oxwich church. 

Oxwich church

Severn years later, in April 1787, Cornelious and Mary were in their garden at their home, Crichton.  Cornelius is digging which Mary was “setting to leeks and sowing the seeds” They were accompanied by their servant, Thomas Westley, who had been employed for the last three months.  Both Cornelius and Mary quarrel.  While Mary sits on the ground, Cornelius hits her head with a shovel.  Mary is knocked to the ground and can’t get up, Mary cries out, and Thomas rushes to assist her.

Unable to pick Mary up, Thomas rushes off to the neighbour's house, Elizabeth Long.  Both Elizabeth and her servant, assist Thomas to get Mary back into the house.  When in the house Mary complains of pains in her stomach when she is sick shortly afterwards. Elizabeth helps and assists Mary to bed, where she stays for three-quarters of an hour before Mary falls asleep.  All this time Cornelius is still working in the garden.

The following morning, Thomas is sent urgently by Cornelius to fetch the doctor from Swansea.  Thomas goes to the shop of Mr Thomas Williams, surgeon and apothecary. Thomas informs that his mistress has fallen off her horse and that she is in a bad way.  Both men return to the house, only to find that Mary has died.

Before Mary dies, Elizabeth Long has been returned to the house.  On returning to the house, she finds Cornelius in the room, crying.  The surgeon examines Mary and finds that her fingers and closed very tightly and that he couldn’t open them.  Thomas concludes that Mary died from a fit.

At the same time, Mary’s uncle and brothers arrive at the house and they accuse Cornelius of abusing her.  Whilst Thomas is examining the body, Cornelius takes his servant to the out-kitchen and asks him not to mention the blow to the head and he would give him anything to wants.

The same day, the Coroner, Gabriel Powell issues a command to the Bailiff of Gower, to “summon and warn twenty-four honest and lawful men of the Parish of Llanrhidian…….that they and every one of them be and personally appears before me at the dwelling house of Cornelius Gordon” on Friday 6^th April. They were told to form a Jury and enquire into the death of Mary and come to an opinion as to the manner of her death.

On Friday morning, the 6^th of April, Thomas Westley, Elizabeth Long, and Thomas Williams are examined before the coroner.  They were sworn in, and they gave statements. Thomas Westley feared for his life and headed the plea of his master and omitted to mention the blows that Mary received. 

The fourth statement came from Thomas Sylvester.

The Jury found that Mary Gordon “being at work in the garden on the Wednesday evening last setting to leeks and sowing seeds, was seized with a fit she languished till between ten and eleven of the clock on Thursday morning, and then languished died”.  The Jury declared that Mary had died of visitation of God and nothing otherwise to the best of their knowledge.  The papers were signed and sealed by each of the fourteen jurors, and the Coroner.

Mary was buried on the 7^th at Llanrhidian church.

That is not the end of the story.

Between the Inquisition on the Friday and the following Tuesday, 10^th April.  Perhaps Mary’s uncle and brothers reported Cornelius' abusive behaviour towards Mary.  The servant testified that he did have words. Or did someone examine the papers and ask why didn’t Cornelius ignore Mary’s condition and give aid rather than digging?  This time statements were given to the Justice of Peace, Rowland Pritchard. 

Mary’s body is exhumed, and surgeon Charles Collins examines the body.

His evidence finds what the other surgeons didn’t, and that the skull is fractured “across the temporal bone towards the orbit and the basis of the skull” and that “he thinks and believes that the said fracture was the occasion of her death”.

Thomas Sylvester, who assisted Collins with his examination, follows with another statement. He tersely agrees with Collins’ statement, but he doesn’t explain why he missed the evidence in his first examination.

A third statement is given by Thomas Westley, who presented with the latest evidence tells a different story and states that Cornelius hit Mary “with the flat iron part of the shovel”.  He also described how Cornelius begged him to not admit this evidence.

On the 10^th of April, Cornelius was confirmed to Cardiff Gaol and tried at Cowbridge Great Sessions on the 14^th.   Cornelius is found guilty of Mary’s murder and sentenced to hang.

Cornelius Gordon was hanged at Stalling Down on the 20^th of April 1787 – 16 days after the murder.  His execution was the last one at Stalling Down.

Assistant from the article “Stalling Down, Cowbridge, hanging 1787” written by Gill Evans and published in the Glamorgan Family Society Journal No.94, June 2009.