From medieval pickpockets to notorious Victorian figures, seven centuries of crime, punishment and public fascination are laid bare in a new exhibition at

The London Archives.

‘Londoners on Trial: Crime, Courts and the Public 1244–1924’ opens on 9 March at the City of London Corporation’s archives in Clerkenwell, putting both famous and forgotten Londoners “in the dock” through original court records, artworks and photographs.

Among those whose stories resurface are Oscar Wilde, suffragette Sylvia Pankhurst, legendary highwayman Dick Turpin and the infamous Moll Cutpurse. Together, they form part of a sweeping exploration of how justice was administered — and experienced — in the capital from the reign of Henry III to that of George V.

The exhibition draws on one of the richest collections of legal records in the country. For centuries, Londoners lived under an extensive web of criminal, civic and religious courts that reached into almost every aspect of daily life. The paperwork of arrests, trials and punishments now fills miles of shelving at The London Archives, forming the backbone of this exhibition.

Using this vast material, curators tell vivid, often unsettling stories of people who found themselves in courtrooms, stocks, prisons and, in some cases, at the end of the hangman’s rope — alongside the officials, police officers and judges who enforced the law.

While household names feature prominently, the exhibition also shines a light on lesser-known but compelling figures, including:

- John Anthony, a Londoner of Chinese heritage who lived in the Georgian East End and worked as an interpreter at the Old Bailey

- Moll Cutpurse, a seventeenth-century celebrity criminal and central figure in London’s underworld

- William Anthony, one of the last nightwatchmen, born in 1789 and captured in a rare photograph from 1863

- John Coleman, sentenced to hard labour in 1837 for stealing currants from a garden in Edmonton

The show also examines the public’s long-standing obsession with true crime. Visitors will see historic publications and artworks depicting trials, criminals and policing, including original works by William Hogarth and James McNeill Whistler.

Chairman of the City of London Corporation’s Culture, Heritage, and Libraries Committee, Brendan Barns, said: “Our exhibitions at The London Archives never disappoint, not only by being free to view and accessible to everyone, but for how they are meticulously researched and presented with a strong emphasis on visually engaging material.

“Crime, criminality, and how people are punished for their offences, have always fascinated us, so this exhibition spanning nearly seven centuries of wrongdoing - from the reign of Henry III to the reign of George V - promises to be very compelling and thought-provoking.”

The London Archives forms part of the City of London Corporation’s extensive cultural portfolio. The organisation invests more than £130 million annually in arts, culture and heritage, supporting institutions such as the Barbican Centre, Tower Bridge, Guildhall Art Gallery, Keats House and the London Symphony Orchestra, as well as the new London Museum opening later this year.

Londoners on Trial: Crime, Courts and the Public 1244–1924 is free to visit.

Photo by GrindtXX, Wikimedia commons.