I have written a few articles about England’s hangmen, but today I want to take a look at someone who dangled and lived to tell about it.
Anne Greene was born roughly around 1628 in Oxfordshire.
As a young adult, she worked as a scullery maid in the home of a justice of the peace.
Then, when she was 22-years-old, she claimed she was seduced by her employer’s 16- or 17-year-old grandson.
She became pregnant, but said she did not realize she was with child until she miscarried 17 weeks later.
Having miscarried in the privy, she was terrified and tried to hide the remains of the fetus. Unfortunately, the remains were found.
Her employer prosecuted her under the Concealment of Birth of Bastards Act of 1624 which stated that any woman who tried to hide the miscarriage of an illegitimate child was a murderer.
At her trial, a midwife testified that the fetus was severely underdeveloped and that would explain why Anne’s body rejected the fetus.
But logic and reason was not allowed to prevail. Instead, Anne Greene was found guilty of murder and was sentenced to hang.
On December 14, 1650, Anne was hanged at Oxford Castle.
She had asked her friends to pull on her body as she dangled to help speed along her death. At times they would lift her up and pull her down with a sudden jerk until the undersheriff told them to stop because he was afraid the rope would break.
She was also struck several times with the butt of a musket to end her suffering.
Anne was left to dangle at the end of the rope for 30 minutes and all believed she was finally dead.
Her body was cut down and taken away to Oxford University so that doctors could dissect her for medical study.
However, the next day when her casket was opened a surgeon found that she was breathing and checked her pulse.
Upon finding a faint pulse, the man decided to stomp on her chest and stomach several times in the hope of finally ending her pitiful life.
A Dr. Petty soon arrived on the scene and, instead of trying to kill her again, he went to work trying to revive her.
Roughly 12 hours later, Anne came to her senses and could speak.
Four days later, she was eating solid foods.
After a month, she was fully recovered.
During her recovery, she was granted a reprieve from execution and was pardoned.
Anne Greene went on to marry and have three children, and it’s believed that she finally died in childbirth in 1665, roughly 15 years after she was hanged.
Remarkable!