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London Monster
A well-dressed man attacked women with knives and pins in 18th century London. Over 50 victims. Mass hysteria gripped the city. The first media-driven moral panic?
1788 - 1790
London, England
50+ witnesses
The London Monster was an unidentified attacker who slashed or stabbed women in London between 1788 and 1790.
The Attacks
According to documented accounts:
Between 1788 and 1790:
- A man attacked women in London
- Using knives or pins
- Slashing their clothes and buttocks
- Over 50 reported attacks
- Created widespread panic
The Method
The attacker would:
- Approach well-dressed women
- Make rude comments
- Stab or slash them
- Flee into the crowd
- Sometimes use pins hidden in nosegays
The Panic
London reacted:
- Women wore copper protection
- Vigilante groups formed
- A £100 reward offered
- Mass hysteria spread
- False accusations multiplied
The Arrest
Rhynwick Williams:
- A flower seller
- Arrested in 1790
- Identified by a victim
- Convicted and imprisoned
- Many doubt he was the real attacker
Analysis
Historians suggest:
- Multiple attackers were likely
- Media amplified the panic
- False reports were common
- An early moral panic
- The “monster” may have been invented