The Brighton Gazette records two early 19th century cases of wife-selling, one in Brighton itself, the other in Buckland, near Taunton. One or both of these cases is believed to have inspired the sale of Henchard’s wife in Thomas Hardy’s The Mayor of Casterbridge:

May 1826:
“Man at Brighton led a tidy looking woman up to one of the stalls in the market, with a halter round her neck, and offered her for sale. A purchaser was soon found, who bought her for 30 shillings, which he paid, and went off with his bargain amid the sneers and laughter of the mob, but not before the transaction was regularly entered by the clerk of the market book and the toll of one shilling paid. He also paid one shilling for the halter, and another shilling to the man who performed the office of auctioneer. We understand they were country people, and that the woman has had two children by her husband, one of whom he consents to keep, and the other he throws in… to the bargain.”

December 1827:
“At Buckland, a labouring man named Charles Pearce sold his wife to shoemaker Elton for five pounds, and delivered her in a halter in the public street. She seemed very willing. Bells rang.”

Source: Brighton Gazette, 25th May 1826 and December 6th 1827. Content on this page is © Alpha History 2019-23. Content may not be republished without our express permission. For more information please refer to our Terms of Use or contact Alpha History.