1 00:00:01,320 --> 00:00:04,280 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class, a production 2 00:00:04,400 --> 00:00:14,080 Speaker 1: of iHeartRadio. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. I'm Hollley 3 00:00:14,160 --> 00:00:17,480 Speaker 1: Frye and I'm Tracy be Wilson. This is one that 4 00:00:17,520 --> 00:00:20,040 Speaker 1: I've had on my list for a minute, and it 5 00:00:20,120 --> 00:00:22,560 Speaker 1: got on my list for one reason because I didn't 6 00:00:22,560 --> 00:00:25,400 Speaker 1: know the whole story. And then it became a different story, 7 00:00:25,480 --> 00:00:28,320 Speaker 1: which is that I stumbled across a piece of art 8 00:00:28,360 --> 00:00:33,400 Speaker 1: by Richard Dad for reasons because it had come up 9 00:00:33,400 --> 00:00:37,120 Speaker 1: in the news last year, I believe, And then I 10 00:00:37,280 --> 00:00:40,479 Speaker 1: discovered the story behind him. Having already thought, oh, this 11 00:00:40,520 --> 00:00:42,480 Speaker 1: is an interesting person, I wished to do an artist 12 00:00:42,560 --> 00:00:45,440 Speaker 1: episode on him. So it is an artist episode, but 13 00:00:45,520 --> 00:00:48,360 Speaker 1: it is also a murder episode, and it is also 14 00:00:48,560 --> 00:00:53,600 Speaker 1: a madness episode. So we are talking about artist Richard Dad, 15 00:00:53,920 --> 00:00:57,200 Speaker 1: whose life story is quite a ride and quite sad, 16 00:00:57,680 --> 00:00:59,920 Speaker 1: so be worn there. There's some a good bit of 17 00:01:00,120 --> 00:01:03,160 Speaker 1: violence in here, as well as some issues of delusion. 18 00:01:04,120 --> 00:01:06,080 Speaker 1: If those are not enjoyable for you to hear about, 19 00:01:06,080 --> 00:01:08,200 Speaker 1: this one might not be for you. But if you're 20 00:01:08,240 --> 00:01:11,640 Speaker 1: like me and you find this utterly engaging, it's like 21 00:01:11,680 --> 00:01:16,560 Speaker 1: an on ramp to our Halloween time. I actually had 22 00:01:16,640 --> 00:01:19,040 Speaker 1: kind of thought that as I was reading through that line, 23 00:01:19,080 --> 00:01:21,040 Speaker 1: it was like, this feels almost like something that we 24 00:01:21,080 --> 00:01:26,160 Speaker 1: would do in October, but not quite. Nope. So Richard 25 00:01:26,240 --> 00:01:30,679 Speaker 1: Dad was born August first, eighteen seventeen in Chatham, Kent, 26 00:01:31,560 --> 00:01:34,959 Speaker 1: That's in England, born to Robert and Mary Anne Dad. 27 00:01:35,680 --> 00:01:39,119 Speaker 1: His father, Robert was a chemist and his maternal grandfather 28 00:01:39,400 --> 00:01:44,560 Speaker 1: was the well known shipwright Richard Martin. This younger Richard 29 00:01:44,680 --> 00:01:48,400 Speaker 1: was the couple's fourth child out of eleven and as 30 00:01:48,440 --> 00:01:52,960 Speaker 1: a boy, Richard attended King's School, Rochester, and he loved literature, 31 00:01:53,040 --> 00:01:56,480 Speaker 1: particularly Shakespeare, and from the time he was quite young 32 00:01:56,600 --> 00:01:58,960 Speaker 1: it was very obvious to everyone that he had a 33 00:01:59,040 --> 00:02:03,160 Speaker 1: natural talent for drawing. By the time he was a teenager, 34 00:02:03,680 --> 00:02:06,560 Speaker 1: Richard had started to really sketch with focus on the 35 00:02:06,640 --> 00:02:10,400 Speaker 1: path to becoming an artist. In eighteen thirty seven, Richard 36 00:02:10,440 --> 00:02:12,760 Speaker 1: was admitted to the Royal Academy of Arts, where his 37 00:02:12,880 --> 00:02:16,000 Speaker 1: teachers all noted his skill as well as his gentle 38 00:02:16,040 --> 00:02:19,160 Speaker 1: and kind personality, and in his third year at art 39 00:02:19,160 --> 00:02:22,040 Speaker 1: school he won a medal for his life drawing. As 40 00:02:22,080 --> 00:02:25,520 Speaker 1: a young man, Richard seemed poised to become one of 41 00:02:25,560 --> 00:02:29,640 Speaker 1: the most prominent and perhaps even influential artists of England. 42 00:02:30,280 --> 00:02:33,440 Speaker 1: He and several other artists founded a group known as 43 00:02:33,480 --> 00:02:37,600 Speaker 1: the Clique. That group included such artists as William Powell Frith, 44 00:02:37,760 --> 00:02:41,360 Speaker 1: who would become known for his scenes capturing English life, 45 00:02:41,840 --> 00:02:45,280 Speaker 1: and Augustus Egg who was a friend of Charles Dickens 46 00:02:45,320 --> 00:02:50,000 Speaker 1: and painted images that were often historical or anecdotal, and 47 00:02:50,160 --> 00:02:53,640 Speaker 1: Henry Nelson O'Neill, who became known for his painting of 48 00:02:53,720 --> 00:02:58,600 Speaker 1: the Indian Rebellion of eighteen fifty seven. Dad was generally 49 00:02:58,639 --> 00:03:00,880 Speaker 1: seen as the leader of this group, or at least 50 00:03:00,880 --> 00:03:04,679 Speaker 1: the most talented of them. Their focus was on promoting 51 00:03:04,800 --> 00:03:10,080 Speaker 1: naturalistic art, and Richard really excelled at it. I will 52 00:03:10,120 --> 00:03:14,200 Speaker 1: note that in watching a couple of videos with English 53 00:03:14,360 --> 00:03:19,120 Speaker 1: art historians, they pronounce it the Clique, which I found 54 00:03:19,160 --> 00:03:23,560 Speaker 1: quite charming. In eighteen forty two Dad illustrated the book 55 00:03:23,560 --> 00:03:26,480 Speaker 1: of British Ballads by Samuel Carter Hall. And this is 56 00:03:26,520 --> 00:03:28,880 Speaker 1: a substantial project. It's a two hundred and thirty three 57 00:03:28,919 --> 00:03:32,320 Speaker 1: page book and about one third of that space is illustration, 58 00:03:32,480 --> 00:03:35,880 Speaker 1: including frames that he created for every page. So this 59 00:03:36,000 --> 00:03:38,880 Speaker 1: was really a lot of work on Dad's part. In 60 00:03:39,000 --> 00:03:44,120 Speaker 1: July of eighteen forty two, Sir Thomas Phillips contracted Dad 61 00:03:44,360 --> 00:03:48,400 Speaker 1: to accompany him on a grand tour of continental Europe, 62 00:03:48,920 --> 00:03:52,600 Speaker 1: then through Greece, into Turkey, over to Syria and into Egypt, 63 00:03:52,920 --> 00:03:56,600 Speaker 1: and then back to London. Phillips was the former mayor 64 00:03:56,640 --> 00:03:59,480 Speaker 1: of Newport and this, of course was all before people 65 00:03:59,520 --> 00:04:03,720 Speaker 1: could take photos of their travels, so he hired Dad 66 00:04:03,800 --> 00:04:08,400 Speaker 1: to capture the trip through sketches along the way. David Roberts, 67 00:04:08,440 --> 00:04:10,720 Speaker 1: a well known Scottish painter, was a friend of the 68 00:04:10,760 --> 00:04:15,040 Speaker 1: family and had recommended Richard for this job. This was 69 00:04:15,080 --> 00:04:16,920 Speaker 1: a pretty good gig. It was a way to see 70 00:04:16,920 --> 00:04:19,200 Speaker 1: some of the world and also get paid to do it. 71 00:04:19,880 --> 00:04:23,080 Speaker 1: The artist both loved and hated the trip for reasons 72 00:04:23,080 --> 00:04:26,279 Speaker 1: we will explain, but more than anything, it was a 73 00:04:26,320 --> 00:04:29,640 Speaker 1: trip that was life changing for Dad, and not in 74 00:04:29,680 --> 00:04:33,760 Speaker 1: a good way. Dad and Phillips were not really of 75 00:04:33,839 --> 00:04:37,440 Speaker 1: the same temperament when it came to travel. Whereas Phillips 76 00:04:37,480 --> 00:04:39,880 Speaker 1: was sort of working through the sites they visited as 77 00:04:39,920 --> 00:04:42,640 Speaker 1: a tourist, wanting to see things and then quickly move 78 00:04:42,680 --> 00:04:46,600 Speaker 1: on to the next, Dad wanted to linger. Since Phillips 79 00:04:46,600 --> 00:04:49,480 Speaker 1: also arranged it, presumably he had a greater sense of 80 00:04:49,520 --> 00:04:51,560 Speaker 1: the schedule where his dad was just trying to capture 81 00:04:51,560 --> 00:04:54,640 Speaker 1: what he saw, and he got frustrated because he felt 82 00:04:54,640 --> 00:04:57,160 Speaker 1: he wasn't given enough time to really sketch things as 83 00:04:57,200 --> 00:04:59,520 Speaker 1: fully as he would have liked. And then on long 84 00:04:59,560 --> 00:05:02,560 Speaker 1: horse journeys he wanted to stop and sketch because he 85 00:05:02,640 --> 00:05:06,279 Speaker 1: had difficulty sketching while he was riding, but his desires 86 00:05:06,279 --> 00:05:09,400 Speaker 1: were not prioritized. And then at night when they camped, 87 00:05:09,440 --> 00:05:11,120 Speaker 1: he found it was just too dark to do any 88 00:05:11,160 --> 00:05:14,440 Speaker 1: serious work. So this whole trip was just not what 89 00:05:14,560 --> 00:05:18,360 Speaker 1: he envisioned at all. In November of eighteen forty two, 90 00:05:18,680 --> 00:05:21,880 Speaker 1: the group spent time in Syria and Egypt, and this 91 00:05:22,080 --> 00:05:26,320 Speaker 1: was grueling travel. In December, Dad and Phillips were traveling 92 00:05:26,520 --> 00:05:29,960 Speaker 1: up the Nile River on a boat when Dad started 93 00:05:29,960 --> 00:05:33,800 Speaker 1: to behave oddly. He was described as having just a 94 00:05:33,960 --> 00:05:38,200 Speaker 1: huge change in his demeanor and personality. Dad started to 95 00:05:38,200 --> 00:05:41,520 Speaker 1: say things that were clearly delusional. He believed that the 96 00:05:41,560 --> 00:05:46,640 Speaker 1: Egyptian god Osiris had been communicating with him. At the time, 97 00:05:46,839 --> 00:05:50,839 Speaker 1: Phillips thought Richard was experiencing a sunstroke or heat exhaustion. 98 00:05:51,960 --> 00:05:54,240 Speaker 1: As a note, there are some other versions of what 99 00:05:54,480 --> 00:05:56,760 Speaker 1: happened with Dad at the end of this trip, at 100 00:05:56,800 --> 00:05:59,800 Speaker 1: the very end, and some of this suggests that it 101 00:05:59,839 --> 00:06:03,880 Speaker 1: was a more gradual change that got worse on the Nile, 102 00:06:04,360 --> 00:06:06,440 Speaker 1: and that it may have been brought about by drug 103 00:06:06,520 --> 00:06:09,719 Speaker 1: use during the journey. Even Dad said things like this 104 00:06:09,839 --> 00:06:13,040 Speaker 1: at various points, but in any case, by the end 105 00:06:13,080 --> 00:06:16,279 Speaker 1: of this trip, Richard definitely did not seem the same 106 00:06:16,600 --> 00:06:19,640 Speaker 1: as when he had started on the journey, and as 107 00:06:19,680 --> 00:06:22,920 Speaker 1: the group headed home through Europe, Dad continued to have 108 00:06:23,000 --> 00:06:27,920 Speaker 1: difficulty discerning reality from his delusions. He described feeling an 109 00:06:27,960 --> 00:06:31,480 Speaker 1: intense compulsion to kill the Pope when they were traveling 110 00:06:31,520 --> 00:06:34,440 Speaker 1: through Italy, but his fear of the Vatican Guard was 111 00:06:34,480 --> 00:06:37,440 Speaker 1: the only thing that kept him from it. Dad did 112 00:06:37,440 --> 00:06:39,480 Speaker 1: not make it back to London with the rest of 113 00:06:39,520 --> 00:06:43,400 Speaker 1: the Phillips party. He disappeared while they were all in Paris, 114 00:06:43,480 --> 00:06:46,560 Speaker 1: and then he returned to London on his own. When 115 00:06:46,640 --> 00:06:50,680 Speaker 1: Dad returned home, his odd behavior continued. He had a 116 00:06:50,720 --> 00:06:54,280 Speaker 1: rented room at seventy one Newman Street, Oxford Street and 117 00:06:54,480 --> 00:06:58,080 Speaker 1: started eating only a very limited diet. He would only 118 00:06:58,120 --> 00:07:01,919 Speaker 1: eat eggs and only ale, and it seems like he 119 00:07:02,000 --> 00:07:06,560 Speaker 1: was eating these eggs. Raw Newspaper reports state that the 120 00:07:06,600 --> 00:07:09,560 Speaker 1: floor of his room was covered with eggshells, and he 121 00:07:09,640 --> 00:07:13,680 Speaker 1: had huge quantities of eggs and ale on hand when 122 00:07:13,720 --> 00:07:18,120 Speaker 1: the room was later examined. Dad's strange behavior did not 123 00:07:18,280 --> 00:07:20,800 Speaker 1: go unnoticed, and his friends started to speak with his 124 00:07:20,880 --> 00:07:25,000 Speaker 1: father about getting him some help. And although Robert Dad 125 00:07:25,040 --> 00:07:28,200 Speaker 1: consulted with physicians and was advised that his son Richard 126 00:07:28,240 --> 00:07:31,120 Speaker 1: needed to be in a hospital, he decided that the 127 00:07:31,120 --> 00:07:33,160 Speaker 1: best thing for his son would be to go into 128 00:07:33,160 --> 00:07:35,400 Speaker 1: the country for a respite from the city, where he 129 00:07:35,400 --> 00:07:38,360 Speaker 1: could get plenty of fresh air and regain his health. 130 00:07:38,920 --> 00:07:41,040 Speaker 1: And there are some accounts that suggest that this trip 131 00:07:41,120 --> 00:07:44,160 Speaker 1: may have actually been Richard's idea, but in any case, 132 00:07:44,760 --> 00:07:47,440 Speaker 1: they secured rooms in a cottage and Cobbham, where they 133 00:07:47,480 --> 00:07:50,360 Speaker 1: had spent time earlier in Richard's life, and the night 134 00:07:50,360 --> 00:07:52,840 Speaker 1: of their arrival they had dinner at a public house 135 00:07:52,960 --> 00:07:55,960 Speaker 1: near those rooms. According to a waiter that worked at 136 00:07:55,960 --> 00:07:58,920 Speaker 1: the public house where they dined, whose name was John Adams, 137 00:07:59,280 --> 00:08:02,000 Speaker 1: the Dad's had stopped there inquiring about a place to 138 00:08:02,040 --> 00:08:04,480 Speaker 1: sleep first, and he had told them they had no beds, 139 00:08:04,800 --> 00:08:08,080 Speaker 1: but that he would check with a nearby cottage. Robert 140 00:08:08,160 --> 00:08:10,840 Speaker 1: Dad had told Adams that one bed would be fine 141 00:08:10,920 --> 00:08:14,040 Speaker 1: because Richard was his son. But Richard insisted that they 142 00:08:14,080 --> 00:08:17,080 Speaker 1: have two beds, and so Adams went away to make 143 00:08:17,080 --> 00:08:19,680 Speaker 1: these arrangements. He got two beds for them, and then 144 00:08:19,680 --> 00:08:21,560 Speaker 1: he came back to the inn and told the dads 145 00:08:21,600 --> 00:08:25,680 Speaker 1: that he had secured these lodgings. After dinner, Richard wanted 146 00:08:25,720 --> 00:08:28,360 Speaker 1: to go for a walk, but Robert said he had 147 00:08:28,400 --> 00:08:31,920 Speaker 1: walked enough that day. He ordered a whiskey and a water, 148 00:08:32,200 --> 00:08:36,080 Speaker 1: and his son left. Robert and the waiter Adams chatted 149 00:08:36,120 --> 00:08:39,240 Speaker 1: for a little while, and then Richard returned. At about 150 00:08:39,240 --> 00:08:43,600 Speaker 1: eight forty five pm. Adams left the room to attend 151 00:08:43,679 --> 00:08:45,960 Speaker 1: to some work, and when he got back at nine thirty, 152 00:08:46,000 --> 00:08:48,960 Speaker 1: both of the men were gone. According to Adams, they 153 00:08:49,000 --> 00:08:52,800 Speaker 1: waited until twelve thirty for the men to return before 154 00:08:52,920 --> 00:08:56,800 Speaker 1: finally giving up and locking up the public house. Yeah, 155 00:08:56,880 --> 00:08:59,640 Speaker 1: it seems like because he had secured the rooms in 156 00:08:59,679 --> 00:09:02,480 Speaker 1: a cop and they hadn't gone there yet after dinner, 157 00:09:02,520 --> 00:09:04,120 Speaker 1: he was going to take them over there, so he 158 00:09:04,200 --> 00:09:08,400 Speaker 1: was waiting, but they never should back up. And apparently 159 00:09:08,440 --> 00:09:10,840 Speaker 1: at one point, as the two men went out walking 160 00:09:10,880 --> 00:09:14,679 Speaker 1: together after their dinner, the elder dad stepped away from 161 00:09:14,720 --> 00:09:18,080 Speaker 1: the path to urinate, and when he did, his son Richard, 162 00:09:18,120 --> 00:09:21,320 Speaker 1: attacked him. He first punched him in the head, and 163 00:09:21,360 --> 00:09:23,720 Speaker 1: then he stabbed him in the chest and cut his throat, 164 00:09:24,480 --> 00:09:27,120 Speaker 1: and according to his own account, Richard then shouted to 165 00:09:27,160 --> 00:09:30,400 Speaker 1: the sky, go and tell the great godd o Cyrus 166 00:09:30,440 --> 00:09:32,520 Speaker 1: that I have done the deed which is to set 167 00:09:32,600 --> 00:09:35,920 Speaker 1: him free. Coming up, we'll talk about what happened after 168 00:09:36,000 --> 00:09:39,559 Speaker 1: this murder, but first we will pause for a sponsor break. 169 00:09:49,080 --> 00:09:52,080 Speaker 1: On the morning following the murder, a butcher named Abraham 170 00:09:52,160 --> 00:09:55,280 Speaker 1: Lister was driving a buggy through Common Park with his nephew, 171 00:09:55,760 --> 00:09:59,040 Speaker 1: Charles Lister. This was about seven am, and the two 172 00:09:59,080 --> 00:10:02,640 Speaker 1: of them noticed a gentlemanly looking man lying in the 173 00:10:02,679 --> 00:10:05,640 Speaker 1: park on his face, with his arms over his head 174 00:10:05,679 --> 00:10:08,880 Speaker 1: and without his hat. He was about thirty yards away 175 00:10:08,880 --> 00:10:11,600 Speaker 1: from the road, so the Lister thought the man may 176 00:10:11,640 --> 00:10:14,280 Speaker 1: have been asleep or in distress, and they stopped to 177 00:10:14,400 --> 00:10:17,600 Speaker 1: check on him and offer assistance, but a prawn approach 178 00:10:17,720 --> 00:10:21,360 Speaker 1: saw that the body was covered in blood. They immediately 179 00:10:21,440 --> 00:10:24,680 Speaker 1: reported the find, calling on the constable, and this body 180 00:10:24,760 --> 00:10:29,400 Speaker 1: was soon identified as Robert Dad. A locked knife, a razor, 181 00:10:29,520 --> 00:10:32,280 Speaker 1: and Robert's hat were soon found near where the body 182 00:10:32,320 --> 00:10:37,199 Speaker 1: had been found. This Constable William Dawes, believed that Robert's 183 00:10:37,200 --> 00:10:41,080 Speaker 1: body had been dragged some distance, and also noted that 184 00:10:41,160 --> 00:10:44,640 Speaker 1: he had money and a gold watch still in his pockets. 185 00:10:45,320 --> 00:10:48,840 Speaker 1: The surgeon who performed a post mortem, named William Saunders, 186 00:10:49,240 --> 00:10:52,240 Speaker 1: reported to the coroner's jury that he had found an 187 00:10:52,240 --> 00:10:55,600 Speaker 1: incision on the left side of the throat, although it 188 00:10:55,679 --> 00:10:59,280 Speaker 1: wasn't big enough to have caused Robert's death. He also 189 00:10:59,360 --> 00:11:02,760 Speaker 1: noted bruce on the deceased's face and head, and a 190 00:11:02,880 --> 00:11:06,760 Speaker 1: number of small puncture wounds on the right thumb. The 191 00:11:06,920 --> 00:11:10,400 Speaker 1: lungs had been penetrated by a knife in two places. 192 00:11:10,840 --> 00:11:13,760 Speaker 1: He was confident that none of the wounds could have 193 00:11:13,840 --> 00:11:18,720 Speaker 1: been caused by Robert himself. After hearing testimony for several hours, 194 00:11:18,760 --> 00:11:23,960 Speaker 1: the coroner's jury declared this death to be a wilful murder. Initially, 195 00:11:24,200 --> 00:11:28,240 Speaker 1: after Robert's body was found, questions arose about whether someone 196 00:11:28,280 --> 00:11:32,240 Speaker 1: had attacked both father and son, and if Richard might 197 00:11:32,280 --> 00:11:35,640 Speaker 1: also be somewhere in the park dead. No one had 198 00:11:35,679 --> 00:11:38,080 Speaker 1: seen him since that waiter at the public house had 199 00:11:38,160 --> 00:11:41,440 Speaker 1: left him and his father in the dining room. Then 200 00:11:41,600 --> 00:11:44,120 Speaker 1: there was speculation that this may have been a murder 201 00:11:44,240 --> 00:11:47,640 Speaker 1: suicide scenario and that Richard may have gone elsewhere and 202 00:11:47,720 --> 00:11:51,480 Speaker 1: taken his own life, but that theory soon died down 203 00:11:51,520 --> 00:11:54,680 Speaker 1: as reports began to surface of other people who had 204 00:11:54,720 --> 00:11:59,679 Speaker 1: seen and interacted with him after Adams the Waiter. Additionally, 205 00:12:00,280 --> 00:12:03,640 Speaker 1: when Richard's room in London was searched, authorities found some 206 00:12:03,679 --> 00:12:07,760 Speaker 1: really troubling artwork that he had made. These artworks depicted 207 00:12:07,800 --> 00:12:10,840 Speaker 1: people in his life, family and friends, each of which 208 00:12:10,960 --> 00:12:14,480 Speaker 1: was shown with their throat slit. Richard became the prime 209 00:12:14,520 --> 00:12:18,800 Speaker 1: suspect in Robert Dad's murder. After this discovery, police put 210 00:12:18,840 --> 00:12:22,400 Speaker 1: out an internal notice that read quote description of Richard 211 00:12:22,520 --> 00:12:25,920 Speaker 1: Dad who was suspected of having murdered his father at 212 00:12:25,920 --> 00:12:29,360 Speaker 1: Cobham Park, Kent on the twenty eighth or twenty ninth, 213 00:12:29,760 --> 00:12:32,800 Speaker 1: twenty four years of age, five feet eight inches high, 214 00:12:33,080 --> 00:12:37,640 Speaker 1: dark hair, light blue eyes, thick, dark eyebrows, sallow complexion, 215 00:12:38,200 --> 00:12:42,480 Speaker 1: no whiskers, dressed in a dark blue frock coat, light 216 00:12:42,520 --> 00:12:47,440 Speaker 1: blue trousers. His linen marked Richard Dad or RD. Up 217 00:12:47,520 --> 00:12:49,800 Speaker 1: to the time of the murder, he resided at number 218 00:12:49,800 --> 00:12:54,080 Speaker 1: seventy one Newman Street, Oxford Street. Every exertion is to 219 00:12:54,120 --> 00:12:57,240 Speaker 1: be used for the apprehension of the individual in question. 220 00:12:58,640 --> 00:13:01,000 Speaker 1: Not long after, a bulletin went released to keep an 221 00:13:01,040 --> 00:13:04,800 Speaker 1: eye on railroad stations, and another that every police division 222 00:13:04,840 --> 00:13:09,480 Speaker 1: should start making inquiries at their local lodging houses. As 223 00:13:09,520 --> 00:13:13,360 Speaker 1: the manhunt for Richard got into full swing, Robert Dad 224 00:13:13,440 --> 00:13:17,240 Speaker 1: was buried at Gillingham Churchyard near Chatham, with Richard's brothers 225 00:13:17,240 --> 00:13:21,959 Speaker 1: in attendance. According to a newspaper account published a week later. 226 00:13:22,320 --> 00:13:25,520 Speaker 1: Immediately after the murder, Dad went to a tavern called 227 00:13:25,600 --> 00:13:29,560 Speaker 1: Soul's Arms. Tavern was popular with artists, and he asked 228 00:13:29,559 --> 00:13:32,960 Speaker 1: for a glass of water. According to the Chester Chronicle, 229 00:13:33,040 --> 00:13:37,479 Speaker 1: published on September fifteenth, eighteen forty three, quote, his extraordinary 230 00:13:37,480 --> 00:13:41,320 Speaker 1: appearance and excitement caused a remark from the barmaid that 231 00:13:41,520 --> 00:13:45,000 Speaker 1: she thought the young gentleman was not in his right mind, 232 00:13:45,280 --> 00:13:49,480 Speaker 1: which expression being overheard by him, he hurried from the house. 233 00:13:50,480 --> 00:13:53,320 Speaker 1: Richard made his way to Rochester and from there took 234 00:13:53,360 --> 00:13:56,800 Speaker 1: a carriage to the port at Dover. There, he stated 235 00:13:56,800 --> 00:14:00,239 Speaker 1: at the Ship Hotel while working to secure passage to Frances. 236 00:14:01,040 --> 00:14:03,640 Speaker 1: According to accounts from people who saw him there and 237 00:14:03,720 --> 00:14:07,120 Speaker 1: noted his disheveled state, he claimed that he had fallen 238 00:14:07,160 --> 00:14:10,280 Speaker 1: from a coach in an accident. He was noted as 239 00:14:10,320 --> 00:14:13,439 Speaker 1: carrying large amounts of cash, and he paid ten pounds 240 00:14:13,480 --> 00:14:17,559 Speaker 1: for his passage to Calais. In Calais, Dad was taken 241 00:14:17,640 --> 00:14:20,840 Speaker 1: to the passport office. He told officials there that he 242 00:14:20,920 --> 00:14:24,800 Speaker 1: was on pressing business. His passport was brand new, having 243 00:14:25,040 --> 00:14:27,960 Speaker 1: just been issued the week before, but it was valid 244 00:14:28,400 --> 00:14:31,520 Speaker 1: and he was sent on his way. He purchased new 245 00:14:31,520 --> 00:14:34,920 Speaker 1: clothes in Calais and left his old, bloody suit behind 246 00:14:34,960 --> 00:14:39,720 Speaker 1: at the hotel that was later seized as evidence. As 247 00:14:39,840 --> 00:14:43,960 Speaker 1: newspaper reports relayed the grizzly details of Robert's murder at 248 00:14:43,960 --> 00:14:47,280 Speaker 1: his son's hand, they offer up what's now a classic 249 00:14:47,320 --> 00:14:51,400 Speaker 1: description of the perpetrator that's actually become kind of a trope, 250 00:14:51,760 --> 00:14:54,560 Speaker 1: like this one in the Chester Chronicle quote, he has 251 00:14:54,600 --> 00:14:56,960 Speaker 1: always been considered as a young man of the most 252 00:14:57,080 --> 00:15:00,560 Speaker 1: mild disposition, and had ever exhibited fear links of the 253 00:15:00,600 --> 00:15:05,080 Speaker 1: warmest and most affectionate attachment to his father. The unfortunate 254 00:15:05,120 --> 00:15:08,520 Speaker 1: father was also devotedly attached to and proud of his son, 255 00:15:08,880 --> 00:15:11,640 Speaker 1: whose abilities as an artist are stated to be of 256 00:15:11,680 --> 00:15:15,400 Speaker 1: a very high order. Coverage of the murder was so 257 00:15:15,760 --> 00:15:20,080 Speaker 1: extensive that the Lester Chronicle included it in an editorial 258 00:15:20,160 --> 00:15:23,960 Speaker 1: that questioned whether newspapers had started to focus too much 259 00:15:24,080 --> 00:15:28,920 Speaker 1: on satanic topics instead of things like literature when there 260 00:15:28,960 --> 00:15:33,240 Speaker 1: isn't much political news. The article notes of Dad's story quote, 261 00:15:33,240 --> 00:15:36,880 Speaker 1: this is a rare specimen. The world heard little enough 262 00:15:36,920 --> 00:15:40,760 Speaker 1: of Richard Dad, the humble artist. But Richard Dad, the 263 00:15:40,840 --> 00:15:45,000 Speaker 1: patricide becomes at once a man of reputation, his career 264 00:15:45,240 --> 00:15:48,800 Speaker 1: worthy of a memoir, his artistic abilities of an essay, 265 00:15:49,280 --> 00:15:52,520 Speaker 1: and his productions of a place in the pictorial times. 266 00:15:53,160 --> 00:15:57,800 Speaker 1: Patricides are found to be a saleable commodity. Public patronage 267 00:15:57,880 --> 00:16:02,600 Speaker 1: is fished for an atroci murder, being employed as bait. 268 00:16:03,720 --> 00:16:06,160 Speaker 1: And as all of this was being hashed out in 269 00:16:06,200 --> 00:16:09,800 Speaker 1: the papers, the English and French authorities worked cooperatively on 270 00:16:09,920 --> 00:16:13,480 Speaker 1: Richard's case. This was not only because the French were 271 00:16:13,480 --> 00:16:16,920 Speaker 1: helping to apprehend the suspect. It was because he also 272 00:16:17,000 --> 00:16:20,200 Speaker 1: committed a violent crime in France and was arrested for it. 273 00:16:21,000 --> 00:16:23,680 Speaker 1: Richard was not planning to stay in France. He was 274 00:16:23,760 --> 00:16:26,320 Speaker 1: passing through it because he wanted to go to Vienna. 275 00:16:27,080 --> 00:16:29,720 Speaker 1: He believed that he needed to get to Austria and 276 00:16:29,760 --> 00:16:33,880 Speaker 1: assassinate Emperor Ferdinand the Ist, and as part of this journey, 277 00:16:33,920 --> 00:16:37,760 Speaker 1: he had boarded a stagecoach at Fontainebleau headed from Montreux. 278 00:16:38,720 --> 00:16:41,400 Speaker 1: But on this leg of the journey, Richard attacked one 279 00:16:41,440 --> 00:16:44,600 Speaker 1: of the other passengers and attempted to slit his throat. 280 00:16:45,080 --> 00:16:48,800 Speaker 1: Richard was quickly subdued and arrested, and his victim survived 281 00:16:48,840 --> 00:16:52,040 Speaker 1: the attack. Dad would later say that he had a 282 00:16:52,080 --> 00:16:56,280 Speaker 1: communication from ursa Major directing him to attack this man. 283 00:16:57,040 --> 00:17:01,000 Speaker 1: French newspapers ran an account of the attack claims made 284 00:17:01,080 --> 00:17:04,399 Speaker 1: by Dad. While in custody quote, it appears that the 285 00:17:04,440 --> 00:17:07,399 Speaker 1: young man states himself to be the son and envoy 286 00:17:07,520 --> 00:17:11,159 Speaker 1: of God, since to exterminate the men most possessed with 287 00:17:11,280 --> 00:17:15,919 Speaker 1: the demon. He relates with great coolness that in the 288 00:17:16,000 --> 00:17:20,960 Speaker 1: park of Lord Darnley he was seized being with him 289 00:17:21,080 --> 00:17:23,880 Speaker 1: who is said to be his father, with the divine 290 00:17:23,920 --> 00:17:28,600 Speaker 1: inspiration which commanded him to sacrifice him. So, in case 291 00:17:28,640 --> 00:17:32,320 Speaker 1: it's unclear from the somewhat stilted phrasing of that time period, 292 00:17:33,040 --> 00:17:36,240 Speaker 1: Richard thought the man he was with was not his father, 293 00:17:36,560 --> 00:17:39,600 Speaker 1: but was some sort of demonic presence pretending to be 294 00:17:40,320 --> 00:17:43,639 Speaker 1: or perhaps the physical body of his father, but in 295 00:17:43,720 --> 00:17:49,439 Speaker 1: a state of demonic possession. When French doctors asked Dad 296 00:17:49,640 --> 00:17:52,760 Speaker 1: how he felt about his actions, he stated that he 297 00:17:52,800 --> 00:17:56,200 Speaker 1: had done the right thing because he destroyed an enemy 298 00:17:56,200 --> 00:17:59,960 Speaker 1: of God. He similarly felt he must attack his felf 299 00:18:00,240 --> 00:18:05,280 Speaker 1: traveler as something commanded by a higher power. Incidentally, that 300 00:18:05,400 --> 00:18:07,960 Speaker 1: quote stating that he believed he was the son of 301 00:18:08,000 --> 00:18:11,159 Speaker 1: God actually makes this belief a little unclear, because he 302 00:18:11,320 --> 00:18:14,080 Speaker 1: didn't believe he was the son of the Christian God, 303 00:18:14,200 --> 00:18:18,359 Speaker 1: which the paper's readers likely assumed. Dad thought he was 304 00:18:18,440 --> 00:18:21,560 Speaker 1: the son of the Sun, as in the center of 305 00:18:21,600 --> 00:18:25,520 Speaker 1: the solar system. His delusion wasn't as simple as that, 306 00:18:25,600 --> 00:18:27,840 Speaker 1: though he would later say he was the son of 307 00:18:27,840 --> 00:18:31,600 Speaker 1: the Egyptian god Osiris, sent to the Earth to cleanse 308 00:18:31,680 --> 00:18:35,280 Speaker 1: it of demons. One of the interesting points of news 309 00:18:35,320 --> 00:18:39,080 Speaker 1: coverage as Richard's arrest in Paris was covered was what 310 00:18:39,160 --> 00:18:41,320 Speaker 1: was going to happen to him and how things would 311 00:18:41,320 --> 00:18:44,679 Speaker 1: be handled between England and France. As we said, the 312 00:18:44,680 --> 00:18:47,600 Speaker 1: two countries were cooperating, but they had to decide how 313 00:18:47,640 --> 00:18:50,960 Speaker 1: to proceed with his charges in both France and England. 314 00:18:51,680 --> 00:18:54,600 Speaker 1: But as the Essex Hertz and Kent Mercury noted in 315 00:18:54,680 --> 00:18:58,760 Speaker 1: its coverage quote, should he, however, be dispatched to this country, 316 00:18:59,080 --> 00:19:01,359 Speaker 1: there is not a doubt that his relatives will be 317 00:19:01,440 --> 00:19:06,200 Speaker 1: spared the distress attending a public examination, with the understanding 318 00:19:06,240 --> 00:19:09,440 Speaker 1: that they will immediately adopt measures for his safe keeping 319 00:19:09,640 --> 00:19:13,879 Speaker 1: in the lunatic asylum. Since Dad had confessed to murdering 320 00:19:13,920 --> 00:19:17,440 Speaker 1: his father, French authorities held him in an asylum while 321 00:19:17,480 --> 00:19:21,200 Speaker 1: decisions were made about how to handle the case. French 322 00:19:21,240 --> 00:19:24,679 Speaker 1: doctors declared him homicidal and noted that Dad would stare 323 00:19:24,800 --> 00:19:28,320 Speaker 1: straight at the sun for long periods of time without blinking. 324 00:19:29,359 --> 00:19:32,840 Speaker 1: Richard was prescribed cold water bats as part of his therapy, 325 00:19:32,960 --> 00:19:37,439 Speaker 1: which did not improve his condition. After several months in France, 326 00:19:37,480 --> 00:19:39,480 Speaker 1: he was sent back to England and that made him 327 00:19:39,480 --> 00:19:43,720 Speaker 1: the first person ever extradited between the two countries. We'll 328 00:19:43,760 --> 00:19:47,040 Speaker 1: talk about Dad's life after he returned to England after 329 00:19:47,080 --> 00:19:49,200 Speaker 1: we hear from the sponsors that keep stuff you missed 330 00:19:49,200 --> 00:20:01,959 Speaker 1: in history class going As mentioned in the papers that 331 00:20:02,000 --> 00:20:04,720 Speaker 1: we read from earlier, British authorities did not put the 332 00:20:04,800 --> 00:20:08,520 Speaker 1: Dad family through a trial. There was a brief hearing 333 00:20:08,680 --> 00:20:12,080 Speaker 1: and then on August twenty second, eighteen forty four, Dad 334 00:20:12,160 --> 00:20:15,639 Speaker 1: was committed to Bethlum Hospital, So this is the same 335 00:20:15,640 --> 00:20:18,119 Speaker 1: Bethlum that has come up on the show before. It 336 00:20:18,200 --> 00:20:22,040 Speaker 1: had the nickname Bedlam because of its terrible reputation regarding 337 00:20:22,040 --> 00:20:25,600 Speaker 1: the treatment of its patients, but it had been rebuilt 338 00:20:25,640 --> 00:20:28,639 Speaker 1: in the eighteen teens and it was considered quite a 339 00:20:28,640 --> 00:20:32,040 Speaker 1: bit reformed, although it still had problems and because of 340 00:20:32,040 --> 00:20:34,959 Speaker 1: his violent past, Dad was sent to the criminal ward 341 00:20:36,160 --> 00:20:38,840 Speaker 1: Though Richard Dad was cut off from the outside world. 342 00:20:39,119 --> 00:20:43,040 Speaker 1: After he was allowed art materials by the warden, he 343 00:20:43,240 --> 00:20:46,919 Speaker 1: continued to sketch and paint, often working from memory and 344 00:20:46,960 --> 00:20:50,760 Speaker 1: also using the staff at the hospital as models. Even 345 00:20:50,800 --> 00:20:53,480 Speaker 1: for women. He would use men there as stand ins 346 00:20:53,520 --> 00:20:56,520 Speaker 1: to do his figure work. He also sometimes used his 347 00:20:56,600 --> 00:21:01,120 Speaker 1: fellow patients as models. The staff at Bethlum often encouraged 348 00:21:01,200 --> 00:21:03,719 Speaker 1: him in his work, and they even commissioned art from 349 00:21:03,800 --> 00:21:06,879 Speaker 1: him from time to time. Some of these works depict 350 00:21:06,920 --> 00:21:10,600 Speaker 1: events in the place of Shakespeare, even occasionally writing lines 351 00:21:10,600 --> 00:21:12,600 Speaker 1: from the plays at the bottom of the works are 352 00:21:12,640 --> 00:21:16,080 Speaker 1: on the back. Several of these focus on instances of 353 00:21:16,200 --> 00:21:19,360 Speaker 1: violence or murder in the place, such as one titled Hatred, 354 00:21:19,680 --> 00:21:22,840 Speaker 1: which depicts Henry the Six being killed by Richard of Gloucester. 355 00:21:23,800 --> 00:21:27,720 Speaker 1: He also drew from classic literature and biblical stories for inspiration, 356 00:21:28,000 --> 00:21:31,439 Speaker 1: including a watercolor of Cain. Just after his murder of 357 00:21:31,480 --> 00:21:36,520 Speaker 1: Abel titled Murder. In eighteen fifty five, Dad created one 358 00:21:36,560 --> 00:21:40,120 Speaker 1: of his most famous works called Sketch of an Idea 359 00:21:40,240 --> 00:21:43,680 Speaker 1: for Crazy Jane. I shows a character from a folk 360 00:21:43,800 --> 00:21:47,520 Speaker 1: ballad titled Poor Crazy Jane, who goes mad when her 361 00:21:47,560 --> 00:21:52,439 Speaker 1: lover abandons her. This sketch shows Jane in the foreground, 362 00:21:52,600 --> 00:21:57,040 Speaker 1: staring directly at the viewer, with her arms overhead, clutching 363 00:21:57,160 --> 00:22:00,200 Speaker 1: a switch with ribbons tied onto it, and looking as 364 00:22:00,280 --> 00:22:04,440 Speaker 1: though she may be dancing. She's bedraggled but not dirty, 365 00:22:04,840 --> 00:22:07,960 Speaker 1: and in the middle ground ravens fly overhead. In the 366 00:22:08,000 --> 00:22:11,840 Speaker 1: distant background, there's a castle. This is a striking image 367 00:22:11,840 --> 00:22:14,800 Speaker 1: for a number of reasons. It's a watercolor done almost 368 00:22:14,960 --> 00:22:19,000 Speaker 1: entirely in pale shades of blue gray and faint brown. 369 00:22:19,320 --> 00:22:22,360 Speaker 1: It also looks almost oddly modern. It would be right 370 00:22:22,400 --> 00:22:27,240 Speaker 1: at home in a modern goth or even manga inspired sketchbook. Yeah, 371 00:22:27,240 --> 00:22:29,760 Speaker 1: there is something about the shape of her face and 372 00:22:29,800 --> 00:22:32,959 Speaker 1: the furrow of her brow that I was like, this 373 00:22:33,119 --> 00:22:36,000 Speaker 1: looks like it literally looks like manga to me, like 374 00:22:36,080 --> 00:22:39,560 Speaker 1: prota manga. It's very interesting. Another work that he started 375 00:22:39,680 --> 00:22:43,080 Speaker 1: in eighteen fifty five and that really defines the painter's ouvre, 376 00:22:43,680 --> 00:22:46,959 Speaker 1: is The Fairy Feller's master Stroke, which was commissioned by 377 00:22:46,960 --> 00:22:51,520 Speaker 1: the hospital's head steward, George Hayden, and this painting features 378 00:22:51,520 --> 00:22:55,080 Speaker 1: Oberon and Titanya from Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, as 379 00:22:55,160 --> 00:22:57,760 Speaker 1: well as other fairies, but the rest of the fairies 380 00:22:57,760 --> 00:23:02,200 Speaker 1: are original characters created by da The Fairy Feller is 381 00:23:02,240 --> 00:23:05,280 Speaker 1: a character he's poised to cut open a chestnut that's 382 00:23:05,320 --> 00:23:09,600 Speaker 1: to be used in construction, presumably for a palace for 383 00:23:09,720 --> 00:23:13,000 Speaker 1: the Fairy Queen, and this is considered by many people 384 00:23:13,040 --> 00:23:15,200 Speaker 1: to be his masterpiece, and it has earned him the 385 00:23:15,280 --> 00:23:19,280 Speaker 1: nickname the Fairy Painter, although this particular work was never completed. 386 00:23:19,800 --> 00:23:23,480 Speaker 1: In eighteen fifty two, Bethleem had gotten a new superintendent, 387 00:23:23,680 --> 00:23:28,679 Speaker 1: William Charles Hood, who was interested in further reforming the facility. 388 00:23:29,600 --> 00:23:33,440 Speaker 1: He was also keenly interested in Dad's case. Dad wrote 389 00:23:33,480 --> 00:23:36,199 Speaker 1: out his entire account of what happened the night he 390 00:23:36,280 --> 00:23:39,000 Speaker 1: killed his father and gave it to Hood, but that 391 00:23:39,080 --> 00:23:44,439 Speaker 1: account has not survived Hood's notes on Dad half, though 392 00:23:44,960 --> 00:23:48,399 Speaker 1: on March twenty first, eighteen fifty four, Hood wrote quote, 393 00:23:48,440 --> 00:23:51,520 Speaker 1: for some years after his admission, he was considered a 394 00:23:51,640 --> 00:23:54,879 Speaker 1: violent and dangerous patient, for he would jump up and 395 00:23:54,960 --> 00:23:59,000 Speaker 1: strike a violent blow without any aggravation, and then beg 396 00:23:59,240 --> 00:24:03,119 Speaker 1: pardon for the This arose from some vague idea that 397 00:24:03,240 --> 00:24:06,240 Speaker 1: filled his mind and still does to a certain extent, 398 00:24:06,680 --> 00:24:09,879 Speaker 1: that certain spirits have the power of possessing a man's 399 00:24:09,920 --> 00:24:14,119 Speaker 1: body and compelling him to adopt a particular course, whether 400 00:24:14,160 --> 00:24:17,639 Speaker 1: he will or not. When he talks on this subject, 401 00:24:17,760 --> 00:24:20,880 Speaker 1: and on any other at all associated with the motive 402 00:24:21,160 --> 00:24:23,760 Speaker 1: that influenced him to commit the crime for which he 403 00:24:23,880 --> 00:24:28,040 Speaker 1: is confined here, he frequently becomes excited in his manner 404 00:24:28,080 --> 00:24:31,200 Speaker 1: of speaking, and soon rambles from the subject and becomes 405 00:24:31,280 --> 00:24:35,600 Speaker 1: quite unintelligible. He is very eccentric, and glories that he 406 00:24:35,680 --> 00:24:39,919 Speaker 1: is not influenced by motives that other men pride themselves 407 00:24:39,920 --> 00:24:44,120 Speaker 1: in possessing. Thus he pays no sort of attention to decency, 408 00:24:44,400 --> 00:24:47,879 Speaker 1: and acts or words if he feels the least inclination 409 00:24:48,000 --> 00:24:51,639 Speaker 1: to be Otherwise, he is a perfectly sensual, being a 410 00:24:51,840 --> 00:24:56,560 Speaker 1: thorough animal. But he also noted after describing some rather 411 00:24:56,720 --> 00:25:00,920 Speaker 1: gross behaviors that Dad was smart, educated and a gifted 412 00:25:01,000 --> 00:25:04,159 Speaker 1: artist and could be quite agreeable and enjoyable to talk to. 413 00:25:05,560 --> 00:25:08,119 Speaker 1: In eighteen fifty seven, Dad was moved out of the 414 00:25:08,119 --> 00:25:11,359 Speaker 1: criminal ward in Bethleem to an ordinary ward along with 415 00:25:11,440 --> 00:25:14,199 Speaker 1: three dozen other residents who had been determined to be 416 00:25:14,240 --> 00:25:17,439 Speaker 1: ready for a more homelike environment in the hopes that 417 00:25:17,480 --> 00:25:20,200 Speaker 1: it would benefit their well being. And this was one 418 00:25:20,240 --> 00:25:24,280 Speaker 1: of Woods's efforts at changing the way mental illness was managed. 419 00:25:24,800 --> 00:25:27,679 Speaker 1: And these new surroundings were much less hospital like and 420 00:25:27,720 --> 00:25:30,560 Speaker 1: more like a dormitory, and there were things like open 421 00:25:30,600 --> 00:25:33,840 Speaker 1: windows for natural light, and pets and a parlor where 422 00:25:33,840 --> 00:25:37,160 Speaker 1: the men could sit and converse. In eighteen sixty four, 423 00:25:37,400 --> 00:25:42,240 Speaker 1: construction was completed on the Broadmoor Criminal Lunatic Asylum in 424 00:25:42,320 --> 00:25:46,919 Speaker 1: Berkshire and Richard was transferred there. He had not had 425 00:25:46,960 --> 00:25:51,600 Speaker 1: any violent outbursts in years at that point and he 426 00:25:51,720 --> 00:25:54,000 Speaker 1: was transferred to this new facility even though it was 427 00:25:54,080 --> 00:25:58,879 Speaker 1: a criminal lunatic asylum. He continued to paint there, along 428 00:25:58,960 --> 00:26:01,400 Speaker 1: many of the same thematic lines that he always had. 429 00:26:02,080 --> 00:26:05,160 Speaker 1: He lived and painted at Broadmoor for twenty two years, 430 00:26:05,480 --> 00:26:10,439 Speaker 1: steadfastly and absolute certainty that his delusions were real. He 431 00:26:10,560 --> 00:26:13,160 Speaker 1: died there in January of eighteen eighty six of lung 432 00:26:13,240 --> 00:26:18,040 Speaker 1: disease and was buried on the asylum grounds. So while 433 00:26:18,119 --> 00:26:21,159 Speaker 1: Dad's story has inspired other artists and writers, you can 434 00:26:21,200 --> 00:26:24,520 Speaker 1: find mention of him in a lot of modern pop 435 00:26:24,520 --> 00:26:29,080 Speaker 1: culture things, in many ways he remains really inscrutable. Right. 436 00:26:29,200 --> 00:26:32,040 Speaker 1: We kind of buzzed through the last twenty two years 437 00:26:32,040 --> 00:26:34,840 Speaker 1: of his life because there's not a lot of specific 438 00:26:34,880 --> 00:26:38,639 Speaker 1: information other than paintings he made even while he was 439 00:26:38,680 --> 00:26:41,640 Speaker 1: still alive. Art dealers who may have had his paintings 440 00:26:41,680 --> 00:26:44,360 Speaker 1: pass through their hands often just went ahead and told 441 00:26:44,400 --> 00:26:46,840 Speaker 1: buyers he was deceased so that they wouldn't have to 442 00:26:46,880 --> 00:26:50,040 Speaker 1: explain that he was still being held in an asylum, 443 00:26:50,480 --> 00:26:53,520 Speaker 1: and because he didn't want to see visitors most of 444 00:26:53,560 --> 00:26:56,439 Speaker 1: the time. The only accounts that we have about his 445 00:26:56,560 --> 00:27:00,000 Speaker 1: years past eighteen forty three, so like more than four 446 00:27:00,320 --> 00:27:03,400 Speaker 1: years of his life, are from doctors who had assessed 447 00:27:03,440 --> 00:27:06,159 Speaker 1: and treated him, and this has led a lot of 448 00:27:06,200 --> 00:27:09,280 Speaker 1: modern doctors to debate over what mental illness he may 449 00:27:09,320 --> 00:27:11,479 Speaker 1: have had, but there's no sure way to know at 450 00:27:11,480 --> 00:27:14,840 Speaker 1: this point. There are entire papers written about kind of 451 00:27:14,840 --> 00:27:17,720 Speaker 1: building a case file around his what we do know 452 00:27:17,800 --> 00:27:21,240 Speaker 1: about him, but without him here to actually have a 453 00:27:21,880 --> 00:27:26,720 Speaker 1: current assessment, it's all guesswork. Even Dad's last painting, which 454 00:27:26,720 --> 00:27:29,520 Speaker 1: is a portrait of a man, remains something of a mystery. 455 00:27:30,400 --> 00:27:32,879 Speaker 1: For a long time, many believed that this was a 456 00:27:32,880 --> 00:27:35,520 Speaker 1: painting of the head of Broadmoor, a man named doctor 457 00:27:35,520 --> 00:27:38,360 Speaker 1: William Orange who had taken over there in eighteen seventy. 458 00:27:39,760 --> 00:27:44,480 Speaker 1: It's a very beautiful and detailed painting, But then photographs 459 00:27:44,600 --> 00:27:47,359 Speaker 1: of doctor William Orange surfaced and it became a parent 460 00:27:47,440 --> 00:27:51,240 Speaker 1: that that painting was probably misidentified because it doesn't look 461 00:27:51,320 --> 00:27:55,560 Speaker 1: like him. Dad's works have been shown in exhibitions fairly 462 00:27:55,600 --> 00:27:58,720 Speaker 1: frequently over the years. They're often included in shows that 463 00:27:58,800 --> 00:28:02,000 Speaker 1: are curated with an eye to examining the relationship between 464 00:28:02,119 --> 00:28:07,200 Speaker 1: art and mental illness or institutional experiences. People frequently point 465 00:28:07,240 --> 00:28:09,960 Speaker 1: out how figures in some of his paintings look like 466 00:28:10,040 --> 00:28:13,840 Speaker 1: his father or other specific people in his life, including 467 00:28:13,840 --> 00:28:18,119 Speaker 1: the staff of both Bethlem and Broadmoor. One of Dad's 468 00:28:18,119 --> 00:28:22,440 Speaker 1: works during his institutionalized life was a portrait labeled sketch 469 00:28:22,480 --> 00:28:26,040 Speaker 1: of Mister George Bailey by Richard Dad August thirteenth, eighteen 470 00:28:26,119 --> 00:28:31,760 Speaker 1: fifty five, Bethlehem Hospital, London. George Bailey was an attendant 471 00:28:31,800 --> 00:28:34,720 Speaker 1: at Bethlum. He was born in eighteen twenty one, so 472 00:28:34,760 --> 00:28:37,080 Speaker 1: he was four years younger than the artist, and he 473 00:28:37,119 --> 00:28:39,400 Speaker 1: had been working at the facility since he was twenty 474 00:28:39,400 --> 00:28:42,440 Speaker 1: eight in eighteen forty eight, so this means he was 475 00:28:42,480 --> 00:28:44,960 Speaker 1: there at a time when some reforms had been made, 476 00:28:45,520 --> 00:28:49,280 Speaker 1: but before William Charles Hood became superintendent, and then he 477 00:28:49,440 --> 00:28:52,040 Speaker 1: was there as Hood further changed the way residents were 478 00:28:52,040 --> 00:28:55,520 Speaker 1: cared for. So these two men, Bailey and Dad would 479 00:28:55,720 --> 00:28:58,560 Speaker 1: likely have seen a lot of each other, as Jeffrey 480 00:28:58,600 --> 00:29:01,080 Speaker 1: Munn noted in an article about Dad and Bailey for 481 00:29:01,120 --> 00:29:04,520 Speaker 1: British Art Journal in twenty twenty three, Bailey was transferred 482 00:29:04,560 --> 00:29:07,920 Speaker 1: to Broadmoor for his job, just six months before Richard 483 00:29:08,000 --> 00:29:12,400 Speaker 1: moved there. The Bethlum facility is now the Imperial War 484 00:29:12,560 --> 00:29:15,640 Speaker 1: Museum at It includes a Museum of the Mind, which 485 00:29:15,680 --> 00:29:20,560 Speaker 1: features quote portraiture by and of people suffering from mental illness. 486 00:29:21,600 --> 00:29:25,320 Speaker 1: Dad's work is included in the collection. A work Dad 487 00:29:25,360 --> 00:29:28,080 Speaker 1: painted while at Bethlum, called Portrait of a young Man, 488 00:29:28,240 --> 00:29:31,719 Speaker 1: is on loan to Bethlum from the Tate. There are 489 00:29:31,800 --> 00:29:34,480 Speaker 1: other works of art from him in that collection, but 490 00:29:34,560 --> 00:29:37,080 Speaker 1: that one just last year got loaned by the Tate 491 00:29:37,160 --> 00:29:39,800 Speaker 1: to be part of it. I could be misremembering, but 492 00:29:39,880 --> 00:29:42,080 Speaker 1: I feel like there are works by Louis Wayne in 493 00:29:42,120 --> 00:29:45,320 Speaker 1: the same I would not be surprised at all. Yeah. 494 00:29:45,840 --> 00:29:48,600 Speaker 1: Adding to the mystery of Dad's story is that a 495 00:29:48,720 --> 00:29:52,120 Speaker 1: number of works he is documented as having painted are 496 00:29:52,400 --> 00:29:54,640 Speaker 1: nowhere to be found. They just kind of vanished at 497 00:29:54,680 --> 00:29:57,560 Speaker 1: various points in time, often when they were on loan 498 00:29:57,600 --> 00:30:01,600 Speaker 1: for exhibitions. One of them, it's titled Halt in the Desert. 499 00:30:01,680 --> 00:30:03,840 Speaker 1: It goes by a couple other names as well, was 500 00:30:03,880 --> 00:30:06,440 Speaker 1: painted in eighteen forty five after he had been at 501 00:30:06,440 --> 00:30:09,280 Speaker 1: Bethleem for a couple of years, and he painted this 502 00:30:09,360 --> 00:30:12,240 Speaker 1: work from sketches and notes that he made while traveling 503 00:30:12,280 --> 00:30:14,920 Speaker 1: with Sir Thomas Phillips when they had to travel at 504 00:30:15,000 --> 00:30:17,800 Speaker 1: night across the Eemeddy in Israel, which is west of 505 00:30:17,840 --> 00:30:21,520 Speaker 1: the Dead Sea. This is a very striking night scene 506 00:30:21,720 --> 00:30:25,000 Speaker 1: in watercolor, showing the group stopped to make camp for 507 00:30:25,040 --> 00:30:29,040 Speaker 1: the night. A man named Thomas Birchall owned Halt in 508 00:30:29,080 --> 00:30:32,040 Speaker 1: the Desert in the eighteen fifties. He loaned it to 509 00:30:32,080 --> 00:30:35,280 Speaker 1: an exhibition in Manchester in eighteen fifty seven and then 510 00:30:35,280 --> 00:30:38,320 Speaker 1: to another exhibition in London in eighteen sixty two, and 511 00:30:38,360 --> 00:30:42,240 Speaker 1: then the painting just dropped off off all records. It's 512 00:30:42,280 --> 00:30:44,600 Speaker 1: not as though it was believed to be stolen. There 513 00:30:44,640 --> 00:30:47,360 Speaker 1: just wasn't tracking in place for it, so it's whereabouts 514 00:30:47,360 --> 00:30:51,520 Speaker 1: were a mystery until nineteen eighty six, and then a 515 00:30:51,640 --> 00:30:54,680 Speaker 1: couple brought a painting they had in their family loft 516 00:30:54,720 --> 00:30:57,200 Speaker 1: at Barnstable to the Antiques road Show to see if 517 00:30:57,240 --> 00:30:59,120 Speaker 1: it was worth anything, and it was halt in the 518 00:30:59,160 --> 00:31:02,920 Speaker 1: desert expert Peter Nay, who valued the work at one 519 00:31:02,960 --> 00:31:06,240 Speaker 1: hundred thousand pounds, which is what the British Museum paid 520 00:31:06,280 --> 00:31:08,520 Speaker 1: to acquire it, and now it remains part of the 521 00:31:08,520 --> 00:31:12,240 Speaker 1: British Museum collection. It's just one of the many ways 522 00:31:12,280 --> 00:31:16,040 Speaker 1: that Dad continues to pop up and surprise people. I'm 523 00:31:16,080 --> 00:31:18,040 Speaker 1: hoping that some of these other works. There were two 524 00:31:18,120 --> 00:31:22,640 Speaker 1: other works that had been loaned by Birchall to that 525 00:31:22,680 --> 00:31:26,040 Speaker 1: London collection, and I think they also kind of vanish 526 00:31:26,120 --> 00:31:28,040 Speaker 1: from the record at the same time, so they may 527 00:31:28,120 --> 00:31:33,960 Speaker 1: still be out there in someone's family home somewhere. That's 528 00:31:34,080 --> 00:31:37,680 Speaker 1: Richard dad who breaks my heart. Yeah, and fascinates me. 529 00:31:38,360 --> 00:31:42,880 Speaker 1: It's one of those things where overwhelmingly people who are 530 00:31:42,920 --> 00:31:47,880 Speaker 1: experiencing delusions aren't violent and aren't a danger to other people. 531 00:31:49,120 --> 00:31:51,000 Speaker 1: But he was also living in a time when there 532 00:31:51,080 --> 00:31:55,800 Speaker 1: was no way to actually treat like the root cause 533 00:31:55,880 --> 00:31:59,200 Speaker 1: of any delusion. The cold water bath thing was not 534 00:31:59,400 --> 00:32:02,680 Speaker 1: go do it good. Yeah, yeah, and I mean it 535 00:32:02,680 --> 00:32:08,400 Speaker 1: can like there are treatments and pharmaceuticals and things today 536 00:32:08,440 --> 00:32:12,080 Speaker 1: which can like try to resolve some of the delusional 537 00:32:12,200 --> 00:32:15,120 Speaker 1: and like that just it wasn't that didn't exist at 538 00:32:15,120 --> 00:32:18,400 Speaker 1: the time. It was not an option. Yeah. We'll talk 539 00:32:18,440 --> 00:32:21,080 Speaker 1: about it some more in the behind the scenes on Friday. 540 00:32:21,080 --> 00:32:23,080 Speaker 1: But one of the there was a phrase that stuck 541 00:32:23,120 --> 00:32:25,360 Speaker 1: out in one of the articles or books I was 542 00:32:25,400 --> 00:32:30,080 Speaker 1: reading about him that mentioned specifically that part of it, 543 00:32:31,200 --> 00:32:32,920 Speaker 1: given all of the things you just said about there 544 00:32:32,920 --> 00:32:35,480 Speaker 1: not being a lot of treatment, was that he had 545 00:32:35,560 --> 00:32:41,360 Speaker 1: such a complex layered religious delusion that even in terms 546 00:32:41,400 --> 00:32:44,120 Speaker 1: of something like talk therapy, it was hard for people 547 00:32:44,160 --> 00:32:47,160 Speaker 1: to like pluck out a thread and go with it 548 00:32:47,200 --> 00:32:50,080 Speaker 1: because he would have wedged in something that didn't really 549 00:32:50,120 --> 00:32:53,320 Speaker 1: make any sense to someone that knows any of those 550 00:32:53,360 --> 00:32:57,560 Speaker 1: religions that was, you know, like they just didn't know 551 00:32:57,600 --> 00:33:01,680 Speaker 1: how to even approach discussing it with him. So it's very, 552 00:33:01,760 --> 00:33:03,560 Speaker 1: very heartbreaking. It's one of those He's one of those 553 00:33:03,560 --> 00:33:06,720 Speaker 1: people where I feel like if he had existed today 554 00:33:06,960 --> 00:33:09,040 Speaker 1: and the same thing had happened, We're on a trip. 555 00:33:09,120 --> 00:33:12,800 Speaker 1: He had this whatever happened to him, whether that was 556 00:33:13,000 --> 00:33:16,160 Speaker 1: you know, a sunstroke that caused a sort of mental 557 00:33:16,160 --> 00:33:18,400 Speaker 1: issue or some sort of break, and he got back 558 00:33:18,400 --> 00:33:20,680 Speaker 1: to London and everyone told his parents he really needs 559 00:33:20,720 --> 00:33:23,959 Speaker 1: a lot of help. He may have ended up getting 560 00:33:24,000 --> 00:33:27,479 Speaker 1: help and being a very prolific artist that you know, 561 00:33:27,840 --> 00:33:31,240 Speaker 1: doesn't kind of fall off the historical radar. So that's 562 00:33:31,280 --> 00:33:34,320 Speaker 1: why he breaks my heart. I love looking at his 563 00:33:34,360 --> 00:33:40,200 Speaker 1: work because he really talented. Since this one is so sad, 564 00:33:41,160 --> 00:33:44,400 Speaker 1: I have two listener males that are pretty brief, pretty light, 565 00:33:44,920 --> 00:33:48,880 Speaker 1: pretty fun, and they have something in common which I 566 00:33:49,000 --> 00:33:52,240 Speaker 1: was like, why have we not had this before? Okay, 567 00:33:53,240 --> 00:33:55,280 Speaker 1: this is from our listener Megan or Megan, I'm not 568 00:33:55,280 --> 00:33:58,640 Speaker 1: sure how you pronounce it. Who writes Hi, Holly and Tracy. 569 00:33:58,760 --> 00:34:00,800 Speaker 1: I have been a fan for years, complete with a 570 00:34:00,800 --> 00:34:03,400 Speaker 1: missed in history PhD. I've wanted to write in for 571 00:34:03,560 --> 00:34:05,600 Speaker 1: years to tell you how wonderful I think you both are. 572 00:34:05,720 --> 00:34:08,680 Speaker 1: Your recent episode on Perms finally gave me an excuse 573 00:34:08,719 --> 00:34:11,560 Speaker 1: to write an email. As a person born in the 574 00:34:11,600 --> 00:34:14,040 Speaker 1: late eighties, my naturally thick and curly hair has been 575 00:34:14,080 --> 00:34:17,240 Speaker 1: out of fashion my entire life. Okay, Holly fry aside, 576 00:34:17,320 --> 00:34:20,719 Speaker 1: If you look at history, curly hair has been popular 577 00:34:21,000 --> 00:34:24,440 Speaker 1: more often than straight hair, So she's just you know, historically. 578 00:34:24,440 --> 00:34:28,600 Speaker 1: Writing away, Megan continues hearing about a time when perms, 579 00:34:28,600 --> 00:34:31,160 Speaker 1: where the end thing is always amusing. For me, I 580 00:34:31,200 --> 00:34:33,680 Speaker 1: spent most of my young life flattening it and using 581 00:34:33,719 --> 00:34:35,640 Speaker 1: all the products to try and make it straight and 582 00:34:35,680 --> 00:34:38,520 Speaker 1: easier to manage. In the last decade plus, I gave 583 00:34:38,600 --> 00:34:41,600 Speaker 1: up and embraced the curly lifestyle. I bet your curly 584 00:34:41,600 --> 00:34:44,200 Speaker 1: hair is beautiful. The thing I never knew about curly 585 00:34:44,239 --> 00:34:46,680 Speaker 1: hair was that the follicle shape and orientation is what 586 00:34:46,760 --> 00:34:49,879 Speaker 1: makes it curly. Having lived with curly hair my entire life, 587 00:34:49,960 --> 00:34:52,359 Speaker 1: I miss this little thing that I find fascinating now 588 00:34:52,360 --> 00:34:54,520 Speaker 1: that I know it. I'm so excited that we are 589 00:34:54,560 --> 00:34:56,840 Speaker 1: soon going to be in spooky season, as the October 590 00:34:56,880 --> 00:34:59,760 Speaker 1: episodes are frequently my favorites. I saw you in October 591 00:34:59,760 --> 00:35:01,600 Speaker 1: a fe years ago in Denver and would like to 592 00:35:01,600 --> 00:35:05,040 Speaker 1: request another tour N eight in Colorado. Please. Attached is 593 00:35:05,040 --> 00:35:08,640 Speaker 1: my pet tax widget is my distinguished bearded poodle dude 594 00:35:08,719 --> 00:35:12,320 Speaker 1: and two of my favorite geckos, Galactica the gargoyle gecko 595 00:35:12,360 --> 00:35:15,759 Speaker 1: and Molder the Dalmatian spotted crested gecko. Okay, let's break 596 00:35:15,800 --> 00:35:20,640 Speaker 1: down this pet situation. HM. Widget is so cute. I 597 00:35:20,719 --> 00:35:23,480 Speaker 1: would approve him for a credit card. That beard makes 598 00:35:23,520 --> 00:35:26,080 Speaker 1: him look very smart and very capable, and like he 599 00:35:26,120 --> 00:35:29,600 Speaker 1: would manage his money in a very good way. Like seriously, 600 00:35:30,120 --> 00:35:32,680 Speaker 1: I've told you guys, I have poodle fever lately. I'm 601 00:35:32,680 --> 00:35:35,239 Speaker 1: not going to get a dog. My life is not 602 00:35:35,239 --> 00:35:38,080 Speaker 1: conducive to it right now. But I do love poodles, 603 00:35:38,760 --> 00:35:42,239 Speaker 1: and I don't know that we've gotten geckos before, but 604 00:35:42,320 --> 00:35:46,120 Speaker 1: these babies are beautiful. Yeah, I love geckos. I have 605 00:35:46,160 --> 00:35:48,520 Speaker 1: a lot of friends over the years that have had them. 606 00:35:48,960 --> 00:35:52,600 Speaker 1: I feel like I'm scared to ever have them because 607 00:35:52,719 --> 00:35:54,840 Speaker 1: I feel like I always hear that they're kind of delicate, 608 00:35:54,920 --> 00:35:57,640 Speaker 1: and I worry that I would do something wrong and 609 00:35:57,719 --> 00:36:02,880 Speaker 1: never forgive myself. I also want to mention another listener 610 00:36:02,920 --> 00:36:09,160 Speaker 1: mail because our listener Cheryl also wrote and sent a 611 00:36:09,160 --> 00:36:12,200 Speaker 1: picture of a gecko named Desdemona. Well, I'm like, is 612 00:36:12,239 --> 00:36:17,080 Speaker 1: it gecko season? What's happening? I love it? And Cheryl 613 00:36:17,160 --> 00:36:19,200 Speaker 1: just writes, very simply, I love listening to your podcast, 614 00:36:19,320 --> 00:36:21,960 Speaker 1: especially behind the scenes, and here are my babies for 615 00:36:22,000 --> 00:36:26,680 Speaker 1: pet Tax and so Tesdemona is very cute. She's a 616 00:36:26,760 --> 00:36:33,680 Speaker 1: very sweet expression. And then there are some birds, some beautiful, 617 00:36:34,000 --> 00:36:36,800 Speaker 1: very sweet looking birds. So I just loved it. It 618 00:36:36,880 --> 00:36:40,319 Speaker 1: seemed like a confluence of geckos, and I didn't want 619 00:36:40,360 --> 00:36:43,600 Speaker 1: to let that go unnoted. So thank you to both 620 00:36:43,640 --> 00:36:45,680 Speaker 1: of you for sharing geckos with us. I love it. 621 00:36:45,719 --> 00:36:49,319 Speaker 1: I love a new pet zone in our behind the 622 00:36:49,360 --> 00:36:52,480 Speaker 1: scenes and in our pet Tax photos, So keep those coming. 623 00:36:53,719 --> 00:36:55,759 Speaker 1: Anything that you have is great. Don't feel bad if 624 00:36:55,760 --> 00:36:57,520 Speaker 1: you only have dogs and cats, we love those too. 625 00:36:58,200 --> 00:36:59,960 Speaker 1: If you would like to write to us share your 626 00:37:00,040 --> 00:37:03,759 Speaker 1: animal pictures, you can do that at History Podcast at 627 00:37:03,800 --> 00:37:06,920 Speaker 1: iHeartRadio dot com. I just forgotten the email that I've 628 00:37:06,920 --> 00:37:09,560 Speaker 1: said a million times. You can also subscribe to the 629 00:37:09,560 --> 00:37:12,480 Speaker 1: show on the iHeartRadio app or anywhere you listen to 630 00:37:12,520 --> 00:37:20,320 Speaker 1: your favorite shows. Stuff you Missed in History Class is 631 00:37:20,320 --> 00:37:24,680 Speaker 1: a production of iHeartRadio. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit 632 00:37:24,719 --> 00:37:28,160 Speaker 1: the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to 633 00:37:28,200 --> 00:37:30,919 Speaker 1: your favorite shows.