Legendary Outlaw Charles Peace: Violinist, Murderer, and Terror of Women's Hearts

Contradictory qualities can coexist in one person. A brilliant doctor can be a ruthless killer, and a talented musician can be a dangerous criminal. This is exactly what the Englishman Charles Peace was. During the day, he conquered the public with his violin playing and charmed women, and when darkness fell, he turned into a calculating robber and a cold-blooded killer.

Charles Peace was born in 1832 in Sheffield, South Yorkshire. His family was poor, and at the age of 14 he had to get a job in a steel foundry. But fate dealt him a blow: an industrial accident left Charles a cripple. Due to a leg injury, the boy had to leave the factory and look for other ways to support himself.

Without a doubt, Charles Peace was not without talent. Otherwise, how can one explain his choice of profession as a musician? The teenager learned to play the violin, so well that he began to be invited to play in pubs and clubs in Sheffield. For several years, he performed in various establishments, but then he realized that playing the violin was a hopeless occupation. The income was only enough for food and housing, but not for the beautiful life he dreamed of.

And Charles decided to "earn extra money" at night. He got himself a dagger and an old pistol, and went out after dark to commit robbery. His first crime was almost comical: he stole women's clothing and tried to sell it. The police quickly got on the trail of the newcomer, and Charles got a month in prison. It would seem that this could have served as a lesson to him. But instead, Peace only got a taste for it.

After his release, Charles continued to combine music with robberies. As a result, his sentences accumulated: 4, 6, and then 8 years of hard labor. At his last trial, he was told that the next time, as an incorrigible recidivist, he would be sent to hard labor in Australia, from where few returned. After that, Charles, having served another term, decided to come to his senses. He mastered a new profession and began to combine playing the violin with the craft of a frame maker and watch repairman.

Charles Peace settled in the suburb of Sheffield, Darnall, married a widow and began a new life as a decent citizen. But fate made its own adjustments: the violinist fell in love with Catherine Dyson, who lived nearby. However, she did not reciprocate his feelings - the woman was married. Her husband, Arthur Dyson, tried to reason with the annoying suitor more than once, but to no avail. In the end, the couple decided to move to get rid of the obsessive admirer. But Peace followed them.

The persistent admirer waylaid Catherine at the door of the house and confessed his love to her. Of course, Peace received a categorical refusal. A loud argument ensued between him and the woman, which attracted the attention of Arthur Dyson. The man came out to the noise and tried to reason with the enraged Charles. But he seemed to have lost his mind: he grabbed the pistol he always carried with him and shot his opponent in the head. Arthur died instantly.

The killer managed to escape and decided to wait in the house that belonged to his wife. The police quickly came to search, but the woman said that she had not seen her husband for several months. Meanwhile, Charles hid in the attic, thinking about his next steps. In the end, he dyed his hair blond, shaved his beard and put on glasses.

There were still two distinctive features that could give him away: a limp and three missing fingers, lost during one of the robberies. There was nothing that could be done about the injured leg, but Charles camouflaged his crippled hand with a prosthesis with an impressive hook instead of a hand. Staying in Sheffield was becoming dangerous, and Peace began to wander around England, mainly traveling by train.

He would appear here and there, rob and sometimes kill, and then quickly disappear. In addition to street robbery, Peace also began to rob rich houses. Thousands of police officers unsuccessfully searched for him throughout England and Scotland. After several months of vigorous activity, Charles Peace stole an impressive sum and decided to take a break from his unrighteous labors. He went to London and settled in with his mistress Susan Thompson.

The robber and murderer opened a shop where he began selling musical instruments. But soon he ran out of excitement and began to go out on night trade again. The successful criminal was able to buy two houses in London, located next to each other. He settled in one of them with his mistress, and his legal wife and son began to live in the other.

On the night of October 10, 1878, a police patrol noticed a man trying to escape through a window. Three law enforcement officers decided to detain the suspect, but he put up a desperate resistance. The criminal even wounded one of the police officers. But the forces were unequal, and he was still overpowered. The detainee called himself John Ward, hoping not to be identified.

Charles Peace was known as a real heartbreaker. His charm and charisma conquered women, despite his criminal fame. But one of his lovers, Susan Thompson, played a fatal role in his fate. While under arrest, Peace continued to write letters to her, not realizing that she would hand him over to the police for a reward of 100 pounds. It was thanks to her that the identity of the criminal was revealed. It turned out that he had committed many crimes in Sheffield, and it was decided to try him there.

The criminal was being transported on a train, in an ordinary compartment. The policemen accompanying Peace clearly underestimated his audacity. At full speed, Charles jumped out of the open window of the carriage. At the last moment, the guard managed to grab the fugitive by the leg, but was unable to hold him. Because of this, the criminal lost his balance and fell to the ground head first.

The train was urgently stopped, and the police and passengers found Peace under an embankment in the bushes. He was lying unconscious, with a broken head. The wound was quickly bandaged, after which the train continued moving. In Sheffield, Charles was too well known, so the judges did not drag out the trial. Just ten minutes later, the criminal was sentenced to death for murder and robbery.

Peace's trial restored justice: a man who had previously been accused of killing a policeman was released. It turned out that it was Charles who had shot the lawman. Three weeks after the trial, on February 25, 1879, the legendary criminal ascended the gallows in Armley Prison. The extraordinary personality of the violinist-murderer was loved by writers and artists. The criminal was romanticized, depicted as a resourceful and successful bandit, a favorite of women, whose crimes were allegedly the result of tragic life circumstances.

Charles Peace appears in Conan Doyle's short story "The Illustrious Client", as a hero in several films, in a series of comics, and his figure adorns the exposition of the Madame Tussauds Wax Museum. In the museum, Peace is accompanied by his last conversational partner in life, the Sheffield executioner William Marwood.

Charles Peace is a controversial figure: a talented musician and a ruthless criminal. What do you think: was he a genius of the criminal world or just a victim of circumstances? Write your opinion in the comments!