TRAVELLING BACK IN TIME

THE VICTORIAN ERA AND AN UNSOLVED MISTERY

The Victorian era takes its name from Queen Victoria.

Queen Victoria was queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 1837 to 1901.

A time when Britain was the most powerful nation in the world.

A time of change

The population in Britain more than doubled from 16 million to 37 million in this period

Factories and machines were built to meet all these people’s demands for food, clothes, housing…

THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION

Railways meant people and goods could travel easily around the country for the first time in History.

During the 19th century, London was transformed into the world's largest city and capital of the British Empire.

While the city grew wealthy, London was also a city of poverty, where millions lived in overcrowded and unsanitary slums.

LONDON SLUMS

The most notorious slum areas were situated in East London, which was often called “darkest London”

Whitechapel and Spitalfields were two famous slums in East London

Slums became known for overcrowding,unsanitary and squalid living conditions.

The population fought a daily battle against poverty and starvation.

Dead animals littered the streets. Excrement and rubbish often blocked the drains.

Diseases such as diphtheria, cholera and measles flourished.

Crime was one of the main concerns in slums

In the late 1880s several women were killed by the anonymous serial killer, called Jack the Ripper, in Whitechapel

The murders had a huge impact in society due to the extreme cruelty with

which they were committed

Within just a few short weeks, the Ripper slashed and mutilated 5 prostitutes in London’s East End

THE VICTIMS

Elizabeth Stride

Mary Kelly

Mary Ann NicholsAnnie Chapman

Catherine Eddowes

All his victims were prostitutes who lived a deeply impoverished existence in the slums of Victorian Whitechapel.

Police conducted house-to-house inquiries throughout Whitechapel.Forensic material was collected andexamined.

SOME OF THE MANY SUSPECTS

Suspects were identified, traced, and either examined more closely or eliminated from the inquiry.

But… Who was Jack the Ripper?

His identity has never been established

And the mistery remains unsolved