Jack the Ripper

The Massacre of London

"Jack the Ripper" was the world's first famous serial killer, who killed five prostitutes in England's capital London more than a hundred years ago. In those days, London was still the biggest city of the world, and the "East End", where the murders took place, was the hugest slum of England's capital. London's "East End" was known for the place where prostitutes and poor people lived in tiny little streets. It was a rather unpleasant place to live; unemployment and low wages brought poverty and homelessness, and a general feeling of desperation provoked the air. Robbery and assault were commonplace, and gangs ruled the streets. It was the murderer Jack the Ripper, who managed to scare London's inhabitants to death for about three months. At that time, the fatal disease "pest" was the reason why so many people lost their lives.

The murders happened between the sixth of August and the ninth of November, every time at night between eleven o'clock and four o'clock in the morning; his victims were only women who sold their bodies to men in the streets, called prostitutes.

The whole Jack-the-Ripper-Story began on Friday, 31^st August 1888, when the dead body of the first acknowledged Ripper victim was found in London's East End. It was a woman called Mary Ann Nichols, also known as Polly, who worked as a prostitute and lived from 1845-1888.

After having had a drink in the pup "Frying Pan" in Brick Lane / Whitechapel in the early morning of 31st August 1888, Polly left this place at about 0:30a.m. Mary Ann Nichols had the intention to pass the night in "Thrawl Street Nr. 18", but she was rejected. 2:30a.m. was probably the last time when the prostitute was seen; Polly met another prostitute at about 2:30a.m. and told her that she had to look for clients again. The church's bell rang 2.45a.m.; this was the time when Mary Ann Nichols probably met her murderer on her way towards "Buck's Row". Jack the Ripper and Polly went from "Whitechapel High Street" through "Buck's Row", which is called "Dunard Street" today. This was the place where the murderer strangled the prostitute and cut her throat to the spine; he also lacerated her abdomen. At approximately 3:40a.m. a Carmen called Charles Cross and a man called "Robert Paul" found the prostitute's body with the skirt pulled up. It did not take a long time until the police found the first suspect: a Jewish shoemaker called John Pizer, who was also mentioned after the next Jack the Ripper murder. The chase began.

Annie Chapman is the name of the second acknowledged Jack the Ripper victim. Her nickname was "Dark Annie", a prostitute, who lived from 1841-1888. At the time of her death, she was undernourished, with chronic diseases of the lungs and brain membranes, which would long before have killed her. Annie Chapman's dead body was found on the 8th September 1888 in Hanbury Street.

3:30a.m. was probably the last time the prostitute called "Dark Annie" was seen. After heaving left her place for earning some more money, she was seen by a woman while talking to a foreign man on the pavement outside "29 Hanbury Street". From that place, both disappeared in a narrow street behind. That's exactly the place where Jack the Ripper left his second victim after having cut the throat and mutilated the prostitute's body in a terrible manner. Another terrible and frightening fact is that the killer also removed the uterus from the abdomen, in an extremely brutal way. It was again a carmen, who discovered the second Jack the Ripper victim, a man called John Davis. At about 6:00a.m., Mr. Davis found the prostitute `s body lying on the back, with the dress pulled above the knees. It is important to mention that "Dark Annie's" intestines were placed across her left shoulder. Another interesting thing is that the detectives found a folded and saturated leather apron; the connection to the suspect of the first murder, John Pizer, was established.

The night of the 29th September 1888 was the special night where the murderer Jack the Ripper committed an extremely terrible and frightening double murder. The first victim of that night and Jack the Ripper's third victim in general was the prostitute Elizabeth Stride, who lived from 1843-1888. She was also called "Long Liz".

It was at about 11:00p.m. when the two workmen saw Elizabeth Stride leaving "The Bricklayers` Arms", a nice little pup in Settles Street. Long Liz was not alone; a young man, who looked a bit like a clerk, accompanied the prostitute. The woman and the man both went in the direction of "Commercial Road" and "Berner Street" where a bit later an old man sold half a pound of black grapes to the man accompanying Elizabeth Stride. Another man saw how the man who accompanied Long Liz assaulted her several times and threw her to the pavement in a very shocking way. At about 1:00a.m., Louis Diemschutz found the dead body of the prostitute at a place called "Duffield's Yard/Berner Street".

People think that Mr. Diemschutz probably disturbed the murderer, because the young Woman's throat had been cut so recently.

Less than an hour after having found Elizabeth Stride's dead body, the corpse of another prostitute called Catherine Eddows was discovered in "Mitre Square", not far away from Duffield's Yard /Berner Street. Jack the Ripper's fourth acknowledged victim lived from 1842-1888 and probably left the police station of "Bishopsgate" at the same time the murderer escaped from the place where Long Liz was found. Catherine Eddows had been arrested by the police before due to public offence. Joseph Lawende was probably the last person who saw this prostitute alive. This was at about 1:35a.m. when talking to a man. At approximately 1:45a.m., Police Constable "Edward Watkins" found Miss Eddow's dead body. The victim had been ferociously attacked, especially around the face and abdomen, with some of her internal organs, like the uterus, removed.

The fifth and last acknowledged Ripper victim is called Mary Jane Kelly, the prettiest and also youngest of all the killed women. This prostitute lived from 1863-1888 and was murdered in her lodgings at "13 Miller's Court" on the ninth of November1888. It was the most gruesome and frightening attack of all the murders. Miss Kelly's body was horribly mutilated, her face hacked beyond recognition and her heart was lacking.

After having spent the early evening of Thursday 8th November with her friend Lizzie Albrouk in a pub called "Britannia", Mary Jane returned home. 2:00a.m. was probably the last time this young prostitute was seen; a man called George Hutchinson et her on her way towards "Thrawl Street" to pick up a client; Mary returned with a man, and they were both seen going into the prostitute's room. A man called Thomas Bowyer found Miss Kelly's dead body at about 10:45a.m. on 9th November 1888.

Who could have been Jack the Riper? -that is the question- over the years, there has been much speculation about the horrible murderer's identity; the Whitechapel murderer was never found. The police claims that the murderer must have definitely had medical knowledge on a high standard due to the way he killed the five prostitutes; you can say, that he dissected them.

Let me present you the most favourite suspect.

James Maybrick was a well known cotton merchant from Liverpool. He didn't live In a happy marriage because his wife was not faithful to him. Some people said, that he left signs at the sites of the crime, so he became the most favourite suspect.

Jack the Ripper

The massacre of London

Questions

How many victims demanded Jack the Ripper?

Which disease was the reason why so many people lost their lives?

Which year does the murders took place?

Who is the most favourite suspect?

Tell me one name of a victim.

Vocabulary

massacre                 Blutbad

huge                         ungeheuer; riesig

unemployment       Arbeitslosigkeit

low wage                 niedriger (Arbeits-)      Lohn

poverty                    Armut

desperation             Verzweiflung

provoke                   reizen,   herausfordern

robbery                   Raub

assault                     Angriff

commonplace         alltäglich

manage to               fertigbringen

disease                     Krankheit

victim                      Opfer

acknowledge           anerkennen,      bestätigen

intention                 Absicht, Vorsatz

reject                       zurückweisen;   abschlagen

strangle                   erwürgen

throat                      Kehle, Gurgel

spine                        Wirbelsäule

lacerate                   zerfleischen

abdomen                 Unterleib

carmen                       Fuhrmänner

suspect                       Verdächtiger

Jewish                        jüdisch

chase                           Jagd, Verfolgung

undernourished         unterernährt

membrane                 Membrane,    Häutchen

mutilate                     verstümmeln

manner                       Art, Weise

uterus                         Gebärmutter

expose                         aussetzen

intestines                    Darm, Eingeweide

folded                         gefaltet

saturated                    durchtränkt

leather apron             Lederschutzblech

accompanied             begleitet

grape                          Weintraube

corpse                         Leiche

ferociously                 grausam

lodging                       Unterkunft

lack                             fehlen

dissect                        zerlegen

due to                         wegen

public offense            öffentliches    Vergehe