The Prevention of Body Snatching in The United Kingdom

Body snatching refers to the unlawful act of exhuming a fresh corpse from its burial site or directly from a funeral home for purposes such as dissection and medical research. This practice was notably prevalent in England during the 18th and 19th centuries, with West Bromwich emerging as a significant source for supplying medical schools in Birmingham in the late 1700s.

In contrast, grave robbing involves the theft of items from graves, tombs, or crypts, including valuable artifacts or personal belongings. Such actions pose challenges for archaeologists, art historians, and historians who seek to study these sites. Grave robbing was strictly illegal during the Victorian era, with severe penalties, including the death penalty, for the theft of even minor items from the deceased. In Britain, the act of removing a corpse from a grave was not criminalized until the Anatomy Act of 1832 was enacted; however, it was widely regarded as morally and religiously unacceptable. Public revelations regarding body snatching incited significant outrage, particularly in Scotland, where the deceased were held in high esteem, while British authorities often overlooked these practices in the name of advancing medical knowledge.

Prior to the enactment of the Anatomy Act of 1832 in the United Kingdom, which granted medical professionals, anatomy instructors, and legitimate medical students the authority to dissect donated bodies, the only lawful source of cadavers for anatomical study was those sentenced to death and dissection by the judicial system. Typically, only individuals convicted of severe crimes faced dissection, and the number of such cases was insufficient to meet the growing demands of medical schools. While hundreds were executed for lesser offenses in the 18th century, by the 19th century, the annual number of capital sentences had dwindled to approximately 56. As medical schools expanded, the demand for cadavers surged, requiring as many as 500 each year. At that time, disturbing a grave was classified as a misdemeanor rather than a felony, resulting in penalties limited to fines and imprisonment, rather than harsher punishments such as execution. The profitability of this trade encouraged individuals to take the risk of being caught, especially since authorities often overlooked what they deemed a necessary evil.

One technique employed by body snatchers involved excavating at the head of a recently interred body, utilizing a wooden spade due to its quieter nature compared to metal tools. Upon reaching the coffin, often situated at a shallow depth in London, they would forcibly open it, secure a rope around the corpse, and extract it. They exercised great caution to avoid taking any items such as jewelry or clothing, as doing so would expose them to felony charges.

Another approach consisted of cutting a manhole-sized section of turf approximately 15 to 20 feet from the head of the grave and creating a tunnel to access the coffin, which typically lay about 4 feet below the surface. The end of the coffin would be removed, allowing the corpse to be pulled through the tunnel. Afterward, the turf would be replaced, ensuring that the relatives monitoring the graves would not detect the minor disruption. It has been reported that the discovery of numerous empty coffins serves as evidence that body snatching was a common practice during that period. 

Between 1827 and 1828, Burke and Hare introduced a more sinister approach to the corpse trade by resorting to murder instead of body snatching, providing fresh bodies for medical dissection. Their actions, along with those of imitators known as the London Burkers, ultimately led to the establishment of the Anatomy Act of 1832, which permitted the use of unclaimed bodies and those donated by relatives for anatomical study. This legislation permitted the use of unclaimed bodies and those donated by families for anatomical study, while also mandating the licensing of anatomy instructors, effectively putting an end to the body snatching trade. Currently, the use of human remains for scientific research in the United Kingdom is regulated by the Human Tissue Authority.

The South Metropolitan Cemetery, established in West Norwood, London, in 1837, featured high walls and railings designed to prevent unauthorized access. In 1862, a notable instance of body snatching occurred at Wardsend Cemetery in Sheffield.

Affluent families occasionally commissioned riveted iron coffins for their recently departed relatives as a precaution against body snatching. These iron coffins were meticulously sealed, making it nearly impossible for body snatchers to access them without generating sufficient noise to alert the entire churchyard. In the 1950s, an iron coffin was discovered at St. Brides Church on Fleet Street in London during the church's reconstruction following the bombings of World War II. This coffin contained the remains of Mrs. Campbell who died, who died in 1819, aged 63 years. The coffin was designed by Edward Bridgman in 1818. It remains on display at St. Brides alongside other historical artifacts.

Less affluent families tended to keep their deceased relatives at home until significant natural decomposition had occurred, making the bodies unsuitable for dissection. Additionally, mourners frequently mixed the soil designated for their loved ones' burials with an equal quantity of straw, thereby complicating the digging process. The deceased from poorer families were more vulnerable to exploitation. Those who passed away in workhouses faced particular dangers. "Charitable" hospitals often sold the remains of inmates without family connections directly to dissection facilities, while resurrectionists sometimes orchestrated situations where individuals would falsely claim the bodies by pretending to be relatives. It is a sorrowful truth that these individuals were often regarded as more valuable in death than they had been in life.

A mort stone is a large heavily coffin shaped or rectangular stone that one would be placed over a fresh grave. Graves were most susceptible to theft during the first few days or week after the burial because the soils was still soft and the body was still fresh. The mort stones were designed to match the dimensions of the burial plot, Providing complete coverage over the coffin below. 

Some individuals employed a watchman to oversee the graves of their recently interred loved ones, as they preferred not to remain in the cemetery themselves during the night. However, this method of preventing body snatching was not always effective, as some body snatchers disguised themselves as watchmen, enabling them to circumvent the traps established to thwart their illicit activities. Additionally, there were instances of collusion between watchmen and body snatchers, with the former receiving a fee for the sale of the corpses. The position of a watchman was perilous; when bribery or intimidation proved ineffective, body snatchers would resort to violence if they were discovered. 

A coffin torpedo was a small, shotgun-like device mounted on the lid of a coffin, intended to explode when the lid was opened. This mechanism contained a charge of gunpowder and metal projectiles, activated by trip wires attached to the limbs of the deceased. Any effort to disturb the body would result in severe injury or death for the body snatcher.

There is limited evidence indicating that the coffin torpedo was ever produced. During that time, graveyards were already fraught with danger, as body snatchers roamed with sabers at night and armed guards were present to deter intruders, making the introduction of explosives unnecessary.

A coffin collar serves as a deterrent against grave robbers seeking to exhume bodies. This device was placed around the neck of the deceased and secured to the coffin's base. The coffin collar emerged as a more practical solution. It comprised a robust iron ring attached to a solid oak board, which was securely fastened to the coffin's base with heavy bolts. This construction rendered it impossible to remove the body without decapitation, thereby significantly reducing its value. This approach was both effective and relatively cost-efficient in thwarting the efforts of resurrectionists, with evidence of their use found in Scottish churchyards. While the collars lacked aesthetic appeal and would have been noticeable in an open casket, they offered some degree of comfort to the family of the deceased.

Restrictionists displayed considerable cunning, compelling impoverished families to adopt drastic and cost-effective measures, such as setting up booby traps in the cemeteries and churchyards where their deceased relatives were interred. Family members would scatter broken glass along the walls of the churchyard to deter intruders from climbing over. Additionally, they rigged graves with various traps, concealing spring-loaded firearms and sharp spikes beneath the soil. An alleged incident in Dublin involved a grieving father who reportedly placed a landmine inside his infant son's coffin; however, the veracity of this claim remains a topic of contention.

Mort houses are stone structures designed to temporarily house deceased individuals before burial. The bodies would be sealed within for several weeks to facilitate decomposition, rendering them unsuitable for dissection. The proprietor of the mort house would impose a fee for the accommodation of multiple remains simultaneously. The architectural design of mort houses was notably sturdy, often resembling that of prisons and bank vaults. They featured a single entrance, with the door reinforced by a sheet of iron and secured with a formidable lock. The outer door was constructed from robust oak planks, fortified with iron bolts and two large mortise locks. Breaching such defenses would necessitate a determined body snatcher.

Not all relatives could afford to hire a professional carve watcher and would resort to gandering their loved ones graves themself to prevent body snatchers from desegregating the site. The task of sitting in darkness beside a grave, awaiting the potential arrival of robbers, must have been quite daunting. However, the fear of body snatchers compelled individuals to undertake this responsibility. 

It was widely believed that a body needed to remain "whole" to gain entry into Heaven, thus the actions of the grave robbers not only involved the theft of the deceased but also jeopardized their eternal peace.

Mort safes were iron structures placed over and occasionally surrounding coffins. These structures generally remained over graves for a period of up to ten weeks, permitting the bodies to decompose sufficiently to render them unsuitable for dissection. In certain cases, the cages were left in position indefinitely. Remnants of mort safes can still be seen at Greyfriars Kirkyard, along with various other precautions implemented by the community to prevent body snatching.

Does Body snatching still happen today ? 

Indeed, while instances of body snatching are infrequent, there have been notable reports. A significant case involved the exhumation of Gladys Hammond's remains from Yoxall Churchyard, located near Lichfield in south Staffordshire.