“Do not hang me too high, for the sake of decency.”

Mary Blandy

On this day in 1751, wealthy Englishman Francis Blandy slipped into a coma and died that same evening at his home in Henley. Soon after, his daughter Mary asked one of the household servants to help her escape to France in exchange for a handsome payment. When the servant refused, she attempted to escape on her own but was caught by neighbors who had heard that Francis Blandy had succumbed to poison.

Prior to her father's death, Mary Blandy had been known as a well-mannered and well-educated young woman who was greatly respected by the people of Henley. Then, at the age of 26, she met and fell in love with Captain William Henry Cranstoun. Francis Blandy initially approved of the match and even allowed Cranstoun to live in the Blandy home. However, Cranstoun had a wife and child in Scotland and when he wrote her to ask that their marriage be annulled so that he and Mary could wed, she became outraged and caused a stir in the town of Henley. Cranstoun was soon expelled from the Blandy household but Mary continued to see him behind her father's back.

William Henry Cranstoun, who was penniless when he met Mary, was eager to have access to her sizable dowry. According to Mary, he gave her a "love potion" to slip into her father's food in hopes of softening his heart toward Cranstoun. The servants' suspicions were aroused when Francis Blandy began to suffer from stomach pains and nausea and white powder was found in the bottom of pan that Mary had used to prepare meals for Francis. The cook was able to preserve some of the powder after Francis Blandy died and handed it over to the authorities.

During the trial of Mary Blandy for the murder of Francis Blandy, doctors testified that the "love potion" was actually arsenic. They had tested the powder by heating it and smelling the vapors, a process that was hardly scientific. Nevertheless, the jury found her guilty and sentenced the now 32-year-old to be hanged. Her final words were “Do not hang me too high, for the sake of decency.”

William Henry Cranstoun, who had managed to escape to France, died there in poverty soon after Mary Blandy's execution.

Related Reading:

The Early Days of Toxicology: Poisonous Powder

5 Famous Female Murderers' Last Words Before They Were Executed Will Seriously Creep You Out

Russian Billionaire Buys Haunted Home of Betrayed Mary Blandy,1752