User:Beejamjam/sandbox14
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Background
Carleton was born in 1695. He was "of honest and upright parents", who gave him the highest value of education they could afford and bound him apprentice to a local tailor. After the expiry of his several years of apparently faithful service as an apprentice, it is stated that he was "led astray by a company of sodomites, which unnatural practice he followed ever after". For twenty years or more in Diss, it is written that "he was notoriously guilty of that abominable sin" of sodomy, with no complaints being made against him during this time. This allowed him to pursue his business and private life without hindrance or persecution over this period.[1]
When Carleton was in his forties, he fell in love with a young man, John Lincoln. Lincoln became his "lodger and bed-fellow" soon after. Lincoln apparently tired of their secretive way of life after some time, and began courting Mary Frost, a young girl from the countryside in Redgrave, Suffolk. When Lincoln brought Frost back to his and Carleton's lodgings, Carleton became angry. He threatened Lincoln, saying that "if he ever brought his whores near to him he would do them some mischief". Lincoln paid no regard to Carleton, and continued to meet with Frost; a few weeks later they announced their intention to marry. After first attempting to convince Lincoln not to marry Frost, Carleton fell into a jealous rage, and it is reported that he threatened to poison Frost.[1]
Murder
On the evening of 15 November 1741, Carleton invited Frost as well as Samuel Fuller, her landlord, for supper to have a cold loin of mutton. Once Fuller had been served the salt on the table was used up, so Carleton left the room to get Frost some more, and upon his return "entreated her to eat heartily". The same night, she became violently sick, and "swelled very much". She was attended to by friends who "blister'd her and purg'd her, but to no purpose." She died in agony at Fuller's house on 16 November. It is reported that "when the doctors open'd her they found all her entrails quite affected by the poison", and as such Lincoln and Fuller impeached Carleton for the murder. He was arrested and taken to Thetford to stand trial.[1]
Trial
At the Thetford assizes, Carleton was convicted of crimes of sodomy with his young lodger, and for the murder by poisoning of his lodger's fiancée. The trial was well-attended and widely reported thoughout the nearby region. Lincoln admitted to his relationships with both Carleton and Frost, and spoke of Carleton's threats to poison her, thus escaping prosecution. Apprentice apothecary from Diss, Thomas Bacon, testified that he had sold "sublimate of mercury" to Carleton that he had said would kill rats and mice. Fuller recounted the supper, suggesting that the salt given to Mary had been mixed with this poison. Carleton admitted to sodomy, but denied administering any poison to his final breath and accused Fuller of the murder.[1] Carleton was found guilty,[2][1] on 18 March,[3] being one of six men sentenced to death at the Thetford assizes. Despite this, he was the only one to be sentenced for murder and the only one to acutally be executed as the others' sentences were later commuted to transportation.[1]
Execution
Pre-execution
On 4 April 1742, 2,000 to 4,000 people gathered in the parish church to attend its Sunday service; Carleton was sat in his usual pew under close guard. The sermon was preached by Reverend Edward Chappelow.[1]
After this, Carleton was brought together with Lincoln at the local alehouse, and under public gaze each "drank a pint of ale and ate a biscuit together, and parted good friends". This second event was arranged because Carleton could not bring himself to condemn Lincoln, who had testified against him, despite denying knowledge of the murder. Another account of this states that during this event Carleton gave his shears, scissors, a thimble and two sixpences to Lincoln, telling him that "though he died for him, he loved him to the last".[1]
Over this period, over 10,000 people assembled from miles around the area to spectate the events. This included local historian and rector of the nearby village of Fersfield, Reverend Francis Blomefield, though Blomefield's account would never be printed as he had already recently published his history of Diss at that point.[1]
Execution
Market towns like Diss rarely saw executions, and in 1742 none had taken place within living memory; a new gallows and gibbet were constructed for the occasion, and the location of the execution had to be decided. Due to a potential for a large crowd and the growing perception of execution spectators as rowdy and occasinally violent, it was decided that Carleton would be executed on the open common land between Diss and the nearby village of Scole.[1]
On 5 April at about 4pm on Diss common, Carleton was brought to the scaffold in an open cart and went up in front of the crowd. Following prayers conducted by the local rector, he was offered the chance to confess but continued to deny any responsibility for Frost's death. He appeared penitent as he was hooded, and he was then hanged. His homosexuality likely added to the attraction for the crowds to his execution.[1]
Display of body and gibbeting
Following his execution Carleton's body was cut down from the gallows, hurriedly carried back to the house where the murder took place, and "hung up upon a balk in the middle of the room, and shown at two pence a piece".[2][1] A crudely and anonymously printed account of the crime and execution, with several inaccuracies, was sold amongst the crowds, one copy being preserved by Blomefield.[1]
After this, in accordance with Carleton's sentence, his body was hung in chains from a gibbet on Diss common close to the gallows. This gibbet could be seen for miles around, and was left to rot. Blomefield commented that Carleton "hangs there as a just example to all such villains, & especially to those of this place, who were concerned with him in his detestable practices". Carleton's name does not appear among the burials in the Diss parish register, apart from in a note attatched to the entry for Mary Frost. Lincoln later married a widow in October 1742, though died three months later.[1]