He admitted the libel and pleaded justification.’ And, in a staggering twist, the prosecution withdrew, under instructions from Oscar Wilde himself. The Western Mailgoes on to report that the Marquess of Queensberry had been ‘absolutely unflinching through the proceedings. The Marquess of Queensberry in the dock | Western Mail | 6 April 1895 The tone of the newspaper is evidently mocking, as the article records how ‘the Marquess of Queesnberry is placed in the dock on the charge of uttering an odious slander besmudging the dainty fame of Mr Oscar Wilde.’ We move now to 6 April 1895, when the Western Mail reported on the outcome of the libel trial. The case went to court, Queensberry freely admitted the slander, whilst his lawyers brought in evidence of Wilde’s homosexual activity. Now, Wilde could have let this slur remain unanswered, but against the advice of his friends, he decided to sue Queensberry for slander, and criminal charges were brought against the Scottish peer. Tip: Newspapers at the time would censor particular words deemed unsavoury, so you will find redacted renderings of the Marquess of Queensberry’s note in our Archive. The note read: ‘For Oscar Wilde, posing as a sodomite.’ The Marquess of Queensberry was the father of Wilde’s lover, Lord Alfred Douglas, an outspoken Scottish nobleman with a passion for boxing. On 18 February 1895, Oscar Wilde received a note at his club, the Albermarle, from the Marquess of Queensberry.
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In this special blog, we will explore how newspapers at the time reported on the arrest of Oscar Wilde, his trial and eventual imprisonment. Oscar Wilde | Illustrated London News | 27 February 1892 Described at the time in the pages of the Western Mail as ‘ one of the most sensational events in the criminal annals of England,’ the arrest and prosecution of Oscar Wilde on charges of ‘gross indecency’ is a tragic chapter in LGBTQ history, and represents the wider persecution faced by the LGBTQ community at the time, as well as throughout the ensuing decades.
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