| "Hunnish scenes" and a "Virgin birth": a 1920s case of sexual and bodily ignorance. | |
| | |
MedLine Citation:
|
PMID: 22830094 Owner: HMD Status: In-Process |
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
|
When, in June 1921, a clairvoyant informed Christabel Russell, to her great surprise, that she was pregnant, her husband denied paternity and petitioned for divorce on grounds of adultery. The Hon. John Russell claimed that on the very few occasions that they had slept in the same bed in their two and half years of marriage, his method of birth control (which she referred to disapprovingly as "Hunnish scenes") had made pregnancy impossible. What added to the sensational nature of the case was the revelation that whilst pregnant, Christabel's hymen was unbroken – hence the claims of a "virgin birth." Two divorce trials and two appeals followed. The first trial ended inconclusively, the second trial was won for John Russell by the eminent barrister Sir Edward Marshall-Hall, but on the second appeal, in the House of Lords, it was ruled that evidence questioning the legitimacy of a child born in wedlock was inadmissible. The decree nisi was rescinded and the baby was legitimized. |
| | |
Authors:
|
Lucy Bland |
Related Documents
:
|
21971904 - Two consecutive intrauterine pregnancies following transperitoneal ovum migration. 9972484 - Initial multicenter experience with double nucleoside therapy for human immunodeficienc... 7911164 - Factors predictive of maternal-fetal transmission of hiv-1. preliminary analysis of zid... 22928144 - Fetal intervention in right outflow tract obstructive disease: selection of candidates ... 16445524 - Real-time 3-d echocardiographic evaluation of the fetal heart using instantaneous volum... 14581884 - Uterine fibroids: relationships to reproduction. |
Publication Detail:
|
Type: Journal Article |
Journal Detail:
|
Title: History workshop journal : HWJ Volume: 73 ISSN: 1363-3554 ISO Abbreviation: Hist Workshop J Publication Date: 2012 |
Date Detail:
|
Created Date: 2012-05-24 Completed Date: - Revised Date: - |
Medline Journal Info:
|
Nlm Unique ID: 9609179 Medline TA: Hist Workshop J Country: England |
Other Details:
|
Languages: eng Pagination: 118-43 Citation Subset: Q |
Affiliation:
|
Kings College, London. |
Export Citation:
|
APA/MLA Format Download EndNote Download BibTex |
| MeSH Terms | |
Descriptor/Qualifier:
|
|
From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine
Previous Document: Story-telling, women's authority and the "Old Wife's Tale": "The Story of the Bottle of Medicine".
Next Document: Fat, desire and disgust in the colonial imagination.