The King has pardoned Ruth Ellis who was hanged for the murder of her lover David Blakely in 1955
The King has granted a conditional pardon this lunchtime to Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be hanged in the UK. Ellis was convicted of the murder of her lover, David Blakely, whom she shot dead in Hampstead after suspecting him of being unfaithful.
On April 10, 1955, 28-year-old Ellis shot her lover with a revolver from across the street. She missed her first shot, but hit him with the second, causing him to crumple onto the pavement. As witnesses watched in horror, Ellis then stood over him, firing three more shots at point-blank range.
One of Britain’s most notorious murder trials followed, culminating in Ruth becoming the last woman ever to be hanged for her crimes in the country. The controversy surrounding her execution and the moral questions it raises have persisted throughout the 70 years since.
But now Ellis has been pardoned, but she will not be declared innocent, David Lammy said earlier today (July 8). The Deputy Prime Minister said the pardon will replace the death penalty with a sentence of life imprisonment “to recognise a profound injustice in this exceptional case”.
He told the Commons: “We hope this brings a measure of peace to Ruth Ellis’s family, who have carried the weight of what happened to her for over 70 years.”
Who was Ruth Ellis?
Ruth Ellis (née Neilson) was born on October 9, 1926, in Rhyl, Wales, and was raised in a troubled and impoverished household. Her father, Arthur, reportedly physically and sexually abused her older sister, Muriel, which went unchallenged by her mother, Bertha.
When Muriel fell pregnant by her father, he was questioned by police but released. Once Ruth reached 11, his abuse turned towards her, despite Muriel’s attempts to protect her by removing Ruth from the house when she sensed danger.
Having completed her schooling in Basingstoke, she took on a series of jobs in Reading before relocating to London in her late teens. It was there that she fell pregnant by a Canadian soldier at the age of 17, giving birth to a son, Clare Andrea (Andy) Neilson. However, the father ceased sending financial support roughly a year after the child was born.
Clare went to live with Ruth’s mother, and Ruth supported him through her employment across a number of factory and clerical positions. By the close of the 1940s, Ruth had taken a sharp turn in her professional life, venturing into nude modelling before securing a role as a nightclub hostess in Hampstead. Her employer at the Court Club in Duke Street, Morris Conley, routinely blackmailed his hostess staff into sleeping with him.
In the early 1950s, she fell pregnant once more while working as an escort with one of her regular clients. Ruth went on to wed a 41-year-old divorced dentist and father of two – George Johnston Ellis. The marriage, however, proved deeply troubled; George was a violent, possessive alcoholic who was convinced Ruth was being unfaithful.
The couple separated on numerous occasions, yet Ruth repeatedly returned. She gave birth to a daughter, Georgina, in 1951, though George refused to acknowledge paternity. The couple subsequently divorced, after which Ruth turned to prostitution.
The murder of David Blakely
By 1953, Ruth had taken on the role of manager at the Little Club nightclub in Knightsbridge. It was here that she encountered David Blakely, a former public schoolboy who had developed a taste for heavy drinking and motor racing.
Despite being engaged to another woman, he moved into Ruth’s flat above the club within weeks of their first meeting.
Ruth fell pregnant for a fourth time but underwent a second abortion. The pair went on to see other people, with Ruth even moving in with another man while their turbulent relationship continued.
David proposed to Ruth, and she accepted, in January 1955, she suffered a miscarriage after he punched her in the stomach during a heated row.
On Easter Sunday, 10th April 1955, Ruth tailed David as he departed a friend’s house heading to The Magdala pub in South Hill Park. At 9.30pm, David and his companion emerged from the pub and walked past Ruth, who had concealed herself in the doorway of a newsagent’s.
As David fumbled for his car keys, Ruth discharged five shots at him with a revolver. The first shot missed its mark, but Ruth pursued David along the street, firing a second shot which struck him and sent him crashing to the pavement.
She then stood over him and fired three further shots, one of which landed less than half an inch from his back, leaving powder burns on his skin. A ricocheting bullet struck a bystander in the thumb.
She made no attempt to flee and confessed to the police immediately. During her trial, she famously said, “It’s obvious when I shot him, I intended to kill him.”
She was quickly found guilty of murder and sentenced to death under the mandatory capital punishment law at the time.
Ruth Ellis’s execution and burial
Ruth Ellis was executed by Albert Pierrepoint at Holloway Prison in London. She was originally laid to rest in Holloway Prison Cemetery, but in 1971, her remains were exhumed and reinterred in St. Mary’s Churchyard, Amersham, Buckinghamshire.
The headstone bears the name Ruth Hornby, the family’s original surname. However, Ruth was born as Ruth Neilson, as her father Arthur had adopted the surname Neilson following the birth of Ruth’s elder sister Muriel in 1925.
Her case continues to be amongst the most contentious in British legal history, prompting ongoing discussions about capital punishment and domestic violence. Many felt she ought to have received a more lenient sentence, given the circumstances surrounding her crime.
