She was “a comon night walker abusing him & being of ill behaviour”: Violence and Prostitution in Eighteenth-Century London

Abstract

This article examines the representation of violence committed by and against prostitutes in eighteenth-century London. To explore attitudes toward prostitutes’ assaults and victimization, it examines how the Bridewell Court of Governors records and the Proceedings of the Old Bailey portrayed incidents in which prostitutes were involved in violent or aggressive confrontations; it also examines texts written by popular commentators, moralists, and contributors to the newspaper press. Although prostitutes were depicted as both agents and targets of violence, incidents in which prostitutes physically assaulted or verbally insulted potential male clients generated far more discussion than reports about prostitutes who were the victims of violent crimes. The greater emphasis on prostitutes’ proclivity to violence suggests that policing authorities, journalists, and social commentators portrayed prostitutes as a threat to the peace and stability of the nation, rather than as pitiable victims.