Trial Random Charles Baron Berenger (1 results)

London, 1814 (illustrator). London, 1814. The Great Stock Exchange Fraud of 1814 [Trial]. Random, Charles, Baron de Berenger, Principal Defendant. Dundonald, Thomas Cochrane, Earl of [1775-1860], Principal Defendant. Gurney, William Brodie [1777-1855], Reporter. The Trial of Charles Random de Berenger, Sir Thomas Cochrane, Commonly called Lord Cochrane, The Hon. Andrew Cochrane Johnstone, Richard Gathorne Butt, Ralph Sandom, Alexander M'Rae, John Peter Holloway, And Henry Lyte; For a Conspiracy, In the Court of King's Bench, Guildhall, On Wednesday the 8th, And Thursday the 9th of June, 1814: With the Subsequent Proceedings in the Court of King's Bench; Taken in Short Hand. London: Sold by J. Butterworth and Son, 1814. 604, [4] pp. Folding table. Includes four-page publisher catalogue. Octavo (8-1/2" x 5-3/8"). Later library cloth, red and black calf lettering pieces to spine. Light shelfwear and some soiling. Light browning and foxing to text, early owner signature (Joseph Tate) and faint library stamp to title page, a few library annotations to verso, another owner signature ("Wm Green. 1843") at head of main text, brief early annotations in a few places. $850. * Only edition. Gurney's is the most detailed account of one of the greatest English fraud cases of the nineteenth century. In 1814 Berenger, a Prussian aristocrat posing as an aide to Britain's ambassador to Russia, announced that Napoleon had been killed by Russian Cossacks. This news caused stock prices to rise. After discovering that Berenger's news was a hoax, which caused prices to drop, investigators discovered that six men had profited substantially from the false information. All were alleged to have been conspirators with Berenger. One of these men was Cochrane, a Member of Parliament, an admiral and one of the greatest naval heroes of the Napoleonic Wars. The case against him was weak and circumstantial, but he was, to the surprise of many, convicted, sentenced to 12 months in prison, fined ?1,000. and ordered to stand in the pillory opposite the Royal Exchange for one hour. In subsequent weeks, he was dismissed from the Royal Navy and expelled from Parliament. On the orders of the Prince Regent, Cochrane was humiliated by the loss of his appointment Knight of the Order of the Bath. A month later, however, Cochrane was re-elected unopposed and, following a public outcry, his sentence to th.