Broadside concerning the murder of a man in Edinburgh

Commentary

A man, named only as Stewart, was found on the High Street, bleeding profusely, having been flung from a window three stories high. He died the next day in hospital.

The room the man fell from was rented by a woman named Charlotte Dundas, and also present were Elizabeth and Margaret Henderson (Stewart's partner), Catherine Hay and Archibald Allan. No reason is given for the fight and all present were remitted. None of those involved were aged much older than 20.

Broadsides are single sheets of paper, printed on one side, to be read unfolded. They carried public information such as proclamations as well as ballads and news of the day. Cheaply available, they were sold on the streets by pedlars and chapmen. Broadsides offer a valuable insight into many aspects of the society they were published in, and the National Library of Scotland holds over 250,000 of them.

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