What were the Burke and Hare murders?
Q: What were the Burke and Hare murders?
A: The Burke and Hare murders were serial killings in Edinburgh, Scotland, committed by Irish immigrants William Burke and William Hare between November 1827 to 31 October 1828.
Q: How did Burke and Hare make money from the murders?
A: Burke and Hare sold the corpses of their 17 victims to Dr Robert Knox, who was a Fellow of the Royal Society and a teacher of human anatomy to Edinburgh medical students.
Q: Who was Dr Robert Knox?
A: Dr Robert Knox was a Fellow of the Royal Society and the Conservator of the Museum of Comparative Anatomy in Edinburgh. He was also a teacher of human anatomy to Edinburgh medical students.
Q: Why did Dr Knox need bodies for his students to dissect?
A: Dr Knox needed bodies for his students to dissect as part of their medical education.
Q: Who were the accomplices of Burke and Hare in the murders?
A: Burke's mistress, Helen McDougal, and Hare's wife, Margaret Laird, were accomplices in the murders committed by Burke and Hare.
Q: What is the meaning of the word "burking"?
A: "Burking" refers to the act of purposefully smothering someone and, more generally, to quietly suppressing something.
Q: How did the method of killing used by Burke and Hare become associated with the word "burking"?
A: The word "burking" came to be associated with the method of killing used by Burke and Hare as they purposefully smothered their victims to obtain fresh corpses for Dr Knox's anatomy lessons.
