On the 7th March 1826 a fifteen year old heiress, Ellen Turner, was abducted by a diplomat in the service of the British government - Edward Gibbon Wakefield. Within a few days they had been married at Gretna Green. Subsequently pursued by her outraged family, Wakefield and Ellen travelled the length of the country, and finally to France, before Ellen was rescued and brought back home.

Wakefield returned to Britain soon afterwards and surrendered himself to the authorities confident in his own belief that he had done nothing wrong. The events of the abduction, and Wakefield's impending trial, then became the obsession of both the press and public opinion and gossip for over a year. Emotions ran at boiling point as protagonists argued about whether, or not, Wakefield was a scoundrel. Particularly as a number of those out for his blood had themselves contracted runaway marriages at Gretna Green. Did Ellen know what was happening? Was she a willing accomplice? Why did she make no attempt to escape during the days between her abduction and marriage? Why did she say 'I do'? Was Ellen Turner the lawful wife of Edward Gibbon Wakefield? If so, could she give evidence against him in court? Would Edward Gibbon Wakefield hang for his crimes, or would he pull off one of the greatest thefts of the century - that of the estate of William Turner of Shrigley Hall?

During this talk we will look at the background to the abduction - who was Edward Gibbon Wakefield and what drove him to attempt such an audacious crime? We will examine the details of the abduction and try to account for Ellen's seeming acceptance of the whole scheme - why did almost every witness testify to her pleasure and happiness throughout her abduction and marriage prior to the arrival of her family in France? Finally, we will look at the trial of Edward Gibbon Wakefield which was touted at the time as the trial of the century - would he win everything, or would he lose his life?