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In Victorian Britain, "Lord" George Sanger was as close to an A-list celebrity as one could get. His circus toured the country, mesmerizing crowds from everyday workers to members of the royal family. Sanger, known for his wit, boldness, and natural flair for showmanship, is often compared to P.T. Barnum. However, he is not as widely remembered as the American impresario. Perhaps people wished to forget the tragic circumstances of Sanger’s death. This article explores ten facts about the remarkable life and mysterious murder of Lord Sanger.
10. He Attended School for Just One Day
The Sanger family had entertainment in their blood. Legend has it that they arrived in England in the 13th century to serve as court jesters. However, this tale might have been part of their performance lore, as the family had been farmers for many generations. Regardless, George Sanger was not the first showman in his family, starting out as an assistant in his father’s traveling show.
In his autobiography, George recalled that his father was an “exceptional talker,” which made him ideal for storytelling. This talent was enhanced by the fact that he had been injured during the Battle of Trafalgar, where he claimed to have witnessed Admiral Nelson’s death. His storytelling captivated audiences, which helped him begin his career as an entertainer.
When George was born, he would accompany his father. Fortunately, George achieved great success by following in his father’s footsteps, even though literacy was becoming more common, he never learned to read or write properly. With all the traveling and performing, he only ever managed to attend school for one day in his life.
9. He Was Never a True Lord
Although he is widely known as “Lord” George Sanger, this title was largely self-appointed. He was not a legitimate lord who inherited the title or was a member of the UK’s House of Lords. Sanger frequently used the title on his circus’s promotional posters, though he claimed it wasn’t his idea initially. He said it was bestowed upon him by others due to his gentlemanly behavior.
Some accounts, however, suggest the title originated from a legal dispute between Sanger and another showman, “The Honourable” William Frederick Cody. Unlike Sanger, Cody had legitimate reasons to claim the title, being a U.S. Civil War veteran and Medal of Honor recipient. Their disagreement was strictly professional, but Cody referred to Sanger in his writings as a “fine old gentleman” who appeared twenty years younger than his actual age.
8. Queen Victoria Found Him Entertaining
Queen Victoria is often remembered as stern and, famously, unimpressed by much. However, this seems to be a misconception. She was apparently quite fond of the circus, and in 1898, she invited George Sanger to bring his show to Balmoral Castle in Scotland for her enjoyment. Afterward, Sanger had a private meeting with the Queen, where she humorously teased him about his self-proclaimed title. She must have enjoyed the performance since she asked Sanger to return and perform again just a year later, this time at Windsor Castle.
Incredibly, it seems Sanger performed for the Queen at least once more, as the gate of his circus was proudly marked with the phrase, “3 Times Patronized by the Queen.” Her son, the future King Edward VII, also attended one of Sanger’s shows and spoke with him. During their conversation, Sanger shared a secret about his famous white elephant—it wasn’t naturally white and had to be painted twice a day.
7. He Occasionally Lost His Elephants (and Lions!)
Transporting exotic animals across the country proved to be a challenging task. Sanger’s circus experienced several escapes over the years, including from some of his most prized performing animals—lions and elephants. These escapes often caused quite a stir in the towns they passed through. In 1884, two of his elephants, Ida and Palm, were startled while being unloaded in London. They charged through the gates, injuring the gatekeeper, and ran into the streets. Eventually, they tried to climb the stairs of a terraced house, which collapsed under their weight, causing the elephants to fall into the basement. Their keepers had to bring the other two elephants to help pull them out.
As for the lion, when it escaped its cage, it was deemed more dangerous. Local soldiers and the fire brigade quickly got involved, using hoses to try to control the animal. But the story has a happy ending. Sanger recognized the lion was probably just frightened and seeking a way back, so he calmly approached it and led it back to its cage by the ear.
6. His Wife Was a Renowned Lion Tamer
Much like today’s celebrities who often marry fellow stars, Lord George Sanger’s wife was a real standout. Ellen “Nellie” Chapman was among the first women to tame lions and earned the title of “The Lion Queen.” She was also one of the youngest, starting her career at the age of 16, having grown up in a circus family.
Nellie’s achievements were nothing short of remarkable: she performed for Queen Victoria, became the first woman to deliberately put her head inside a lion’s mouth, survived multiple lion attacks, and was even mentioned by name in Charles Dickens’s letters. After marrying George Sanger in 1850, she briefly retired from lion taming to perform in his show and handle its business affairs, but she returned to the cage when lions were added to the program.
5. It Is Widely Believed He Was Murdered with an Axe
In 1905, nearly 80 years old, George Sanger finally retired. He moved to a farm with some of his animals and set about writing his autobiography, *Seventy Years a Showman*. By 1911, his mental faculties had begun to decline, and he was living with a few horses and a small staff. It was during this time that tragedy struck.
On November 29, 1911, a headline in the *New York Times* read, “LORD GEORGE SANGER SLAIN: Famous English Circus Owner Murdered by a Deranged Employee.” Herbert Cooper, the accused employee, was said to have killed Sanger with a large felling axe. The press published a photo of Cooper holding such an axe, while other workers described him as aggressive and spoke about his recent expulsion after Sanger accused him of stealing money. Although Cooper never faced trial, he was already condemned in the court of public opinion.
4. His Alleged Killer Decapitated Himself
As if the brutal axe murder wasn’t enough of a grim end to George Sanger’s story, Herbert Cooper took his own life in a shockingly macabre way. His body was discovered two days after Sanger’s murder, lying across some nearby railway tracks, where a train had decapitated him.
He had left behind two suicide notes. One was addressed to his father, claiming he had no recollection of killing Sanger, although he mentioned that “something” had happened at the farm and referenced Sanger’s falling out with him. It’s likely that the public saw his suicide as an implicit admission of guilt. While Cooper might have murdered Sanger, the actual circumstances and investigation remain more complicated than commonly believed.
3. The Coroner Was Infamously Incompetent
The only remaining question is how Sanger’s injuries, which didn’t align with Austin’s account, went unnoticed by the coroner. This coroner was supposedly an independent expert. Dr. Bernard Spilsbury, a famous name in the field, was not in the same league as Austin, and at the time, no one questioned his credentials. He was well-known, charming, respected... and wrong. A lot. However, his mistakes would not become apparent until later, after many convictions and executions had been made based on his reports.
Spilsbury became widely recognized after his involvement in the case of Dr. Crippen, an American who murdered his wife in England and fled. The case became one of the most notorious in British history. Afterward, Spilsbury became a household name, and jurors blindly trusted his expertise. The Sanger case clearly demonstrates why he didn’t deserve such trust, as he dismissed any theories other than the ax murder theory.
His report significantly contributed to Herbert Cooper’s posthumous image as a crazed ax murderer who killed one of Britain’s most beloved figures. In 1947, Spilsbury’s own life ended tragically when he gassed himself in his laboratory, as his career’s credibility came into question.
2. The Accused Murderer May Have Been Framed
The case against Herbert Cooper essentially relied on the testimony of Harry Austin, the only eyewitness. The police and press overlooked Austin’s unreliability and bias. Initially, Austin’s statement, along with that of Sanger’s valet Arthur Jackson, indicated that Cooper had attacked Jackson in the kitchen before going on to assault Austin and Sanger with the axe in another room. However, Jackson later altered his story, changing his account from seeing Cooper enter the room with the axe to claiming he had been knocked unconscious.
Austin also confessed that he had not witnessed Cooper strike Sanger. He might have been motivated to frame Cooper after a servant informed him about Cooper’s alleged affair with his wife. Cooper denied the allegations in his suicide note, calling them 'lies,' but Austin seemed to believe them. This belief could have provided Austin with a motive to falsely accuse Cooper. This raises two critical questions: What truly happened, and why did everyone assume it was an ax that caused the death?
According to George Sanger’s grandson, the family story was that Cooper had attacked both Jackson and Austin, prompting Sanger to try and intervene with a candelabra. Sanger swung it at Cooper, but the blow was blocked, causing the candelabra to strike Sanger on the head, knocking him to the ground where he hit his head on a table. The ax was supposedly ‘discovered’ much later by Sanger’s brother-in-law, who found it in a location that the police had overlooked, despite their extensive hours searching the building that night.
1. Sanger Did Not Die from an Ax Wound (and May Not Have Been Murdered)
In 2022, author Karl Shaw began researching a simple biography of Lord Sanger, expecting to write about his long and distinguished life. Shaw had read numerous secondary accounts about the alleged ax murder but decided to check police records to verify the truth. What he uncovered changed everything. Shaw didn’t expect to make any major discoveries, but he soon realized that many aspects of Sanger’s death didn’t add up with the ax murder narrative.
What was certain was that Sanger passed away from head injuries at 11 p.m. on November 28, 1911. He lingered for several hours but was too weak to provide a statement to the police before he died. Shaw compared this case to other ax murders and found that a blow to the head with an ax would likely cause instant death. The injury to Sanger’s head appeared to be a bruise, possibly caused by an accident—another theory suggests it could have resulted from Sanger knocking his head on a table.
