Mary Toft sent to Bridewell after rabbit‑birth confession
The London woman who claimed to deliver rabbits was taken into custody following a threatened operation by Sir Richard Manningham
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Mary Toft was transferred to Bridewell prison after admitting that her alleged rabbit deliveries were a deception. The admission came on 7 December 1726, shortly after Sir Richard Manningham threatened to perform a painful operation if she continued to deny the truth. The case closed a brief period in which royal physicians and the public believed a woman could give birth to rabbits.
Arrival and early publicity
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IanVisits reported that Mary Toft arrived in London on 29 November 1726 and was lodged at Lacy’s Bagnio, a bathhouse in the Leicester Fields area near today’s Leicester Square. The lodging was intended to allow physicians to observe a further extraordinary delivery. Early newspapers turned her story into a national sensation, describing the rabbit births as a “strange but well‑attested Piece of News”.
The royal household became involved after Nathaniel St. André, surgeon to the king, examined Toft and accepted her claim. He later travelled to London with the intention of studying the phenomenon. While he and other doctors debated the matter, a second surgeon, Cyriacus Ahlers, noted that the rabbit droppings contained feed, suggesting the animals had been placed in her womb rather than developed there.
Publication of the hoax narrative
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IanVisits noted that Dr Nathaniel St. André published a pamphlet titled A Short Narrative of an Extraordinary Delivery of Rabbets on 3 December 1726. The pamphlet argued that the rabbits had grown inside Toft’s fallopian tubes, reinforcing the belief in maternal impression, the idea that a pregnant woman’s experiences could shape the unborn child.
“She’s a fraud!”
Porter, staff at Lacy’s Bagnio
The claim unraveled when a porter disclosed that Toft’s sister‑in‑law had asked him to bring a small rabbit into her room. Confronted with this evidence, Toft initially denied wrongdoing but finally confessed on 7 December after Sir Richard Manningham warned that a painful operation would be performed if she persisted.
Imprisonment and aftermath
IanVisits added that following her confession, Toft was sent to Bridewell prison. The case sparked a wave of pamphlets, songs and caricatures that mocked the physicians who had endorsed her story. The Royal College of Surgeons records at least fifteen such pamphlets were produced. The doctor who first examined her, John Howard, was fined £800, a sum recorded by IanVisits.
After serving her brief sentence, Toft returned to Godalming. In February 1728 she gave birth to a daughter, Elizabeth, listed in parish records as her first child after the pretended rabbit‑breeding. She died in January 1763, and later press references described her as the woman “formerly noted for an Imposition of breeding Rabbits”.
Questions this report answers
+When did Mary Toft arrive in London?
Mary Toft arrived on 29 November 1726 and was housed at Lacy’s Bagnio near Leicester Square, according to IanVisits. Her arrival was arranged so that royal physicians could observe any further alleged rabbit deliveries.
+What caused her to confess to the hoax?
She confessed on 7 December 1726 after Sir Richard Manningham threatened to perform a painful operation if she continued to deny the deception. The threat, combined with evidence that a rabbit had been smuggled into her room, led to her admission.
+What punishment did Mary Toft receive?
Following her confession, Mary Toft was transferred to Bridewell prison. The imprisonment marked the end of the public spectacle and the beginning of her return to Godalming after serving her sentence.
+Was anyone else penalised for the hoax?
The first examining doctor, John Howard, was fined £800, a penalty recorded by the Royal College of Surgeons and reported by IanVisits. The fine reflected the professional embarrassment caused by the false claims.
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