91Èȱ¬

For all its elegance and politeness, one of the most striking features of Georgian society is its violence. Murder cases abounded at the Old Bailey. Some were cold premeditated crimes, a tiny minority were committed by women, but the vast majority were the outcome of drunken brawls.

Professor Amanda Vickery uses three Old Bailey murder cases to expose the honour code that governed male aggression - looking at duels, boxing matches and the defence of manly honour.

She begins with a poignant case in which two teenagers fight to the death over a mere piece of cake. The second case involves two builders working on Marylebone Road, whose brawl gathers a huge crowd so that they're unable to stop until one of them dies. And the final case is a duel, in which the man who wins the fight is a blind clergyman.

Listening with Amanda to the Voices from the Old Bailey are Professor Peter King from Leicester University, a leading historian of crime; Karen Harvey, Reader in Cultural History at Reading University; and Robert Shoemaker, Professor of History at Sheffield University and the co-founder of the Old Bailey Online.

The programme is recorded on location in the Wallace Collection, Manchester Square, which has a world-beating collection of 18th century swords and guns, demonstrated by Curator Tobias Capwell. It features readings by Charlotte Stockley, Ewan Bailey, Oliver Soden, David Holt, Damien Bouvier and Steven Webb; and specially arranged music, from singer Guy Hughes and pianist David Owen Norris.

Produced by Elizabeth Burke
A Loftus production for 91Èȱ¬ Radio 4.