- Alfred Rouse
Alfred Arthur Rouse (
6 April ,1894 At his trial, Rouse declared "I have always understood that I was thirty-six, but I have no proof of that". See "Trial", p. 138.] –10 March ,1931 ) was a Britishmurder er. It was theorised, though never proved, that Rouse, seeking to fabricate his own death, picked up a hitch-hiker, knocked him out, and then burnt his car with the man inside. His case is unusual in legal history because the identity of the victim was never known and therefore Rouse was convicted of the murder of an unknown man.Early life
The son of
W.E. Rouse , ahosier fromMilkwood Road inHerne Hill , Rouse was born inLondon . His mother was Irish and reported to be anactress ."" edited bySydney Tremayne (Geoffrey Bles , London, 1931), page 38.] In 1900, his parents' marriage broke up, apparently because his mother deserted,"ibid."] and Rouse and two other children of the marriage were taken to be brought up by his aunt on his father's side. He went to a council school where he was bright (but not exceptionally so) and athletic.On leaving school Rouse learned
carpentry and also went to evening classes where he learned to sing and to playmusical instrument s (thepiano ,mandolin , andviolin ). He had quite considerable musical ability and hisvoice developed into a goodbaritone . He worked first as an office boy for anestate agent , and then in 1909 used his carpentry experience to join a West Endfurniture manufacturer. A member of theChurch of England , Rouse was a sacristan atSt Saviour 's Church inStoke Newington .Wartime service
When
war broke out inEurope , Rouseenlist ed (8 August ,1914 ), being assigned to the24th Queen's Territorial Regiment as a Private and assigned the number 2011. The Regiment kept him for training inEngland before his departure forFrance , and in the meantime Rouse marriedLily May Watkins at St Saviour's Church,St Albans on29 November .Rouse arrived in France on
15 March 1915 , and was stationed inParis for some weeks before his unit was sent intobattle . During this time, Rouse is known to have fathered a child. His unit was then committed to theBattle of Festubert on theYpres salient , which began on15 May . In abayonet attack, Rouse came face to face with a Germansoldier and lunged at him but missed; the memory of waiting just for an instant for the enemy reply stayed with him.On the last day of the battle, a
high explosive shell exploded close to Rouse'shead , severely injuring him (he also had injuries to histhigh ).Recuperation
An operation had to be performed on Rouse's
left temporal region to removeshrapnel , and hisleg injuries left him unable to bend hisknee , and his leg suffered from an œdema; he could walk, but only with difficulty. He was repatriated and sent to recuperate at a series ofArmy hospital s. AnInvaliding Medical Board hearing on9 December ,1915 found that his capacity had been "reduced 3/4".Rouse was formally discharged from the Army on
11 February ,1916 , and awarded apension of 20 s per week. Hismedical record s show he was still severelydisable d. In July 1916 thedoctor noted that Rouse'smemory was defective and he was unable to wear ahat of any kind because hisscar was irritable, although his speech and writing were unaffected and he "sleeps well unless excited in any way". His pension was raised to 25/- per week the next month.At the end of January 1917, the doctor found progress, and believed that the injury to his leg could "by degrees be overcome by the man's own endeavour". A year later, Rouse reported some dizziness but the doctor noted how he was talkative and "laughs immoderately at times". September 1918 saw Rouse complain of defective memory and bad sleeping.
Return to work
On
30 July 1919 , Rouse was examined again by an unsympathetic doctor who observed that he was now in no disability from his headwound , and that while Rouse wouldn't allow his knee to be flexed by more than 30%, there was no physical reason for the limitation and the doctor ascribed it toneurosis . His pension, which since September 1918 had been 27/6 per week, was cut to 12/- per week on17 September 1919 .Finally in August 1920 a final examination found his head injury healed, and his knee injury only slightly affecting movement. Rouse's pension stopped on
14 September 1920 with payment of a lump sum of £41 5s. in final settlement of all claims.In fact Rouse had already found work.
Murder
On the early
morning of6 November 1930 two men inNorthamptonshire saw afire in the distance. A man approaching them from the direction of the fire observed that 'somebody must be lighting a bonfire'. The two men went to investigate and discovered the fire was coming from avehicle that was ablaze, containing a body charred beyond recognition. Thelicence plate identified the car as belonging to an Alfred Arthur Rouse, a north-London er. Rouse had gone toWales to one of his girlfriends, but returned to London a day later. He was arrested and confessed, saying that he had picked up the victim during a ride toLeicester . While Rouse went tourinate , the man lit acigarette in the car. According to Rouse, there was a flash of light, and subsequently the car burst in flame. Alfred Rouse stood trial inNorthampton in January 1931, and was found guilty of murder and sentenced to death.On Tuesday,
10 March 1931 , he was hanged in Bedford. He confessed to the crime shortly before the execution.In
Alan Moore 's novel "Voice of the Fire ", set inNorthampton at various times throughout history, one chapter tells Rouse's story infirst-person narrative , an evasive and self-serving musing to himself as he sits in the dock during his murder trial. The chapter ends with Rouse seemingly convinced of his ability to charm his jury into acquitting him, with his judgment in this matter proving as poor as it had been throughout the entire story.References
*"The Trial of A.A. Rouse " ed. byHelena Normanton (William Hodge and Company , London, 1931)
*J.H.H. Gaute andRobin Odell , "The New Murderer's Who's Who ", 1996,Harrap Books , London
*"Whitaker's Almanack ", 1932Persondata
NAME = Rouse, Alfred Arthur
ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
SHORT DESCRIPTION = British murderer
DATE OF BIRTH =April 6 ,1894
PLACE OF BIRTH =London ,England
DATE OF DEATH =March 10 ,1931
PLACE OF DEATH =Bedford , England
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