Crimes of the Century: A Selective History of Infamy

Unsolved murders are as compelling as anything you might see in the movies. It is fitting then that our first “crime of the century” is the mysterious murder of a Hollywood director in 1922. William Desmond Taylor was not who he seemed to be, and his death continues to fascinate a century later.

The ghastly murder of Bridget Cleary in turn-of-the-century Ireland takes us into the mystery of human psychology. On the surface, it seems her husband, Michael, murdered her because he believed she was a “changeling” fairy in disguise. Could he really have believed that? Was he mad? Why else could have driven this murder?

The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand by Serb nationalist Gavrilo Princip was one of the most world-shaking events in the 20th century. Although the events are clear and well-known, the motivation behind the murder is rife with conspiracy. Dive into a cycle of mystery and violence in early 20th century Sarajevo.

Shift your attention to another political conspiracy—the murder of the Russian Tsar Nicholas and other Romanovs at the hands of the Bolsheviks. For more than a century, the facts of this murder have been dissected and debated. As you will learn, time has added few facts but plenty of speculation and myth.

Weimar Republic Germany is a wrenching period to read about: a failed state, a political and economic roller coaster, and a psychologically traumatized era suffering a plague of madmen, sex fiends, and serial killers. Here, you will survey three Weimar-era murder cases: the sadistic Peter Kürten, the “butcher” Fritz Haarmann, and the unsolved Hinterkaifeck Murders.

Delve into one of the best-known and most debated murder cases in American history. Richard Hauptmann—dubbed “the most hated man in the world”—was executed for kidnapping and killing aviator Charles Lindbergh’s baby, but did he act alone? Who received the ransom money? What exactly happened in 1932?