Anne Greene thought she was going to die.

She hadn’t gotten a fair trial. She protested that she had not killed her baby. Despite the medical proof the baby had indeed been a stillborn, Anne was condemned to hang. Sir Thomas Read, whose grandson impregnated the maid, took special measures and his influence to see that his “noble” family would not have their reputation ruined.  She still had her friends’  “support,” at her hanging in Oxford on December 14, 1650. She wanted a quick death, so she requested they pull her swaying body up and down and hit it repeatedly. They did until the sheriff told them to stop. Once everyone thought her dead, she was taken down, placed in a coffin, and whooshed away to a group of doctors and medical students. Anne’s body was going to be dissected.

Mostly Dead Something wasn’t right on the day of the dissection. As the physicians opened the coffin, they were in for a surprise. Did the corpse just move? Was that a breath? Yes, she was still alive. But barely.  The dissection lesson quickly did a one-eighty.

1650 Version of ER Some of the treatments included aren’t recommended today, but they did the best for the time to see her breath and make her body warmth again. They poured cordial down her mouth and tickled her throat with a feather which opened and shut her eyes. She coughed and was breathing more. They applied heat plasters, rubbed, and bled her . To remain warm, she was placed in a warm bed by another girl.

Here’s a woodcut that attempts to illustrate the story:

What Comes Around… As Anne Greene was recovering, the justice system decided to pardon  the revived woman. Three days after her execution, Thomas Read died. Maybe from natural causes. People saw these events as acts from God and some science. If you’re like me, perhaps you see it as both. (For more on this topic, watch this interesting video on how religion and science work together.) 1651 was a better year for Anne. She married a John Taylor. Not much is known after that except she had three children and died in 1665. Doctors, students, and others involved in reviving need to get credit for taking action rather than sit and let her die. We have some of the names: Christopher Wren, Robert Matthews, and Doctor Willis. The writer of the pamphlet writer in 1651 called Newes from the Dead or a True and Exact Narration of the Miraculous Deliverance of Anne Greene also should get an award for preserving a record.  

A Book Review Author Mary Hooper borrowed the title Newes from the Dead for her historical fictional novel told mainly from Anne’s perspective as she organizes her thoughts and recounts the events that led to a mysterious place. The book and author deserve a huge honor. Once Mary Hooper heard Anne’s story on the car radio, “I was absolutely captivated, I went straight home to find out more about her.” If Hooper hadn’t written the book, I would have had no idea of this remarkable incident. Writing to preserve stories really benefits future generations–no matter how weird. And going back to the book, I appreciate the theme of thinking carefully before deciding. Over and over again, Anne regrets believing the smooth-talking and (not so) “gentleman” who got her into trouble. She learns the importance of going for the kind, sincere, and hardworking guys–but with caution.

I assume that the real Anne Greene had learned important lessons. The true story is serious, a little comical, but very heartwarming. It also is surrounded by those who had to make tough decisions. I would like to see more people know about the hanging and revival of Anne Greene—and perhaps even see it as a movie.