history
Island Life - April/May 2010
The
Mysterious
Death
of Cecil
Hambrough
By Jan Toms
Windsor Dudley Cecil Hambrough was
Yorkshire militia
a young man with everything within
as a lieutenant
his grasp. The son and heir of Dudley
instead. Annoyed,
Hambrough of Steephill Castle on the
Dudley wrote to
outskirts of Ventnor, he was in line to
his son telling him
inherit the family estate. He did not
to come home. He
need to wait for the death of his father
did not comply.
however, for on reaching twenty-one he
In August of
would receive a fortune of his own from
1893, bankrupt and
the Hambrough Bank of London and New
leaving a trail of
York, estimated to be about a quarter of a
debts behind him,
million pounds.
Monson leased the
In December of 1893 therefore, as Cecil
six hundred and
approached his majority, the Isle of Wight
forty acre estate
was stunned by his sudden, sensational
at Ardlamont House in Scotland for the
death.
shooting season. In spite of his penniless
For some time his father had been
state, he took on servants and even a
concerned about the young man’s wild
private yacht so that the party might sail
ways. In order to curb him he decided
on the loch. He persuaded Cecil that
to employ a tutor, his choice falling on
they should jointly buy the estate, the
Alfred John Monson. On the surface,
problem being that at that time Cecil had
Monson seemed perfect. Thirteen years
no money. Monson hit on the idea that
older than Cecil, married with children
they should take out an insurance on
he had the highest connections, his
Cecil’s life so that should anything happen
uncle being Lord Oxenbury master of
to him before his twenty first birthday, his
the queen’s horse, and his grandfather
share of the property would be covered.
the Earl of Galloway. In reality he was a
The policy was to be in the name of
spendthrift and a rogue.
Monson’s wife Agnes. There is little
It seems likely that Dudley Hambrough
was beginning to have doubts about
Monson as a suitable companion for his
doubt that Cecil was attracted to Agnes
and he readily agreed.
On the morning of August 10th Cecil
son. In 1893 Dudley planned to enlist
went walking in the woods at Ardlamont.
Cecil in the Isle of Wight Rifles, a part
He was later discovered at the bottom of
of the Hampshire regiment but Monson
a dyke with a bullet hole behind his left
pre-empted him and Cecil joined the
ear. It was assumed that he had tripped
58
while climbing a wall and his gun went
off accidentally.
Dudley Hambrough was informed and
Monson accompanied Cecil’s body back
to the Isle of Wight where he was buried
at St Catherine’s church at Ventnor in the
family vault.
When the existence of the life insurance
came to light, the procurator fiscal
ordered that Cecil’s body should be
exhumed for re-examination. On a cold
December day, Dudley insisted on being
present while his son was dug up and
examined. Although Cecil had a gun of
his own, the bullet was found to come
from one belonging to Alfred Monson.
Monson was arrested and charged with
murder.
It further emerged that the day before
the shooting, Cecil had nearly drowned,
being taken out in a boat by Monson that
then foundered. Cecil could not swim.
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