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Anne Orthwood's bastard trial took place in 1663 in the then relatively new royal Colony of Virginia. Anne Orthwood was a 24-year-old maidservant when she became pregnant with her illegitimate twins. The father was the nephew of a powerful Virginian politician who felt that Anne's pregnancy would tarnish his family’s reputation. Anne Orthwood died during childbirth, leaving behind her only surviving son, Jasper, with no one willing to claim him as their own. The four different cases that stem from the original trial of Anne Orthwood give a glimpse into the world of America in the seventeenth century as well as highlight the reasons legal systems are created in the first place. == Background == Anne Orthwood was a 24-year-old indentured servant, who had emigrated from her home in Bristol, England to the Colony of Virginia about one year before meeting John Kendall. John Kendall was a bachelor in his early twenties from Norfolk, England. He lived with his uncle Colonel William Kendall, who was one of the most powerful politicians in Virginia at the time. Anne and John Kendall met at Colonel Kendall's Newport House Plantation. Colonel Kendall held Anne's indenture, so she worked as a servant woman in the plantation house, while John helped his uncle run the plantation. Colonel Kendall found out about Anne and John's clandestine relationship, and grew worried about what would happen if someone else were to discover it as well. He thus sold his contractual rights to her services to one of his fellow Virginia plantation owners, Jacob Bishop. Northampton County, Virginia did not have a proper court house until 1665, so when official matters had to be discussed the councils would meet at Webbs Inn to hold their proceedings. As a result of the council meeting at Webbs Inn, Anne and John were reunited on November 28, 1663. Anne and John conceived twin boys during the weekend that the court proceedings took place, but John did not continue the relationship after that, nor did he acknowledge his paternity or otherwise help the pregnant Anne. In order to shield herself from public shame and punishment, Anne hid her pregnancy as long as possible; however, her indenture was sold yet again to Lieutenant Colonel William Water, a justice of the peace and plantation owner. When Anne's condition became known, she was arrested and interrogated. Anne, for reasons that were never explained, did not want to divulge the father’s name. The county kept her in jail where she eventually went into labor, at which time she was denied the aid of a midwife until she revealed the father’s name. After intense pain, she finally named John Kendall as the twins' father. Anne and one of her twin sons died during childbirth; the other twin son, Jasper Orthwood, survived. Four distinct cases stemmed from Anne's original act of fornication: *Waters v. Bishop, in which Waters sued Bishop for selling him damaged goods, as Anne's pregnancy left her unable to work, thus making her indenture useless; *Ex Parte Kendall, a suit against John Kendall for civil liability for child support for the surviving twin; *Rex v. Kendall, a criminal fornication charge lodged against John by the Northampton County grand jury; *Orthwood v. Warren, in which Jasper Orthwood at the age of 21 sued his then-master John Warren for his freedom after Warren initially refused to grant it. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Anne Orthwood's bastard trial」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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