The Trial of Henry Hetherington, on an Indictment for Blasphemy

In December 1840 a packed courtroom in Westminster became the stage for a startling clash between law, religion and the emerging demand for free expression. Henry Hetherington, a Strand bookseller, faced a special jury under Lord Denman after being charged with blasphemous libel for publishing a pamphlet that openly attacked the Old Testament. The indictment reads like a Victorian manifesto against dissent, portraying Hetherington as a “wicked, impious” man intent on scandalising the sacred text.

The trial’s transcript offers a vivid portrait of the era’s moral anxieties and the fierce defense of the right to question religious authority. Hetherington’s counsel marshals a host of contemporary writers and theological arguments, insisting that honest critique belongs to a free society. Listeners will hear the courtroom drama unfold—prosecutors invoking the Queen’s defense of the faith, while the defense appeals to reason, liberty, and the public’s right to debate sacred matters. This record captures a pivotal moment when the boundaries of acceptable speech were fiercely contested.