James Douglas Malcolm (1883–1969) was a

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

officer. Whilst home on leave in 1917 during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, he discovered his wife Dorothy was having an affair with a Russian, Anton Baumberg. He shot him dead, and was acquitted of murder and manslaughter in a much-publicised trial at the

Old Bailey The Central Criminal Court of England and Wales, commonly referred to as the Old Bailey after the street on which it stands, is a criminal court building in central London, one of several that house the Crown Court of England and Wales. The s ...

Early life

Malcolm was born in

Highbury Highbury is an area of North London, England, in the London Borough of Islington. Highbury Manor Highbury was once owned by Ranulf, brother of Ilger, and included all the areas north and east of Canonbury and Holloway Roads. The manor hou ...

, London in 1883, the son of East India Merchant James R Malcolm and his wife Matilda E Malcolm, both born in Scotland. In 1891, they were living on the south side of

Wimbledon Common Wimbledon Common is a large open space in Wimbledon, London, Wimbledon, southwest London. There are three named areas: Wimbledon Common, Putney Heath, and Putney Lower Common, which together are managed under the name Wimbledon and Putney Co ...

, with five children, a cousin and four servants. In 1909, Malcolm arrived in San Francisco from Yokohama having sailed on the ''Tenyo Maru'', had no occupation, and had been living in Hove, Sussex, where his relative was J R Malcolm, and was going on to London. He was 5'11" tall. In 1911, Malcolm was single and a jute merchant, living in Hove, and at his older brother grain merchant John W Malcolm's house in Mayfair.

Personal life

In 1914, he married Dorothy V Taylor. In 1932, when Dorothy was 42, they had their only child, the film critic

Derek Malcolm Derek Elliston Michael Malcolm (12 May 1932 – 15 July 2023) was an English film critic and historian. Early life Derek Elliston Michael Malcolm was born on 12 May 1932. He was the son of Douglas Malcolm (died 1967) and Dorothy Vera (died 196 ...

Killing of wife's lover, murder trial, and acquittal

Malcolm was a Lieutenant in the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

. In 1917, on leave from the front, he returned home to find his wife absent, and eventually tracked her down and found her with Anton Baumberg, both partly clothed. He tracked him down to a seedy lodging house behind

Paddington Station Paddington, also known as London Paddington, is a London station group, London railway station and London Underground station complex, located on Praed Street in the Paddington area. The site has been the London terminus of services provided by ...

, London, where he went with his service revolver and a whip, intending to horsewhip him, but shot him four times. Baumberg was the self-styled Count de Borch, and was actually a Russian Jew. At his trial for murder in 1917, the defence was led by

Sir John Simon John Allsebrook Simon, 1st Viscount Simon, (28 February 1873 – 11 January 1954) was a British politician who held senior Cabinet posts from the beginning of the First World War to the end of the Second World War. He is one of three people to ...

, the prosecution by Richard David Muir, and the judge was

Henry McCardie Sir Henry Alfred McCardie (19 July 1869 – 26 April 1933) was a controversial British judge. Educated at King Edward's School, Birmingham he left school at 16 and spent several years working for an auctioneer before qualifying as a barrister an ...

. Malcolm was held at

Brixton Prison HM Prison Brixton is a Category C training establishment men's prison, located in Brixton area of the London Borough of Lambeth, in inner- South London. The prison is operated by His Majesty's Prison Service. Before 2012, it was used as a loca ...

during the trial. It is believed to have been the first

crime of passion A crime of passion (), in popular usage, refers to a violent crime, especially homicide, in which the perpetrator commits the act against someone because of sudden strong impulse such as anger or jealousy rather than as a premeditated crime. A ...

defence case in the British courts.

Death

Malcolm died in 1969, in Sussex, England, aged 86.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Malcolm, Douglas 1883 births 1969 deaths British Army personnel of World War I British merchants People acquitted of murder People from Highbury Royal Artillery officers