Isabella Mueller (crime writer)
One of the most intelligent female serial killers was Sophie Charlotte Elisabeth Ursinius, whose murder weapon was the poison arsenic. Her gripping series of murders led to the development of a groundbreaking, legally admissible method of detecting arsenic poisoning. Sophie Charlotte Elisabeth von Weingarten was born on 5 May 1760 in Stendal, the daughter of the disgraced Austrian Legion Councillor and Baron Maximilian von Weingarten – who later took the name von Weiß – and Ernestine Henriette Witte, the daughter of the mayor of Charlottenburg. Sophie was an extremely charming young woman from a good family who, at the age of 19, married Theodor Ursinus, then a senior judge at the High Court, who was considerably older than her. He had been a close friend of the family for years and was simply a good match. In 1792, the couple moved from Spandau to Berlin, where Sophie, thanks to her graceful appearance and witty repartee, moved in the highest circles of society, where she met and fell in love with the handsome young Dutch officer Ragay. Her husband tolerated the affair, as he was frequently unwell due to his age and no longer had much interest in fulfilling his marital duties. Sophie was head over heels for Ragay, but he cast her aside in 1796. Sophie was heartbroken, but all her efforts to win him back were in vain. Just one year later, the young captain officially died of consumption. On 11 September 1800, Sophie’s husband Theodor died suddenly and completely unexpectedly, having only just celebrated his birthday at length. Sophie had given Theodor a tonic, as he had been complaining of feeling unwell. When this had no effect, she had given him an emetic to provide relief. However, Theodor’s condition deteriorated rapidly, prompting Sophie to inform the doctors. Yet they – including the royal physician Johann Ludwig Forney and the doctor Johannes Nepomuk Bremer – were unable to help Theodor, who died in his bed that afternoon. Rumours soon began to circulate that Sophie had deliberately delayed calling the doctors. Furthermore, Sophie had aroused suspicion because, shortly before Theodor’s death, she had purchased large quantities of arsenic to deal with a rat infestation in her house. Just half a year later, on 24 January 1801, Sophie’s aunt, Christiane Sophie Regine Witte, died, bequeathing a substantial fortune to Sophie. At the time of her aunt’s death, too, Sophie had previously bought arsenic to combat a rat infestation. Thanks to the inheritance from her husband and her aunt, Sophie possessed a considerable fortune, which she was keen to spend lavishly on her extravagant lifestyle. When her servant Benjamin Klein fell ill at the end of February 1803, Sophie’s fortunes took a turn for the worse. The doctor who was called in, the general surgeon Laube, initially prescribed a laxative. However, Benjamin’s condition deteriorated rapidly, even though Sophie lovingly cared for her servant and even cooked for him. As well as a meat broth, she had also brought him some raisins, but Benjamin felt increasingly unwell after eating these foods. When Sophie offered him some rice pudding on 28 February 1803, he did not eat it. He was merely surprised that Sophie simply threw the untouched rice pudding away. He then looked around the house and, on 21 March, found a bag labelled ‘Arsenic’ in a cupboard. Had Sophie poisoned him with it? But why? Did she fear he might reveal her secret wedding plans? When Sophie brought him some prunes, he gave them to the chambermaid Schleyl, whose brother was an apprentice pharmacist. He was to give the prunes to his supervisor for examination, who indeed discovered that they had been poisoned with arsenic. On 5 March 1803, Sophie, who was in the midst of playing a game of whist in distinguished company, was arrested by police officers. During questioning, Sophie confessed to the attempted murder of her servant Benjamin Klein. However, she categorically denied all other allegations concerning the poisonings of her husband, her lover and her aunt. The investigating magistrate ordered the exhumation of the bodies of Sophie’s husband and her aunt. The analysis of the toxic substances was carried out by the renowned chemist Martin Heinrich Klaproth and his assistant, the apothecary Valentin Rose. However, they were unable to prove beyond doubt the presence of arsenic in the deceased’s stomach contents, as Marsh’s test – the method for detecting arsenic – did not yet exist at that time. However, it was ruled out that Theodor Ursinus had died of a nervous shock, the cause of death stated at the time. In Sophie’s aunt’s stomach and intestines, traces and damage typical of arsenic poisoning were found. Yet Klaproth once again failed to provide toxicological proof. A spectacular trial followed before the Berlin Court of Appeal, which concluded on 12 September 1803. Sophie was acquitted of the murder by poisoning of the officer Ragay and her husband Theodor Ursinus. She could not be proven guilty of the murder of her aunt Christiane Witt. For the attempted murder of her servant Benjamin Klein, she was sentenced to life imprisonment in Glatz Fortress. In 1883, after 30 years in prison, she was pardoned. However, she was not permitted to leave the city. Thanks to her wealth, she was a welcome guest in Glatz’s high society. Three years after her release, Sophie died on 4 April 1836. Sophie’s case continued to haunt the assistant and apothecary Rose, who had developed a method for detecting arsenic in 1806. However, it was not until the development of Marsh’s test in 1832 that arsenic could be reliably detected.
