Who put Bella down the Wych Elm?
- Hannah
- Jun 26, 2019
- 4 min read
Our first case is a chilling mystery dating back over 75 years. The story of a woman whose skeletal remains were discovered in a hollow tree in Hagley Wood, on the outskirts of Birmingham, in the early 1940s. Since this discovery, numerous theories surrounding her identity, how she came to be in the tree and a list of potential suspects have come to light, bringing with it rumours of prostitution, German spies and witchcraft.
The Discovery
Our story begins on Sunday 14th April 1943, when four boys searching for bird eggs, came across a large Wych Elm tree. One of the boys Bob Farmer approached the tree and began to climb believing he would have some hunting success. What he saw when he looked down, however, was far from it. Staring up at Bob from the hollow trunk was something far larger than any bird egg he’d ever seen. Making his way down the tree, he discovered he had found a human skull. Scared as any children would be, the boys quickly left the estate. Upon his return home, the youngest of the boys felt so uneasy he told his parents about the gruesome discovery and the police were alerted.
The Investigation
During their forensic investigation, police officers found an almost complete skeleton, hair, clothing fragments, a shoe, and a gold wedding ring. The skeleton and its belongings were quickly excavated and sent to a laboratory for further forensic examination. During his examination, Professor James Webster determined the skeleton was that of a female who had likely been dead for at least 18 months and that she had been placed in the tree prior to rigor mortis taking hold. When it came to identifying the cause of death, Webster believed the woman may have been strangled as a piece of taffeta was discovered in the skull's mouth. Taffeta is a ‘high end' silk-like fabric, often used in the making of wedding dresses, corsets and ball gowns. Based on this information could it be possible that the woman or her killer was of the higher class?
Webster also made several statements about the skull during his investigation. One was that it possessed a very distinct and clear dental pattern and another that the jaw was much more irregular than one would expect. He believed these details would be useful in attempts to identify the remains. Police officers shared this belief and began the arduous task of sifting through dental records in attempts to match them to a missing person report. Sadly, they were unable to identify any dental records that bore a resemblance to the skull, and sifting through the vast number of missing person files was too difficult of a task in wartime Britain.
An Unusual Occurence
As the days and weeks passed by, the horrors of Hagley Wood were slowly forgotten, until another discovery was made in December 1944. Written on a wall in Upper Dean Street, Birmingham, was the message ‘Who put Bella down the wych elm? – Hagley Wood’. This was a welcome break in the case for police who began to form several new ideas of the woman’s identity and the presence of foul play. Similar graffiti messages have appeared in numerous locations surrounding Birmingham in recent years, its most popular being on nearby Wychbury Obelisk.
Theories
In 1941, a Gestapo agent named Josef Jakobs parachuted into Cambridge, breaking his ankle as he landed. Jakobs was quickly apprehended by the Home Guard and his belongings searched when officers found a photo of his German lover Clara Bauerle. Formerly an actress and cabaret singer, Bauerle had begun training as a German spy and was believed to have parachuted to England. Following the alleged landing, Clara appeared to disappear. The question of whether she arrived in England has been widely debated by historians. Some state there is no evidence to show she ever left Germany, whereas others believe she arrived only to be killed by a military officer and left in the tree.
During the investigation of the skeleton, it was noted that one of the skeleton’s hands may have been severed or detached. Based on this evidence, Archaeologist and Anthropologist Margaret Murray put forward the idea that ‘Bella’ had been killed by gypsies as part of a ‘Hand of Glory’ ritual for crimes against a coven. This radical theory was sensationalised and quickly became a favourite of local newspapers.
In 2014, BBC Radio 4 presenter Steve Punt covered the case and came up with his own two theories based on information collected by police at the time of the discovery. The first of these came from a 1944 police report of a missing prostitute named Bella. The name Bella appearing in graffiti indicates the person who left the message knew the identity of the woman or her killer. The second theory surfaced following a 1953 police report by Una Mossop. Mossop believed her late husband, Jack Mossop, may have been the killer as he had previously confessed to family members. Jack claimed he met up with a friend in a local pub and had met the woman later that night. When she passed out in the back of his car, he and his friend decided to put her in the tree thinking it would scare her when she awoke. Not long after, Jack was admitted to Stafford Mental Hospital where he claimed he had nightmares of a woman staring at him from a tree. He spent the remainder of his life in the hospital and died before the remains were found.
Conclusion
In the years since the skeleton was discovered, no-one has ever been charged or prosecuted in connection with this case and ‘Bella’s’ identity remains a mystery. Sadly, Bella’s remains and autopsy reports are currently missing, removing the possibility of any DNA testing until they are found. With regard to the theories we have discussed today, I believe the most likely claim is that Bella was left in the tree by Jack Mossop and his friend. Whilst I initially found this story unconvincing, the fact that Jack experienced nightmares about a woman in a tree and was admitted to hospital before the remains were found suggests he may have been the killer, knew who was the killer or had come across the remains himself previously.
I hope you have enjoyed reading about this fascinating case and I would love to hear your comments and theories. To keep in the loop about our next case don’t forget you can like us on Facebook at ‘Crime Will Tell’ or subscribe to us on our website homepage!
Sources:
https://unexplainedmysteriesblog.wordpress.com/2018/09/20/bella-in-the-wych-elm-the-hand-of-glory/ 14329271
Really interesting case! I agree that Jack was the likely killer, but it would be great if they could get ahold of the remains and autopsy report to finally get some answers.