Earl Mervin Sodomy Case

The case of Earl Mervin involved a nobleman that faced a trial for rape and sodomy and was presided by his peers. Rivers, a master gardener whose apprentice would accuse him of sodomizing in private and public. Captain Edward Rigby was charged with sodomy for soliciting sex toward William Minton. The case of Earl Mervin, Rivers, and Captain Rigby shows how sodomy is never about the act but the implications of the act itself toward societies expectations.
Although Protestant England would see male intercourse as taboo, it has an ancient precedent in the Greek age. The model of love that existed in Greece was pederast relations. For Plato, the love between two male citizens especially one of that is older and the other a prepubescent boy around
Captain Rigby in his trial would plead neither guilty nor not guilty but demurred the decision to the indictment. The event that transpired between the two starts with Captain Rigby encountering William Minton on November 5 of 1698, meeting in St James Park while Fireworks were burning. Captain Rigby would randomly grab Minton’s hand and then place his genitalia on Minton’s hand. Rigby would kiss Minton, to Minton’s surprise, in which he backed away. Captain Rigby would convince Minton to meet him in George-Tavern and ask for room 4. Minton then meets up with his roommate Charles Coates about what transpired. With his help, he would make a plan to protect himself from Captain Rigby when meeting him in the tavern, which includes Minton stopping on the floor and yelling Westminster as the signal for their help. At six o’clock, Minton would go to George Tavern and went into Room 4 while the constable and his associates were in a neighboring room. While inside, Rigby would kiss and put the youth’s hand to his (Rigby’s) pants. When Minton talks about how only woman where for this, that Rigby rebukes him by saying, “Dam’em, they are all poxt, I’ll have none of them.” He would then sit on his lap, kiss him, crudely ask for sex, and mentions how it is no different from their ancestors. He mentions the French king and Tsar as men that also lie with men. He continually asks Minton for them to copulate, at the point in which Captain Rigby removes Minton’s pants, bends him over and talks lasciviously. Minton then runs toward the door away from Captain Rigby, but Captain draws his sword. Minton tells Rigby that he will pay for his crimes and does the signal, which brings in the constable. In the end, Captain Rigby would give the excuse of being drunk, and since he demurred to the indictment, he would be punished by standing in the