Ann Beddingfield was born in England in 1742. At the age of 17, she married John Beddingfield, a prosperous farmer from Sternfield, Suffolk. The couple resided on a substantial estate and had two children. Despite their seemingly stable life, Ann became discontented and sought solace outside her marriage. Her dissatisfaction led her to form an illicit relationship that would ultimately culminate in a tragic and notorious crime.​

In late 1761, the Beddingfields employed Richard Ringe, a 19-year-old farmhand. Ann quickly became infatuated with Ringe, and the two began a clandestine affair. Their relationship soon turned sinister as Ann proposed the idea of murdering her husband to be with Ringe and gain control over the estate. Initially hesitant, Ringe was eventually persuaded by Ann's promises of wealth and companionship.

The couple first attempted to poison John Beddingfield. Ringe procured arsenic and tried to enlist a maid, Elizabeth Riches, to administer it in John's drink. Riches refused, and an attempt by Ringe to poison John's water was unsuccessful when John noticed a suspicious sediment and declined to drink. Frustrated by these failures, Ann and Ringe devised a more direct plan.

One night in March 1763, after John had retired to bed, Ringe entered his room and strangled him with a cord. The struggle was brief but violent, resulting in both men falling from the bed and causing noticeable disturbances in the room. After ensuring John was dead, Ringe informed Ann, who reportedly responded, "Then I am easy." The household's servants, though suspicious, did not immediately report their concerns. A coroner's inquest hastily concluded that John had died of natural causes.

The truth unraveled when one of the maids, after receiving her quarterly wages, disclosed the affair and murder plot to her parents, leading to Ann and Ringe's arrest. During the trial at the Lent Assizes in 1763, both were found guilty of petty treason—a charge for murdering one's lawful superior. Ann was sentenced to death by burning at the stake, a punishment reserved for women convicted of such crimes, while Ringe was sentenced to hanging.

On April 8, 1763, both sentences were carried out near Ipswich. Ringe was hanged, and Ann was burned at the stake, marking a grim end to a tale of betrayal and murder that shocked the community and served as a cautionary story for years to come.