Christiana Edmunds was born on October 3, 1828, in Margate, Kent, England. She was the eldest child of William Edmunds, an architect, and Ann Christiana Burn. Her father designed the local Holy Trinity Church and Margate Lighthouse. Christiana grew up in a privileged environment and received a private education.

As she grew older, Christiana was diagnosed with hysteria in her early twenties. After this diagnosis, she moved to Brighton to live with her widowed mother. While in Brighton, she became involved with a local doctor named Charles Beard. The details of their relationship are unclear.

Christiana Edmunds's crimes began in the late 1870s when she became involved with a local doctor named Charles Beard. In September 1870, she attempted to poison Beard's wife by giving her a poisoned chocolate cream. Mrs. Beard fell violently ill but managed to recover. Although Dr. Beard suspected Edmunds of poisoning his wife, he did not report it at that time.

In 1871, Edmunds began a more extensive poisoning campaign. She would obtain chocolate creams from a local shop and lace them with strychnine before returning them to the vendor. The confectioner, John Maynard, sold these chocolates to the public, unaware of the poison. She initially acquired the strychnine from a chemist, claiming she needed it to kill stray cats. To avoid suspicion, she paid young boys to buy it for her.

Many people in Brighton fell ill after consuming the chocolates, but the cause was not immediately identified. Tragically, in June 1871, a 4-year-old boy named Sidney Albert Barker died after eating poisoned chocolates from Maynard's shop. The coroner ruled his death an accident. Despite this, it was confirmed that this was the single fatality attributed to Edmunds.

Edmunds escalated her activities by sending poisoned chocolate parcels to notable individuals, including Mrs. Beard, who again fell seriously ill. As the police started to connect the poisonings to the chocolates, Edmunds tried to deflect suspicion by sending parcels to herself, claiming she was a victim. Dr. Beard eventually informed the police about his suspicions regarding Edmunds.

She was arrested and charged with the attempted murder of Mrs. Beard and the murder of Sidney Barker. Her trial began in January 1872. During the proceedings, her mother testified about a history of mental illness in their family. Dr. Beard clarified that he and Edmunds never had a sexual relationship but exchanged letters and engaged in mild flirtations.

Edmunds was initially sentenced to death, but her sentence was later changed to life imprisonment due to her mental health. She spent the remainder of her life at the Broadmoor Criminal Lunatic Asylum, passing away there in 1907.