By contrast to infantile spinal muscular atrophy, which usually links to deletions in the SMN genes, fetal onset motor neuron disease is poorly reported. We collected a series of twelve cases of fetal arthrogryposis (16-31 weeks gestational age) with fetal motor neuron disease and excluded infectious diseases, lysosomal storage disease and neuroaxonal dystrophy. Of these twelve, 3 were thought to be ischemic in nature with microvascular alterations and systemic or central nervous system ischemic injury. The remaining 9 all displayed marked reduction in anterior horn motor neurons. Of these 9, four demonstrated mineralised neurons, four demonstrated either neuronal loss or cavitation in the globus pallidus, and in two, degenerating neurons were detectable in the brainstem or globus pallidus. Specific sequencing of SMN1 was performed in 6 of 9 and was reported as normal. Whole exome sequencing was performed in 4 without definitive diagnosis. We conclude that fetal motor neuron disease can be distinguished from ischemic injury, is morphologically heterogeneous, may affect the globus pallidus and is rarely linked to SMN1 mutations.