Capital Punishment

Question 1

Why was there an increase in the death penalty?

Answer 1

The new ruler faced residtance from the people in England. Executions were used as a deterrent. The kind also wanted to increase power of the central government.

Question 2

What was the punishment for treason? Give an example.

Answer 2

Execution. Guy Fawkes 1605.

Question 3

How many were executed for witchcraft between 1560-1700? Which county had the most executions? Why?

Answer 3

112 out of 790 convicted were executed. Essex had the most executions, 82. Hopkins created a mass hysteria and started his interest in witchcraft in Essex.

Question 4

1868

Answer 4

Last public hanging.

Question 5

1908.

Answer 5

People under 16 no longer hanged.

Question 6

1933

Answer 6

People under 18 no longer hanged

Question 7

1957

Answer 7

Homocide Act. Reduced to 5 punishable crimes.

Question 8

1964

Answer 8

Last execution in the UK.

Question 9

1969

Answer 9

Abolition of capital punishment for murder.

Question 10

1688

Answer 10

50 crimes with the death penalty

Question 11

1815

Answer 11

225 crimes.

Question 12

1823

Answer 12

Robert Peel reduced number of bloody codes

Question 13

Was bloody code successful?

Answer 13

The jury often felt it was too harsh and so didn’t implement the bloody code.

Question 14

Timothy Evans

Answer 14

1950.
Hanged for killing his wife.
Later discovered that his wife (and 5 others) had been murdered by the landlord Christie.

Question 15

Derek Bentley

Answer 15

1953
Only Derek could be hanged at age 19 despite not being the one that shot and having the mental age of 11.
Caused addition of diminished responsibility.

Question 16

Ruth Ellis

Answer 16

1955
Suffered violent abuse from boyfriend so she planned to shoot him. She was the last woman to be hanged.
Crime was not included in the Homocide Act in 1957.