Changes In Crime And Punishment - Methods Of Combatting Crime Flashcards
What’s ere communal methods of combatting crime in Saxon and medieval times?
Ten families grouped into tithings
Entrusted with policing disturbances, fire and wild animals
Leader was the tithingman who raised hue and cry
Ten tithings grouped into hundred
Hundredman responsible for more serious crimes
What were shires?
Counties
Had a shire reeve / sheriff who was responsible for public order in his shire
Could raise a posse to capture a criminal who had escaped their tithing
What happened in 1326?
JPs appointed to assist the sheriffs in controlling the shires
Usually local landowners who held trials and hearings in court
Who did parish constables replace?
Hundred men
Had to maintain law and order in communities and report to JPs
Night watchmen reported to a parish constables
System consistent by 1500
What were the duties of the JP?
Acted as a magistrate and administer justice through Petty and Quarter Session courts
Also organised parish constable and night watchmen
Administered local government and responsible for enforcing local laws, checking weights and measures
Supervised poor relief
Managed Houses of Correction
Carried out orders of Privy Council
Acts passed by Privy Council and the Council of the Marches enforced
How did the JPs workload substantially increase during the Tudor period?
Effective in maintaining law and order at local level
Policed and punished offenders
Ensured Acts of Parliament were enforced locally
Who was the Parish Constable?
Appointed from tradesmen or farmers
Held the unpaid post for a year alongside day job
Who was the Town Watchman?
Patrolled the streets at night and handed wrongdoers to the Constable
Who were the Charleys, established in 1663?
London night watchmen
Unpaid posts were unpopular among those selected to serve
Few could afford the time to perform duties properly
Charleys tended to be old or lazy
What caused increased pressure on the medieval system of combatting crime?
Sharp rise in population levels and growth of towns and cities
Who were thief-takers?
Acted as unofficial policemen
Captured criminals and claimed reward money
Jonathan Wild (1683-1725) - built an empire of organised crime, planning thefts and burglaries and then negotiated return of stolen goods
Who was Henry Fielding?
Appointed Chief Magistrate at Bow Street in 1748
In 1751 - paid 6 law officers who were trained and full time
‘Quick notice and sudden pursuit’
Who was John Fielding?
Continued the work of the runners and enhanced policing in London
1763 - £600 government grant to establish the Bow Street Horse Patrol to deal with Highway Robbery
1772 - Quarterly Pursuit Newspaper - descriptions of wanted criminals
Renamed Public Hue and Cry in 1786 and the Police Gazette in the 1800s
1792 - Middlesex Justices Act extended to the Bow Street Scheme by funding 7 JPs in other parts of London each with six runners
What happened in 1798?
Thames River Police established by Patrick Colquhoun
Horse patrol of 54 armed officers established in 1805 - Robin Redbreasts
1829 - London had 450 constables and 4000 watchmen to a London population of 1.5 million
Preventative policing
What was the Metropolitan Police, set up in 1829?
Under control of Robert Peel
Paid, full time law officers
Peelers/ Bobbies
Run by two commissioners
Headquarters at Scotland Yard in Westminster
Covered 7 mile radius, 17 districts with 144 police constables each
Had to read and write
Blue jacket, white trousers, tall white hat, truncheon, rattle
Worked 7 days a week
What was the Metropolitan Police Act 1839?
Extended to a 15 mile radius from Charing Cross
River Police and Horse Patrol brought into Metropolitan Police Force
What was the Municipal Corporations Act 1835?
Allowed borough towns to set up a police force if they wanted to, only a small number had done so by 1837
What was the Rural Police Act 1839?
Allowed JPs to establish police forces in their country, only a small number had done so by 1856
What was the County and Borough Police Act 1856?
Made it compulsory for every county to have a police force
