Changing definition of crime/law enforcement and punishment 1500-1700 Flashcards
Who was Martin Luther and what did he do?
He was a German monk who protested against Catholic church corruption.
What was the reformation?
When the church split between those who remained catholic and those that reformed known as protestants.
What is heresy?
Crime against the church.
What was treason?
Challenging the authority of the ruler.
What were vagabonds?
Unemployed homeless people who moved from town to town looking for work.
What was the 1547 Vagrancy act?
An able-bodied vagabond without work for 3 days was to be branded with a v and sold as a slave for 2 years.
What did the 1601 poor law do?
Made dealing with vagrants more consistent:
Parishes had to provide poor relief to anyone that could not physically work.
Undeserving poor were severely punished.
Distinction set out between the two.
What was the game act in 1671?
Made hunting and fishing on enclosed lands illegal
What were import duties and what did they mean?
They were taxes on a range of goods. This meant there was profit for smugglers as people did not want to pay the tax.
What was the change in law enforcement?
Roles of town constables and night watch expanded.
The emergence of thief-takers.
What was the continuity in law and punishment?
Law- Hue and cry. Witnesses report crimes to authorities or stop criminals.
Punishment- Deterrence and retribution, fines pillory/stocks, hanging and drawing.
What did the growth of towns and unemployment lead to?
Growth of towns= More crime and opportunities for crime
More unemployed= More crime
What were prisons used for?
To hold petty criminals, vagrants, drunk and disorderly people.
Not seen as a punishment.
Often a secure room in a castle.
What were the conditions like in prison?
Poor-Inmates had to pay for bedding, food eg.
They had to do hard labour to pay for their keep.
How many crimes were punishable by death in 1688 and what was this known as?
- Known as the ‘Bloody Code’.
