Crime and Punishment (Industrial Period)

Question 1

What was the standard job in the industrial period?

Answer 1

Working in factories

Question 2

What were some social changes in the industrial period?

Answer 2

Nearly all men had the right to vote, governments had to improve housing and health

Question 3

T/F: Harvests were more likely to be fruitful so prices lowered

Answer 3

False: prices just rose meaning more people went hungry and starved but food could be imported cheaply (note: smuggling)

Question 4

How did travel change in the industrial period?

Answer 4

Travel was easier as railways and canals were now commonplace and the quality of roads drastically increased

Question 5

Did the wealth in britain increase or decrease?

Answer 5

Increase: britain was now very wealthy thanks to two centuries of good trade and high taxes - the government could now pay for reforms to improve people’s lives

Question 6

In 1850 what percentage of people could read and write?

Answer 6

70%

Question 7

How did people’s attitude towards the government change?

Answer 7

People originally thought that government interference was a threat to freedom but now they realised that there were some things which the government should have control over

Question 8

What made petty theft and pickpocketing easier?

Answer 8

Cities were very crowded and full of people so it was still the most common crime (think Oliver Twist)

Question 9

Name some new crimes

Answer 9

Smuggling, highway robbery, poaching and unionising

Question 10

Why was witchcraft not so much of a problem?

Answer 10

Advances in science and technology greatly demystified it

Question 11

What did highwaymen do?

Answer 11

They would hold up people at gunpoint on deserted roads and would rob them

Question 12

Why did highway robbery become more common?

Answer 12

There was no law enforcement on roads that would stop them, horses and guns were easy to get hold of and people travelled more commonly thanks to good roads and they often carried all of their valuables with them (even though banks were a things people didn’t trust them)

Question 13

Why did highway robbery become less common?

Answer 13

The banking system grew more sophisticated, JPs refused to license taverns that helped highway robbers, horseback patrols were used, stagecoaches allowed travellers to seek safety and shelter at night

Question 14

Why was smuggling punished so harshly?

Answer 14

It was seen as denying the local authorities their income which they took very seriously

Question 15

How many smugglers were active in 1748?

Answer 15

20,000

Question 16

Why was smuggling hard to prevent?

Answer 16

It was popular and a social crime, protecting smugglers or turning a blind eye could earn people extra income and smuggling groups were often very large (up to 100 men) and well armed

Question 17

What did the 1723 black act do?

Answer 17

1. Made hunting deer, hare or rabbits a capital offence

2. Anyone found with dirt or a blackened face near a forest was a poacher and could be killed

Question 18

What were gamekeepers?

Answer 18

People hired by landlords to protect their animals, they could use weapons which often led to violent confrontations

Question 19

Who were the Tolpuddle martyrs?

Answer 19

(1833) A group of men who swore an oath to enter a union

Question 20

What happened to the Tolpuddle martyrs?

Answer 20

The government used the oath they had taken against them and arrested all of them, sentencing them to transportation to America, there was a huge outcry and in 1536 all six men were pardoned (the government dragged it out for as long as possible)

Question 21

Who was responsible for the first police force?

Answer 21

Home Secretary Sir Robert Peel

Question 22

Who were the Fielding Brothers?

Answer 22

Two men in charge of the Bowing Street Magistrates court on 1748 who realised that more presence was needed to prevent crime on the streets, they set up a patrol around London to stop highwaymen and it was effective

Question 23

T/F: The Fielding Brothers set up the Bow Street Runners who were a group of thief takers that patrolled London to prevent crime

Answer 23

True: They also found evidence and presented it in court

Question 24

What was the 1829 Metropolitan Police Act

Answer 24

An act that replaced the system of parish constables and watchmen with 2,300 men who were trained and wore uniform

Question 25

Why did the government introduce the police force?

Answer 25

There was an increase in crime and fear of crime leading to unrest and demand for something to be done, the government feared a revolution like the one that occurred in France and the police force seemed like a way to prevent it

Question 26

What year was the first detective force set up?

Answer 26

1842

Question 27

In what year was it compulsory for all towns and counties to have a police force?

Answer 27

1856

Question 28

Why was Commissioner Warren controversial?

Answer 28

People said that he introduced too many military tactics causing them to grow suspicious, when he put down the riot at Trafalgar Square with such great force that only increased the criticism

Question 29

What does CID stand for?

Answer 29

Criminal Investigation Department

Question 30

When was the Bloody Code slowly abolished?

Answer 30

1800 - 1830s

Question 31

Why was the Bloody Code abolished?

Answer 31

1. Juries wouldn’t convict - 40% of people guilty of capital crimes were actually killed, this fell to 10% in the 1800s
2. Public execution - it was seen as risky due to the fear of revolution and gathering all those people in one place could not be trusted
3. Changing ideas - it was increasingly believed that crimes were being punished too harshly

Question 32

Why was transportation to Australia effective?

Answer 32

1. It was a deterrent
2. It wasn’t seen as too harsh so juries would convict
3. It would decrease crime in britain by removing criminals
4. It would help claim Australia for Britain
5. Reform criminals through hard work

Question 33

When was transportation ended and what was it replaced with?

Answer 33

It was ended in 1857 due to Australians protesting but the punishment was replaced by prisons

Question 34

Why were prisons so bad?

Answer 34

1. Wardens were paid by prisoners - the richer got special treatment
2. All prisoners were housed together - from hardened criminals to children
3. Food and conditions were terrible

Question 35

What was the Goals Act and when was it passed?

Answer 35

It was passed in 1823 and said that:

1. Criminals were seperated
2. Prisoners should have proper food and no pets
3. Wardens were paid
4. Prisons should be hygienic
5. All prisoners should attend chapel
6. Magistrates had a duty to ensure prisons were up to scratch

Question 36

Who was John Howard and what did he do?

Answer 36

He was an inspector shocked by the state of prisons, he published a report talking about his findings but was criticised as being too lenient by many however, many of his changes were included in the Goals Act

Question 37

Who was Elizabeth Fry and what did she do?

Answer 37

She was a quaker who made great changes in prisons; she saw that women and children were cramped and under terrible conditions so she got them more room, better conditions and set up a school to educated the children and teach the women life skills .e.g. sewing, she also reported male wardens who exploited the women

Question 38

What was Pentonville?

Answer 38

It was the first prison set up to employ new reforms and changes to benefit the prisoners

Question 39

What was the separate system?

Answer 39

A system where prisoners were essentially isolated for the whole of their sentence; contact was made as hard as possible and they may not talk to anyone for the whole duration

Question 40

Why was the separate system abandoned?

Answer 40

It led to prisoners going mad, committing suicide and it was very costly

Question 41

What was the silent system?

Answer 41

This was a system used for the toughest of criminals and included:

1. Poor food
2. Monotonous hard labour
3. Hard and uncomfortable wooden bunks
4. Prisoners had to be silent at all times
5. If any of these rules were broken they were punished very harshly