New Defenition Of Crime Flashcards
What are the eight factors that affect crime?
1.) Attitudes/Beliefs/Values
2.) Wealth and poverty
3.) The media
4.) Individuals
5.) The government/lawmakers
6.) Travel and technology
7.) The church/religion
8.) Urbanisation
Elizabeth I was worried that her opponents would use witchcraft against her. How did this lead to the new definitions of crime, and what factor is it?
Government and lawmakers:
Led her to introduce new witchcraft laws in 1563, and this would make it easier to punish potters attempting to use witchcraft against her. Charges of witchcraft were tried in common courts and not the more lenient church courts.
After printing was invented in the 15th century, more pamphlets appeared, making vagrants and witchcraft as highly organised criminal networks. How did this lead to change in crime, and what factor is this?
The media:
As more people heard about these crimes as serious things, then the fear increased and led to henry VIII in 1542 to make witchcraft punishable by death, and re-offenders of vagrancy were executed
Give a short summary of the gunpowder plot in 1605:
After James I declared his utter detestation for the catholics in 1604, a group of catholics led by Robert catesby plotted to kill the king on November 5th, 1605. Guy fawkes was in change of explosives and filled a vault beneath the houses of Parliament with 36 barrels of gunpowder. One of the plotters wrote to a friend in Parliament, Baron Monteagle, to warn him about the plot. The letter reached the King. The king’s men searched the cellars under Parliament. They found Guy Fawkes dressed in a cloak and hat with the barrels of gunpowder. Guy Fawkes was arrested.
Describe the punishment of the gunpowder plotters:
Guy Fawkes was tortured until he revealed the other plotters. Then they were dragged along the ground to the public scaffold, hung by the neck just before they lost consciousness, their bodies were sliced open, and organs ripped out. Finally, the rest of their bodies were cut into four, and their quartered body parts were displayed across the 4 corners of England.
How can the gunpowder plotters punishment be viewed and why were they punished this way?
It can be viewed as gruesome, cruel, and public because of how deliberately painful and visible it was.
The plotters were punished in this way as without a police force, the only way of deterring crime was harsher and more visible punishments.
Give one example of how the punishment of the gunpowder plotters was exceptional:
From the Anglo-Saxon period until the 20th century, most criminals sentenced to death were executed by hanging. They were usually dead within 10 minutes.
Give one example of how the punishment of the gunpowder plotters was unexceptional:
In 1685, over 200 men and women were hung, drawn, and quartered for their involvement in a rebellion that had aimed to overthrow King james II
How did lawmakers contribute to the authorities taking vagabondage so seriously in the years 1500 to 1700
Many lawmakers were rich landowners and felt threatened by the increasing problem of vagabondage and were scared it would affect their wealth as property is wealth. As they have the power to change the law, they were able to change how serious a crime it was
