4.6 - 4.10 - Crime And Punishment In 18th And 19th Century Britain Flashcards
How did society change in the industrial period ?
Population rise + movement:
18th century - most people lived in villages scattered throughout the countryside
- By 1900 the population had risen by around 32 million and people mainly loved in towns
Work:
- 18th century - most people made a living from farm work
- 19th - people worked in workshops and factories in towns and cities
Voting rights:
- 18th century - one 1 in 8 men could vote
- 19th century - nearly all men could vote (governments started making improvements to housing and health to win votes from ordinary people)
Harvests:
- 19th century - less chance of poor harvests. Food could easily be imported from other countries
Travel:
- by the 1840s, railways were one of the main forms of transport, and were faster than roads
Wealth + taxes:
- the government collected higher taxes which they used to improve people’s lives
Education:
- 18th century - only a small number of children attended school, literacy rates were low
- 1880 - law introduced that all children had to go to school until the age of 13
New ideas about human nature:
- 18th century - some people thought that improving people’s education, living and working conditions would encourage better behaviour
- 1800s - theory of evolution. People began to think that there was a criminal class
Who were the fielding brothers
Henry and John fielding were London magistrates. They realised that more men were needed patrolling London’s streets to reduce crime
They believed that rising crime was because there was no order in London as many people came there in search of work
They introduced a horse patrol to stop highwaymen which ended highway robbery around London.
They established the bow street runners who patrolled the streets of London in the evenings. They also investigated crimes and presented evidence in court
They released a newspaper (Hue and Cry) which published information and crime and stolen goods.
Why was Robert Peel able to set up a police force
In 1829 the first full-time professional police force was introduced in London
The role of Robert peel:
- he was appointed Home Secretary in 1822
- he wanted to improve people’s lives by reducing the amount of crime
Government and taxation:
- local authorities were allowed to raise taxes that could be used to pay for a police force
Increased crime + increased fear of crime:
- people felt that crime was increasing
- crime increased after the french war as soldiers became unemployed
Fear of protest
London :
- the growth of towns made the use of town watchmen and constables seem inadequate.
- London was also very crowded and there were lots of people
Why was the bloody code abolished?
The bloody code was abolished because of the reforms made by sir Robert peel
Juries were unwilling to find people guilty if they thought that the punishment was unfair . Because of this, people were more likely to commit crimes as they knew that they could escape punishment
Public executions were not working as crowds grew larger and people thought of it as cheap entertainment. As crowds got bigger, the government found it harder to keep order and there was a danger of the criminal escaping, especially if the crowd had sympathy for them.
Ideas about punishments were changing as philosophers felt that punishments should fit the severity of the crime committed
Was transportation a success or failure? How did it work? Reasons for and against transportation.
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