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Crime and punishment, c1700 to c1900: crimes and prisons
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In the 18th and 19th centuries some crimes faded, the Bloody Code ended, and prisons became the main punishment.
Changing crimes
Highway robbery rose in the 1700s, then declined as banking reduced cash on travellers and roads were patrolled.
Smuggling of goods like tea and brandy was common because import duties were high. It fell when duties were cut in the 1840s.
Witchcraft prosecutions ended with the Witchcraft Act of 1736.
Tolpuddle Martyrs (1834): Dorset farm labourers formed a union and were transported to Australia for swearing secret oaths. After protests they were pardoned in 1836.
Smuggling of goods like tea and brandy was common because import duties were high. It fell when duties were cut in the 1840s.
Witchcraft prosecutions ended with the Witchcraft Act of 1736.
Tolpuddle Martyrs (1834): Dorset farm labourers formed a union and were transported to Australia for swearing secret oaths. After protests they were pardoned in 1836.
Punishment changes
The Bloody Code was dismantled in the 1820s and 1830s.
Transportation to Australia ran from 1787 to 1868.
Public executions ended in 1868.
Prison reformers: John Howard reported on terrible prison conditions (1777). Elizabeth Fry worked with women prisoners in Newgate from 1813.
Transportation to Australia ran from 1787 to 1868.
Public executions ended in 1868.
Prison reformers: John Howard reported on terrible prison conditions (1777). Elizabeth Fry worked with women prisoners in Newgate from 1813.
Case study: Pentonville
Pentonville prison opened in 1842 and used the separate system: prisoners spent most of their time alone in cells, and wore masks when outside them.
The aim was to reform prisoners through work, reflection and religion.
Weaknesses: isolation caused mental illness and some suicides, and it was expensive.
The aim was to reform prisoners through work, reflection and religion.
Weaknesses: isolation caused mental illness and some suicides, and it was expensive.
Explain why the Bloody Code ended.
- Juries often refused to convict for minor crimes, so the law was not working.
- Reformers argued punishment should fit the crime and reform criminals.
- Prisons and transportation offered alternatives to hanging.
Answer: It was seen as ineffective and unfair, and alternatives existed.
Highway robbery and smuggling declined; witchcraft prosecutions ended (1736); Tolpuddle Martyrs (1834). Bloody Code ended, transportation to 1868, public executions ended 1868. Howard and Fry reformed prisons; Pentonville (1842) used the separate system.
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