Crime And Punishment In The 18th Century

Imagine watching a brand being burned into the side of someone’s face for stealing an apple. This is one of the many harsh punishments given in 18th century England. Crime was not taken lightly, and criminals were made sure to be punished. Compared to modern day England, punishments for any crime were unrelenting. These punishments were even made for the public to watch. In 18th century England, punishments were dictated based on the established laws, the gender of the accused, and how severe the crime.
To begin, the laws that are established determine whether a crime has been committed. One of the ways laws are enforced are by having constables. Constables were paid watchmen that patrolled the streets and reported any crime. Unfortunately, constables only patrolled in their spare time.In Matthew White’s article, “Crime and Punishment in Georgian Britain”, he mentions that every parish, which is a small district that has both a church and a pastor, required to have at least two constables.If a crime has been committed, the constables would report their findings to their pashish’s magistrate.
Magistrates and judges were another group that helped enforce law, but also determined what punishments were assigned.
They were the ones responsible for keeping the peace in the parish that they belonged to and only dealt with political issues. They dealt with crimes without a jury, so whatever the punishment ended up being could be influenced purely by opinion. White also mentions “Courtrooms were sprinkled with herbs and scented flowers in order to prevent the spread of disease and to mask the smell of unwashed prisoners, while much of the courts’ daily business was conducted in Latin.” Magistrates were highly dominant people of the court, so they made sure the environment was always
hospitable.
After the perpetrator has seen the magistrate in court and been considered guilty, they would be held in prison until punishment. Prisons were mainly used as a source of income, as the prisoners had to pay for their own board and possessions. Many prisons experienced overcrowding. In consequence, the British parliament began setting laws to release certain prisoners only on strict conditions.
As far as gender, men and women were punished differently, even if the same crime were committed. Most offenders were male. Men were given punishments based on their wealth and if they could pay off enough of their punishment. Unfortunately, the majority of the poor criminals were hung, for they did not have enough money given the chance to bribe the constable or magistrate. If the were rich enough, they would be fined a large sum of money and given the decision to pay that fine or go to prison and rish execution or a harsh punishment. Having a high status can determine your fate.
Women were given lighter punishments than men, unless the victim was a rich male.