Name……………………………
People and Punishments, 1786
We can find out a lot about the nature of punishments in the period between 1750 and 1900 by using original documents. The document on which this exercise is based is a printed handbill entitled A Calendar of the Prisoners that are to be tried at the Assizes, 1786. In some ways the title is misleading. It was obviously reprinted after the Assizes had taken place as the sentences of the prisoners are included. This makes it a very useful source of evidence. Read the source carefully and then answer the following questions.
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1. Using the information in the Source, complete the table below.
Criminal / Crime Committed / My prediction of how they will be punished / Actual punishment / Did I predict the right punishment?JANE SCOTT
ROBERT BELL
JOHN HALL
JOHN DIDSBURY
WILLIAM STONEHOUSE
THOMAS HAY
EDWARD PERKIN
JOHN REED
JOHN SUTCLIFFE
RICHARD FAIRLEY
2. How many did you get right?
3. Now highlight all of the crimes connected to property in one colour and all of the crimes against people in another.
4. Which gets treated most seriously by the courts? Why? (Think about the law makers and law enforcers being from the well off and business classes whilst the law breakers were often the poorest in society.)
5. Have a look at your table. Do you think that the crime fitted the punishment given?
Were people punished according to the crime they had committed?
6. No Bill prisoners were those for whom not enough evidence could be found to put them on trial. There was no organised police force at this time. What might this suggest about law and order in 1786?
7. For what crime was capital punishment (death) given? How many were imprisoned as a punishment? What other punishments were given out by the court?
8. A lot of these punishments were carried out in public? Why?
9. After you’ve looked at all of these crimes and their punishments what do you think the purpose of punishment was at this time?