medieval england key terms

poaching

hunting and killing animals on someone else’s land without permission

treason

harming or plotting against the monarch or another very important person

counterfeiting

producing fake coins

heresy

from 1400- questioning the church power and/or teachings

crimes against person

• assault

• murder

• adultery

crimes against property

• arson

• poaching

• serious theft

• petty theft

• selling damaged/rotten goods

crime against authority

• treason

• rebellion

• counterfeiting

• heresy

social crime

poaching- most did not consider it a crime, would not report each other to the authorities

1066

date of the norman conquest

forest laws reason

• preserve land for normans to hunt in

• created ‘royal forests’ with stricter rules than just the poaching rules

forest laws punishment

1st offence- loss of fingers/blinding

2nd offence- execution

forest laws definition

criminal to hunt or chop down trees on the kings land, enforced by sheriffs

murdrum fine definition

killing a norman made a more serious crime than killing an Anglo-Saxon

murdrum fine reason

some normans murdered by anglo-saxons as retribution for the norman conquest, seen as rebellion against authority

murdrum fine punishment

• the village in which the murdered norman was found - heavily fined

• deterrent- murderer executed

date of the black death

1348-1350

1351 treason act

• made the distinction between high treason and petty treason

• high treason considered very dangerous- traitors punished by HDQ

1351 high treason

harming or plotting against the monarch

1351 petty treason

a servant killing their employer

1351 statute of labourers

• many peasant labourers dead from Black Death- not enough people to look after crops

• survivors expected higher wages

• law made it illegal to ask for higher wages than before the plague

1401 heresy law

• after Black Death- people questioning the power of the church

• lollards- demanding bible be translated into english

• church labelled these people heretics

1401 punishment for heresy

burnt at stake

examples of major crime

• murder

• arson

• poaching

• treason

• rebellion

examples of minor crime

• petty theft

• adultery

• selling damaged goods

two ways the normans changed the definition of crime

• forest laws

• murdrum fine

tithing

• around ten households

• all males aged 12 or over

• if one committed a crime- others had to report to the shire reeve or be punished themselves

hue and cry

• when crime committed- raise the alarm

• village expected to stop and search for the criminal

• if not used, villagers could be held responsible or fined

royal judges introduced

• 1166- Henry II

• appointed by the monarch

• travelled around the country to judge the mosts serious crimes

justices of the peace

• introduced by Richard I as ‘keepers of the peace’- late twelth century

• became JPs- 1361 under Edward III

• judged less serious cases in each county

• often important local landowners

coroners

• introduced 1194 by Richard I

• investigated deaths believed to be suspicious

parish constables

• introduced by Edward I- late thirteenth century

• initially appointed to keep peace in and around cathedrals

• usually respected individuals who oversaw law enforcement in their villages

• unpaid, temporary

• led hue and cry

sheriffs

• oversaw law enforcement

• received writs from the monarch (instructions)

• if hue and cry failed- sheriff to organise a group of adult men to hunt them down

• William I- increase sheriff powers- responsible for forest laws

trial by jury

• anglo saxon

• men from tithing who knew accuser and accused

• jury fail to reach verdict- accused undergo trial by ordeal

trial by ordeal

• anglo saxon

• hot water, cold water, hot iron, blessed bread

• if healed- god judged them innocent

date of abolishment of trial by ordeal

1215

trial by combat

• norman

• fight between accuser and accused, or someone on their behalf

• often fight to the death

• falls out of use by roughly 1500

Henry II trial system

• minor crimes- local/manor court

• moderate crimes- county courts, overseen by JP

• serious- quarter sessions, overseen by royal judge

purposes of punishment- medieval

• deterrence

• retribution

fines

• money paid to monarch/church for minor crimes

• normans- murdrum

• fines become more common-medieval

stocks and pillory

• trapped by feet or neck and wrists in a public place

• villagers invited to throw objects

• used for minor crimes

compensation

• anglo saxon- wergild- paid to victim of attack/family; no longer used at end of medieval period

• normans- fines for assault paid to monarch

corporal punishment

• often mutilation

• used for major crimes

• use increased dramatically- normans eg for forest laws

capital punishment

• use increases dramatically- normans

• very serious crimes- hanged/beheaded

• high treason- HDQ

• heresy- burnt at stake

trial by blessed bread

• priests only

• if choked on bread- guilty

trial by cold water

• arms tied, thrown into pond/river

• sank- innocent, pulled to surface

• floated-guilty, punished

trial by hot water/iron

• hand in boiling water/hold hot iron

• wounds bandaged for 3 days

• healed- innocent

sanctuary

• suspect can stay in church up to 40 days

• options- face trial/exile

• exile- different country, not allowed to return, leave church carrying wooden cross

benefit of the clergy

• priests, monks, nuns- tried in church courts

• people with a connection to the church eg looking after buildings could prove eligibility for church courts through the ‘neck verse’ passage from bible

• misused- memorisation of the neck verse

church court punishments

• enforced pilgrimage

• confession

• formally apologising in religious ceremony

church courts for moral crimes

• non-clergy

• moral crimes- adultery, gambling, not attending church, drunkenness, blasphemy

moral crimes church court punishments

• whipping

• fined by church

monarch’s power over law enforcement

• trial by combat

• trial by jury

• wergild

• forest laws

• sheriffs, coroners, jps, parish constables

• high treason made specific crime

church power over law enforcement

• trial by ordeal

• sanctuary

• church courts

• heresy made a specific crime

Henry II vs Thomas Becket

1160s- reform justice and abolish church courts- resisted by Thomas becket, then killed