Exam Notes: Crime and Punishment c.1500 to Present Day

16th and 17th Centuries

Nature of Crimes:
- Theft: Stealing clothing, food, or small sums of money.
- Assault.
- Murder.
- Heresy: Failure to accept the official religion.
- Treason: Questioning or rebelling against the monarch.
- Vagrancy: Homeless beggars causing problems while seeking food and money.
Causes of Crimes:
- Social and Economic:
  - Poverty and unemployment due to economic changes and pressures.
  - Population increase (1.5 million between 1500-1600).
  - Rising inflation.
  - Bad harvests.
  - Changes in farming methods.
  - Rack-renting.
  - Changes in the cloth industry.
  - Costly foreign wars.
- Religion:
  - Changes to the official religion due to the change of monarch.
    - Henry VIII: Catholicism without the Pope.
    - Edward VI: Protestant; Catholics were heretics.
    - Mary I: Catholic; Protestants were heretics.
    - Elizabeth I: "Middle Way".
- Political:
  - Questioning, rioting, or rebelling against the monarch was considered treason.
- Economic:
  - Introduction of high taxes on imported goods (customs and excise duties) increased the demand for smuggled goods.
Specific Crimes:
- Heresy and Treason:
  - Failure to accept the official religion.
  - Refusal to recant (give up the religion) led to being found guilty of heresy and the death sentence.
- Vagrancy:
  - Vagrants were homeless beggars who toured the country causing problems.
  - Types of vagrants included clapper dudgeons (tied arsenic to the skin to make it bleed) and dummerers (pretended to be deaf and unable to speak).
- Smuggling:
  - Smuggling goods into the country to avoid paying taxes.
  - Involved large gangs smuggling goods via the Welsh coast and the south coast of England.
Examples and Information:
- Famous Protestants burned under Mary's rule: Bishops Hugh Latimer and Nicholas Ridley.
- Welsh examples:
  - Robert Ferrar, Bishop of St. David's, burned at Carmarthen in 1555.
  - Rawlins White, fisherman, burned at Cardiff in 1555.
  - William Nichol, laborer, burned at Haverfordwest in 1558.
- Two types of classification of poor during Tudor times:
  - Impotent poor (genuinely unable to work).
  - Able-bodied poor (capable of working but unwilling to find a job).
- London's Bridewell Prison dealt with an increasing number of vagrants (69 in 1560, over 550 by 1600).
- Many people didn't see smuggling as a 'real' crime.

18th and 19th Centuries

Nature of Crimes:
- Theft (e.g., stealing clothing, food, or small sums of money).
- Assault.
- Murder.
- Criminal damage (e.g., Luddite protests).
Causes of Crimes:
- Social and Economic:
  - Poverty and unemployment in the countryside due to new farming methods and machinery.
  - Urbanization and overcrowded, squalid living conditions in towns and cities.
Specific Crimes:
- Luddite Protests (1812-1813):
  - Destruction of new machines (stocking frames).
  - Escalated into armed attacks and murder.
- Chartist Protests (1839):
  - Llanidloes and Newport.
Additional Information:
- Population of Merthyr Tydfil was 400 in 1560- London's Bridewell Prison dealt with 69 vagrants. By 1600 the figure was over 550.
- Political unrest: Workers held protests demanding the right to vote and economic and social changes; opposed technological changes.
- Famous Welsh smugglers included William Owen and Sion Cwilt.
- Changes to agriculture and increasing work in towns and cities were known as the Agricultural and Industrial Revolutions.

20th and 21st Centuries

Nature of Crimes:
- Theft.
- Assault.
- Murder.
- Motor crimes (linked to alcohol and drugs, road traffic offenses).
- Cybercrime (hacking, phishing scams, cyberterrorism, fraud and ID theft, harassment, viruses, spam, and sexual crimes).
- Football hooliganism.
- Drug-related crime.
- Gun and knife crime.
- Terrorism.
Causes of Crimes:
- Social and Economic:
  - Poverty and unemployment due to various economic crashes and the growing divide between rich and poor.
  - Increased car ownership.
  - Increased use of computer technology.
- Social:
  - Alcohol, the desire to feel a sense of belonging to a tribe.
  - Often linked to juvenile gangs and the rise of gang culture.
  - Breaking down of traditional moral values and inner-city gang culture.
- Social, Religious, and Political:
  - Growth in fundamentalism.
  - Beliefs in violent and direct action.
  - Strong religious and political beliefs.
  - New technology.
Specific Crimes:
- Highway Robbery:
  - Stealing using violence or the threat of violence.
  - Footpads attack victims on foot.
  - Highwaymen: Robbers on horseback who attack richer travelers in stagecoaches.
- Motor Crimes:
  - Linked to alcohol and drugs, road traffic offenses (speeding, accidents, lack of documents, in-car safety legislation).
- Cybercrime:
  - Hacking, phishing scams, cyberterrorism, fraud and ID theft, harassment, viruses, spam, and sexual crimes.
- Football Hooliganism:
  - Gangs of supporters, often drunk, fighting each other and/or attacking property.
- Drug-Related Crime:
  - Drug smuggling has become an international business.
  - Drug addiction has led to an increase in crimes such as burglary, mugging, robbery.
- Gun and Knife Crime:
  - Murders and serious injuries.
- Terrorism:
  - Methods include hijackings, assassinations, hostage-taking, bombings, suicide bombings, arson attacks, use of chemical weapons, cyberattacks.
Additional Information:
- Criminals liked to live in places where they could slip away quickly and pickpocket.
- Henry Mayhew identified over 100 different types of criminals.
- Dick Turpin was the most famous highwayman.
- Addicts need a constant supply of money to feed their habit.
- Crime figures have increased sharply since 1900, partly due to increased reporting and recording of crime.
- Violent crime figures have remained the same.
- IRA (Irish Republican Army): A Catholic group who opposed the Protestant majority in Northern Ireland.
Welsh Example
- Wales experienced a number of political disturbances during the 20th century. In 1911, strikes by railwaymen in Llanelli and by miners in Tonypandy both ended in riots. There were also serious disturbances during the miners' strike of 1984-5. Criminal acts have also been committed in support of the Welsh language and culture, e.g., the burning of second homes in Wales in the 1980s and 90s.

Causes of Crime

16th and 17th Centuries:
- Increase in crime associated with vagrancy and heresy.
  - Vagrancy: Wandering around without a home or a job.
  - Heresy: A religious opinion that goes against the official religion.
  - Increase in poverty and the number of poor.
    - The impotent poor: Those who couldn't really work.
    - The able-bodied poor: Those who could work but refused to look for work.
  - Causes of poverty:
    - Poor harvests.
    - Changes in farming methods.
    - Rack-renting.
    - Rural depopulation.
    - End of wars: Soldiers return home to look for work.
    - Changes in the cloth industry: Decline causes rise in unemployment.
    - Increasing population: Population of England and Wales almost doubled between 1500 and 1600.
    - Inflation: Wages not keeping pace with rising prices.
    - The Dissolution of the Monasteries: Henry VIII closes the monasteries - centers that helped the poor of the time.
- Many left their homes in the country to look for work in the towns, known as vagrants.
- They would also be forced to steal and cheat, becoming a serious problem during Elizabeth I's time.
Impact of Religious Changes:
- Henry VIII (1509-1547):
  - Catholic.
  - King is the Head of the Church of England instead of the Pope.
  - Church services and prayers in Latin.
  - Priests could not get married.
- Edward VI (1547-1553):
  - Protestant.
  - King was Head of the Church.
  - Church services and the New Prayer Book in English.
  - Priests allowed to marry.
- Mary I (1553-1558):
  - Catholic.
  - The Pope became Head of the Church once again.
  - Church services in Latin; New Prayer Book banned.
  - Priests forced to separate from their wives.
- Elizabeth I (1558-1603):
  - Protestant.
  - The Queen became Governor of the Church.
  - Church services in English and in Welsh; New Prayer Book in English and Welsh.
  - Priests allowed to marry.
Heresy and Treason:
- Increased heresy crimes due to the Protestant Reformation.
- People who refused to follow the country's official religion accused of heresy.
- Henry VIII introduced treason laws: Anyone who spoke/wrote against the King, or spoke in favor of the Pope was guilty of treason, punishable by death.
18th and 19th Centuries:
- Pressures of industrialization and urbanization.
- Changes in agriculture leading to agricultural workers leaving rural areas to seek employment in industrial towns.
- Industrial towns grew tremendously.
- Urbanization changed the way that people lived and worked.
- Overcrowding and poor living conditions were common problems, leading to an increase in crime levels in certain periods, and also new crimes.
20th Century:
- Widespread crime (theft, assault, murder) continued.
- Advances in technology provided new opportunities for criminals.
- Reasons for the increase in crime:
  - The art of inner-city gangs.
  - Technological developments such as cars, computers and the Web.
  - The impact of television.
  - Social factors such as poor living conditions.
  - Fast communication (mobile phones).
  - Drugs and alcohol.
  - Gradual moral decay in society.
  - Generous sentences for certain offenses.
  - Poverty.
- New cases of crime:
  - Car crime: Increased car ownership led to an increase in motoring offenses.
  - Computer Crime: Increase in the number of people who had a PC led to internet fraud and stealing computers.
  - Football hooliganism: Often leads to fighting or attacks on property.
  - Drugs: Aircraft, drones, ships, and trucks used to smuggle drugs; drug users turn to crime to afford drugs.