medieval period

• In the absence of an official police force, local communities policed themselves. The communities had a number of different methods to do this; tithings, the Hue and Cry and local constables.
• Tithings

  • Every male over the age of 12 was expected to join a Tithing.
  • The Tithing was a group of 10 men who were responsible for each others’ behaviour.
  • If one of the men broke the law, the other members of the Tithing had to bring him to court or ensure that any fines due were paid.
• Constables

  • Well respected men in the village would be expected to take on the role of Constable. 
  • This would usually be a local landowner or well-respected tradesman. 
  • They would be expected to take the role for one year and the main responsibility was to keep the peace in their spare time. 
  • They would need to keep an eye for crimes being committed and lead the Hue and Cry when necessary.
• The main principles behind punishments in the Medieval Period were deterrence and retribution.
• Corporal punishment

  • This is the method of punishment to the body and could result in a period of time in the stocks and pillory.
  • Often offenders would find themselves with either their head and hands or their ankles clamped between two pieces of wood.
  • This punishment would take place in public, with the idea being to humiliate offenders and ultimately deter others from committing crimes.
• Reoffenders

  • Re-offenders were treated more harshly.
  • Sometimes they would face mutilation to parts of their bodies, such as cutting off a hand, ear or nose, or even ‘putting-out’ the eyes.
  • Again the severity of this punishment was designed to deter them from further crimes.
• Fines

  • A system of fines was used in Medieval England. This was known as the Wergild.
  • The main principle was that the offender paid an amount of money to the victim of their crime. This method was mainly used in cases of crimes against the person or property. 
  • The amount of money paid was directly linked to the crime that had taken place.
• • Treason would be a crime that resulted in the death penalty. 
  • Treason is when you go against your King or betray your Lord. The punishment was severe again in order to show others how important it is to be loyal to those in authority.
• • There were two main reasons why you could end up in prison:
  • You were either waiting to be executed or you were being held in debtors prison because you owed someone money.
• • Following their invasion, there was a lot of distrust and anger towards the Normans.
  • Some Saxons fought back against their new rulers and killed Norman soldiers.
  • As a result, William introduced the Murdrum Fine.
  • This meant that if a Norman was killed then everyone in the area would have to club together to pay a fine to the king.
• The Wergild

  • The system of Wergild was removed and fines were paid to the King and his officials rather than the victims of crime.
• Trial by combat

  • Lastly the Normans were warriors so they introduced Trial by Combat.
  • The accused had to fight the accuser until one was either killed or unable to continue to fight.
  • The loser was hanged as God would have considered him guilty.
• • The most obvious change following the Norman Invasion was the building of castles.
  • The Normans did this to protect themselves and exert their authority over the area.
  • Furthermore, they introduced a new language to the country.
• • The Saxons were incredibly religious and if a local jury was unable to decide if someone was innocent or guilty then they would allow God to decide, using Trial by Ordeal.
  • All trials, except Cold Water, took place inside the church in the presence of a priest.
  • This practice was ended in 1215 by Pope Innocent III.
• Benefit of the Clergy

  • This was when the accused claimed the right to be tried in the church courts, usually because they were more lenient. 
  • In theory, this right should only have been for priests and men of the church.
  • But, in reality, if you were connected to the church in any way you could claim this right.
  • The church would often test people claiming benefit of the clergy by making them read a verse from the bible.
  • This verse became known as the ‘neck verse’ as it saved your neck, or enabled you to escape hanging.
• • The main difference with the church court was that they would never sentence anyone to death regardless of how serious the crime was.
  • This meant someone could get away with murder.
  • Moral offences such as failure to attend church, adultery and drunkenness were usually dealt with by the church courts.
• Why was it better to be tried in a church court? 

  1. The church would never sentence anyone to death, no matter how serious the crime was. This meant that people could get away with murder. This was because it was against the 10 commandments to kill someone.The church courts were usually more lenient than the normal court. It was easy to claim the benefit of the clergy if you were connected to the church in any way. As medieval England was such a religioussociety, most people would be able to make some kind of claim.