Medieval

• Tithing


  A system used in Anglo-Saxon England where every male villager over the age of 12 would join a group of 10 people to prevent crime
• Role of the tithing


  1. Prevent crime

  2. One member from each tithing met with the shire reeve to prevent crime

  3. If one person broke the law, the other members were responsible for taking them to court or paying a fine
• Hue and cry


  When a crime was committed, the victim would shout for help and the other villagers were expected to stop working and help catch the criminal
• If a villager did not join the hue and cry, they were expected to pay a fine
• Wergild


  Money paid for death
• Botgild


  Money paid for injuries
• The king decided how much each fine was, and this was set out in the king's laws
• The fine for killing a prince was 1,500 shillings while the fine for killing a peasant was 40 shillings
• The fine for killing a Welsh person was even lower
• Forest laws


  • Cutting down of trees was forbidden
  • People in the forest were not allowed to own dogs or a bow and arrow
  • People were punished by having their first two fingers cut off or being blinded for repeat offences
• The forest laws were not popular because activities that were allowed on common land in Anglo-Saxon England were made illegal
• Local communities often didn't report people who hunted or collected firewood from the forest because they felt the forest laws were unfair
• Sheriff and posse


  Introduced by William I after 1066 to report any law breaking in the parish to the king
• Manor courts


  Established by the Normans to discuss and punish crimes that took place on the land of the lord of the manor
• Trial by combat


  1. The accuser and the accused fought until one was killed or unable to fight any more

  2. The loser was then hanged as it was believed that God had judged them to be guilty
• Church courts


  • Tried members of the Church who were accused of a crime
  • More lenient in their judgements than other courts and did not use capital punishment
• Stocks


  Used as a punishment for crimes such as swearing and drunkenness, where criminals would sit at a wooden frame and people in the community would throw rotten food and sometimes stones at them
• Pardon


  People convicted of serious crimes and sentenced to death could avoid this punishment by buying an official pardon from the king, fighting in his army during war or joining the Crusades
• High treason


  A crime introduced in the later medieval period for plotting to kill the king, punishable by being hanged, drawn and quartered