ipl-logo

Punishment In The Elizabethan Era

1209 Words5 Pages

Even today, people look back fondly on the Elizabethan Era as one of the times when England was very close to achieving a golden age. While living under Queen Elizabeth did bring about troubles, such as an extreme system of punishment and quarrels with the Catholics, the Elizabethan Era was a time of peace and prosperity, contrasting life before and after Elizabeth’s reign. When Queen ELizabeth died, ending her reign, Catherine Bush states that “No king or queen before her had ever received the nationwide show of grief that England now gave Elizabeth”. (106) In a time when England was almost about to tear itself apart, Queen Elizabeth I came to power and improved the situation. Her influence led to political, cultural, and educational improvement …show more content…

According to “Crime and Punishment in the Elizabethan Era,” crime before Elizabeth’s rule was very common. Thieves and pickpockets would roam the streets all the time, stealing as they pleased and seldomly getting caught. They became very adept, blending into the crowd and forming organizations. When Elizabeth came to rule, she began to come down on the criminals of her time, and she did it very harshly. Minor crimes involved being put in the stocks, which were out in the open so the public could have fun “ridiculing and throwing garbage at people sentenced to this punishment”. (1) Basically all other crimes were punishable by death. Hanging became the punishment for thievery. Treason meant being drawn and quartered, a gruesome way to end a person’s life, with their remains being put on public display to warn others. The commonness of public executions would be appalling today; however, it encouraged the citizens of England to stay away from any form of crime. Queen Elizabeth’s laws did not mean death was imminent for all criminals. Pregnant women could receive pardons, as killing them would mean the death of an innocent child. Priests could also avoid execution, but only once. Elizabeth’s efforts to reduce crime during her rule were extreme, but affected the public in a way that made England a safer

Show More
Related
906 Words | 4 Pages

Elizabeth I, Queen of England from 1558-1603, brought much success and political stability to England during her reign. However, the ideas about gender at the time greatly influenced her rule. With the views of the religious peoples during Elizabeth’s reign leaning towards negativity about a woman ruler, Elizabeth I responded to these challenges against her ability to rule wisely with sophisticated anger and strong leadership, while not responding to the challenges to her authority as a religious leader. One of the main challenges to Elizabeth’s right to rule came from the church. Document 1, “First Blast of the Trumpet Against the Monstrous Regiment of Women” by John Knox, a Scottish religious reformer, shows the biased views of a Scot who

Read More
502 Words | 3 Pages

In Jeff Jacoby’s “Bring Back Flogging,” he compares the punishments for crimes in the 17th Century to the punishments for crimes in the present. Jacoby suggests in his essay that “the Puritans were more enlightened than we think, at least on the subject of punishment. Their sanctions were humiliating and painful, but quick and cheap.” Jacoby makes a good argument to bring back an old punishment policy. He points out that “a humiliating and painful paddling can be applied to the rear end of a crook for a lot less than $30,000 (per year).”

Read More
332 Words | 2 Pages

Caitlin Cormack Grade 11 19 March 2018 The Exploration of Punishment in The Crucible Arthur Miller explores the concept of punishment in The Crucible. He does this through what happened during the Salem witch trials, the characters and what he was going through (The Red Scare). The Salem witch trials began during 1692, a group of young girls in Massachusetts claimed to be possessed by the devil and accused the local women of witchcraft.

Read More
1030 Words | 5 Pages

Various people throughout England would not bear the idea of Queen Elizabeth taking the throne. It was trusted that a woman's place wasn’t in ruling a country or being head of the church simply because God reserved the right for men. John Knox

Read More
586 Words | 3 Pages

They court believed every word and action the girls did, and then sentenced the person for being guilty and made them wait for their hanging. People like Abigail Williams, Reverend John Hale and John Proctor were a big cause of the hangings.

Read More
763 Words | 4 Pages

Many people do not realize how fortunate they are to have the medical advances and medical technology we easily have the right to use. People from many years ago did not have specialized doctors and medicine to cure their diseases that we easily have access to today. (Ramsey) Many civilizations used what they thought to be alleviating processes, but medical experts today know now were pointless and dangerous. Among these people were the Elizabethans.

Read More
883 Words | 4 Pages

In urban areas, there was lots of crime during the Industrial Revolution. By 1770, there were at least 160 different crimes in which a person could be sentenced to death for committing. Some of these included picking pockets of an amount above one shilling, stealing horses and cutting down trees in an avenue or garden. Imprisonment in gaols was not a common form of punishment as they were soon overcrowded. Because of this, they were used predominantly to hold those awaiting trial or who could not pay their debts.

Read More
1210 Words | 5 Pages

Crime and Conviction in Victorian England In Victorian England conviction was very common. It was far from unusual to see someone being brutally hung or stripped from their families for crimes such as being in debt, stealing, or even murdering. At times one could be tortured just because of the suspicion of crime. Punishment and imprisonment in Victorian England was cruel and unusual in order to prevent offenders from crime. Illness, poor living conditions, and public humiliation were all strategies used to deter wrongdoing.

Read More
973 Words | 4 Pages

This essay will mention some of the crimes and punishments; it will also explain the differences between the medieval times and the modern times. Crime Crimes for people to commit in the Medieval times was easier for people to commit than. Most of the crimes were very so unnecessary that even lighting a fire can cause big times. Some of the crimes committed in the Medieval times were Theft which means to steal something from another person, Arson which means to light fire in public, Witchcraft means to practise magic such as black magic and a use of spells, Heresay/blasphemy means disrespect towards god because in the Medieval times they looked up to god a lot and they would make big discussions by asking god in a way people would not know. Treason which is traitor to the crown (king), Vagrancy means homelessness which in the medieval times was very common for people that work or the king such as peasants.

Read More
452 Words | 2 Pages

Those convicted of these crimes received the harshest punishment: death. Execution methods for the serious crimes were designed to be as gruesome as can be. People were god fearing and very religious during Elizabethan era. Women were mainly accused

Read More
807 Words | 4 Pages

Elizabeth I had a substantial impact on society and the women around her. Her appearance, education, and decisions all led up to the legacy she left and the immense impact she had on future queens. Elizabeth I proved that she was a strong, educated leader who not only influenced the people of her time but also future generations. Elizabeth I never gave up on her role

Read More
879 Words | 4 Pages

While we prefer life in jail, they preferred death. To conclude, a significant extent of the nature of crime and punishment changed between social classes and over the years since the Medieval Period. This is seen through the significant groups that were involved in medieval crime and punishment, the effects of a person’s social class on crime and punishment, the sort of crime each punishment was used for and the difference between crime and punishments between the Medieval Period and today. The Medieval Period lasted from 476 CE to 1453 CE, with different punishments for each crime committed by different social

Read More
319 Words | 2 Pages

Did you know that for stealing a purse you could have your limbs torn off?During the Elizabethan period, there would be crimes committed followed by punishments. These crimes are most not like the crimes today. Some include stole purses, begging, and poaching. Now you're probably wondering, what such crimes must those be? Money wasn't much easy to get back then so people tried to steal and be able to feed their families.

Read More
987 Words | 4 Pages

The succession of Elizabeth I as the head monarch of England may have brought her criticisms regarding her capabilities and her individuality; but, she was able to surpass the contradictions around her and was able to build the Golden Age of England as what most historians have identified her reign (Briscoe, 2011). It is through her strong sense of leadership and skills that brought her to achieve a role that have produced substantive policies and mostly successful conquests. These have brought her at par with, if not surpassed her predecessors in the context of her contributions in further establishing England’s power and prominence, and as well as improving the welfare of her people. The past Tudor monarchs, dominated by males, have used different

Read More
1041 Words | 5 Pages

This led people to think that she was weak and they tried to take advantage of that, but they failed. Elizabeth said, “I know I have the body of a weak and feeble woman, but I have the heart and stomach of a king.” She said this because she didn’t need a king to help her rule; just because she was a woman, it didn’t make her any less of a

Read More

More about Punishment In The Elizabethan Era

Related Topics

Open Document