Nature and changing definitions of criminal activity Flashcards

All 7 cards in this deck

Why was poaching seen as a 'social crime' in medieval England?

Many people believed it harmed no one and it was usually done to provide food; they resented common land being reserved for the king's use.

What did the Treason Act (1351) do?

It defined treason in law, distinguishing high treason (disloyalty to the king) from petty treason (the murder of a master or a husband).

What were William I's Forest Laws?

Norman laws that made large areas royal forest and created new offences there, such as hunting deer, taking wood or grazing animals.

True or false? After the Norman Conquest, the murder of a Saxon was treated as more serious than the murder of a Norman.

False. The murder of a Norman was seen as the more serious crime.

Give one example each of a crime against the person, a crime against property and a crime against authority in medieval England.

Person: murder or assault. Property: theft or arson. Authority: treason or rebellion, which were treated as the most serious of all.

What was the Norman murdrum fine?

A heavy fine paid by the whole hundred (local district) where a murdered Norman was found, if the killer was not handed over. It was meant to stop Anglo-Saxons killing their conquerors.

How did William I's punishment of rebellion differ from Anglo-Saxon practice?

He punished whole communities as well as the rebels: in the Harrying of the North (1069–70) crops, animals and farmland were destroyed, and many thousands of people starved.