Law and order
What Law and order means in History GCSE, as defined for Pearson Edexcel.
Definitions of Law and order
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Reference: Pearson Edexcel
The system of justice needed as rapid expansion of Western settlements created severe problems, with early mining towns and cow towns often relying on vigilante groups.
A legal system relying on collective responsibility, using the tithing system and the hue and cry to maintain order, alongside trial by ordeal.
Maintaining it relied on federal US Marshals and local county sheriffs, but vast territories and underfunding made policing difficult.
Topics that use Law and order
- Option B1: Key topic 1: Anglo-Saxon England and the Norman Conquest, 1060–66 - 1 Anglo-Saxon government, economy and society (Pearson Edexcel GCSE)
- Option P3: Key topic 2: Development of the Plains, c1862–c1876 - 1 The development of settlement in the West (Pearson Edexcel GCSE)
- Option P3: Key topic 3: Later developments in the West, c1876–c1895 - 2 Conflict and tension (Pearson Edexcel GCSE)
Related terms
- Corruption and justice
- Federal vs local authority
- Frontier society
- Impact on Indigenous peoples
- Local administration
- Pacific Railroad Act (1862)
- Royal authority
- Spread of the railroad network
Using Law and order in the exam
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