C1700–c1900: Crime and punishment in eighteenth- and nineteenth- century…

The idea

Between 1700 and 1900, Britain saw continuity and change in crimes against the person, property, and authority. While traditional crimes like murder continued, the period saw a surge in specific property crimes. Highway robbery peaked in the 18th century as improved turnpike roads increased coach travel, but declined by the 1830s due to mounted patrols, the growth of banking, and urbanisation, largely disappearing before railways became widespread. Smuggling thrived due to high import duties on goods like tea, often supported by local communities, but faded when taxes were reduced in the 1840s. Poaching remained a persistent crime against authority and property, exacerbated by the 1723 Black Act which made it a capital offence, highlighting the ongoing tension between wealthy landowners and the rural poor.

What earns the marks

• Identify highway robbery, smuggling, and poaching as key crimes against property and authority in the 18th and 19th centuries.
• Explain the rise and fall of highway robbery, linking it to turnpike roads, the Bow Street Runners, and the growth of banking and mounted patrols.
• Describe how high import taxes drove the increase in smuggling and how the reduction of these duties led to its decline.
• Analyse poaching as a social crime, noting the impact of the 1723 Black Act and the resentment of the rural poor towards wealthy landowners.
• Evaluate the continuity and change in crimes against the person, property, and authority across the period.

Common mistakes and how to put them right

• Treating highway robbery, smuggling, and poaching as entirely new crimes.

  Put it right: They existed previously but changed in scale and nature due to specific 18th-century economic and social factors.

• Assuming smuggling was universally condemned.

  Put it right: Smuggling was often viewed as a 'social crime' and was widely supported by local communities who benefited from cheaper goods.

• Confusing the timeline of highway robbery.

  Put it right: Highway robbery declined in the early 19th century, largely disappearing before the widespread use of railways, due to mounted patrols and banking changes.

Exam tips

• Use the concept of 'social crime' when discussing smuggling and poaching to explain why law enforcement struggled to secure convictions.
• Always link changes in crime rates to broader societal changes, such as taxation policies for smuggling or transport and banking improvements for highway robbery.