Option 10: c1700–c1900: Crime and punishment in eighteenth- and nineteenth- century Britain - 1 Nature and changing definitions of criminal activity — Edexcel GCSE History
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Option 10: c1700–c1900: Crime and punishment in eighteenth- and nineteenth- century Britain - 1 Nature and changing definitions of criminal activity explained
Between 1700 and 1900, Britain saw continuity and change in crimes against the person, property, and authority.
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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.
Changing definitions of crime exemplified in the ending of witchcraft prosecutions and treatment of the Tolpuddle Martyrs.
The 18th and 19th centuries saw significant shifts in how crime was defined, reflecting broader societal changes. The ending of witchcraft prosecutions, culminating in the 1736 Witchcraft Act, decriminalised witchcraft, redefining it as a fraudulent trick rather than a supernatural threat. This was driven by the Enlightenment, which promoted scientific reasoning over superstition. Conversely, the treatment of the Tolpuddle Martyrs in 1834 illustrates how authorities manipulated definitions of crime to suppress threats. Six labourers were transported to Australia not for forming a union, which was legal, but under an obscure law against secret oaths. Their eventual pardon highlights the growing influence of public opinion on defining crime.
Your focus
- Identify the key features of highway robbery, smuggling, and poaching between 1700 and 1900.
- Explain the reasons for the rise and subsequent decline of highway robbery and smuggling.
- Analyse the extent of continuity and change in crimes against the person, property, and authority during this period.
Show all 6 objectives
- Explain how and why the legal definition of witchcraft changed with the 1736 Witchcraft Act.
- Describe the events surrounding the arrest, transportation, and pardoning of the Tolpuddle Martyrs.
- Analyse how these two case studies exemplify broader changes in the definition of crime and the role of authority.
Option 10: c1700–c1900: Crime and punishment in eighteenth- and nineteenth- century Britain - 1 Nature and changing definitions of criminal activity exam tips
Marking Points
- 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.
- Explain that the 1736 Witchcraft Act ended executions for witchcraft, redefining it as a crime of fraud rather than a supernatural offence.
- Link the decriminalisation of witchcraft to the Enlightenment and the rise of scientific and rational thinking.
- Describe how the Tolpuddle Martyrs were prosecuted in 1834 using an obscure law against secret oaths, rather than for forming a trade union.
- Analyse the role of mass protests and public opinion in securing a pardon for the Tolpuddle Martyrs, demonstrating changing attitudes towards authority.
Examiner 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.
- 💡Use the 1736 Witchcraft Act as a clear example of how changing attitudes and scientific discoveries can lead to the decriminalisation of an activity.
- 💡When discussing the Tolpuddle Martyrs, emphasise the government's fear of the French Revolution and working-class uprisings as the motive for their harsh treatment.
- 💡Contrast the top-down change in witchcraft laws (driven by the elite) with the bottom-up change in the Tolpuddle case (driven by public protest).
Common Mistakes
- Treating highway robbery, smuggling, and poaching as entirely new crimes; correction: they existed previously but changed in scale and nature due to specific 18th-century economic and social factors.
- Assuming smuggling was universally condemned; correction: 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; correction: highway robbery declined in the early 19th century, largely disappearing before the widespread use of railways, due to mounted patrols and banking changes.
- Stating that the Tolpuddle Martyrs were arrested for forming a trade union; correction: forming a union was legal at the time; they were arrested under an old law against administering secret oaths.
- Believing people stopped believing in witches immediately after 1736; correction: while the law changed due to educated elite attitudes, belief in witchcraft persisted among the general public for many years.
- Confusing the dates and contexts of the two events; correction: the decriminalisation of witchcraft occurred in the early 18th century (1736), while the Tolpuddle Martyrs case happened in the 19th century (1834).