Bloody Code

The "Bloody Code" was a series of laws in England, Wales and Ireland in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries which mandated the death penalty for a wide range of crimes. It was not referred to by this name in its own time; the name was given later owing to the sharply increased number of people given the death penalty, even for crimes considered minor by later standards.

In 1689, there were 50 capital offences in England and Wales; this increased to 220 by the end of the eighteenth century. This period saw the introduction of new laws focused on property defence, which some viewed as class suppression. As convictions for capital crimes increased, penal transportation with indentured servitude became a more common punishment. In 1785, Australia was deemed suitable for transporting convicts, and over one-third of all criminals convicted between 1788 and 1867 were sent there. The Bloody Code listed 21 categories of capital crimes in the eighteenth century. By 1823, the Judgment of Death Act made the death penalty discretionary for most crimes, and by 1861, the number of capital offences had been reduced to five. The last execution in the United Kingdom took place in 1964, and the death penalty was abolished for various crimes in the following years.

History

In 1689 there were 50 offences on the statute book punishable by death in England and Wales, but that number had almost quadrupled by 1776, and it reached 220 by the end of the century. Most of the new laws introduced during that period were concerned with the defence of property, which some commentators have interpreted as a form of class suppression of the poor by the rich. George Savile, 1st Marquess of Halifax, expressed a contemporary view when he said that "Men are not hanged for stealing horses, but that horses may not be stolen.". Grand larceny was one of the crimes that drew the death penalty; it was defined as the theft of goods worth more than 12 pence, about one-twentieth of the weekly wage for a skilled worker at the time. As the 18th century proceeded, jurors often deliberately under-assessed the value of stolen goods in order to avoid a mandatory death sentence.. In the Kingdom of Ireland, a subordinate but separate state, a similar "Bloody Code" existed, but there were not as many capital crimes.

As the number of capital crimes increased, lawmakers sought a less harsh punishment that might still deter potential offenders, and penal transportation with a term of indentured servitude became a more common punishment. This trend was expanded by the Transportation Act 1717 (16 Geo. 3 c.43), which regulated and subsidised the practice, until its use was suspended by the Criminal Law Act 1776. With the American Colonies already in active rebellion, parliament claimed its continuance was "found to be attended with various inconveniences, particularly by depriving this kingdom of many subjects whose labour might be useful to the community, and who, by proper care and correction, might be reclaimed from their evil course." This law would become known as the Hard Labour Act and the Hulks Act for both its purpose and its result. With the removal of the important transportation alternative to the death penalty, it would in part prompt the use of prisons for punishment and the start of prison building programmes. In 1785 Australia was deemed a suitably desolate place to transport convicts; transportation resumed, now to a specifically planned penal colony, with the departure of the First Fleet in 1787. It has been estimated that over one-third of all criminals convicted between 1788 and 1867 were transported to Australia, including Van Diemen's Land (now Tasmania). Some criminals could escape transportation if they agreed to join the British Army. Jurist William Blackstone said of the Bloody Code:

Leon Radzinowicz listed 49 pages of "Capital Statutes of the Eighteenth Century" divided into 21 categories:Radzinowicz 1948, pp. xx–xxi and 611–659 ("Appendix I: Capital Statutes of the Eighteenth Century").

# High treason, including offences against the Protestant succession and the Protestant establishment
# Other offences against the State
# Offences against public order, including riot and destruction of flood defences and bridges
# Offences against the administration of justice
# Offences against public health
# Offences against public revenue, including smuggling
# Petty treason and murder
# Stabbing, maiming and shooting at any person
# Rape, forcible abduction and other sexual offences
# Simple grand larceny and allied offences
# Burglary and allied offences
# Larceny from the person
# Larceny and embezzlement by servants, Post Office employees, clerks and other agents
# Blackmail
# Offences by bankrupts
# Forgery of deeds, bonds, testaments, bills of exchange, stocks, stamps, banknotes, etc.
# Falsely personating another with intent to defraud
# Destroying ships to the prejudice of insurance companies
# Coinage offences
# Malicious injuries to property, including arson
# Piracy

Relaxation of the law

In 1823, the Judgement of Death Act 1823 made the death penalty discretionary for all crimes except treason and murder. Gradually during the middle of the nineteenth century the number of capital offences was reduced, and by 1861 was down to five. The last execution in the UK took place in 1964, and the death penalty was legally abolished in the following years for the crimes of:

* Murder, 1969 in England, Wales and Scotland, and 1973 in Northern Ireland
* Arson in royal dockyards, 1971
* Espionage, 1981
* Piracy with violence, September 1998
* Treason, September 1998
* Six military offences, November 1998

Reintroduction of the death penalty under any circumstances was prohibited by treaty ( Protocol 13 of the European Convention on Human Rights) in 2004.

See also

* Black Act 1723

Citations

General sources

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Further reading

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External links

Amnesty International: History of the Abolition of the Death Penalty in the UK

Rough justice – Victorian style, BBC News

{{English law types

Legal history of England
Legal history of Ireland
Legal history of Wales
Capital punishment in the United Kingdom
Georgian era