CRM 1301 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Pillory, Perjury, Seeking Justice
26 Jun 2018
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LECTURE 3: THE AGE OF THE MONARCHY
THE EARLY MIDDLE AGES
England broken up into principalities
oPrinces held absolute power with their own borders
oEach prince owed his allegiance to the King (King Harold had the ultimate
authority)
Communication was poor
oLaws were localized
Laws were never formalized.
Each village had its own system; therefore, the prince would
decide what is considered a criminal act.
There was a great amount of discretion meaning the law was not a
fair system.
oNot much literacy
Books would be hand written because there was no printing.
oThere were no roads – people traveled by horse
It was difficult to get from Destination A to Destination B
oNews traveled slowly
oWilliam of Normandy won the battle over King Harold
William sailed to England and challenged his cousin for power
William beat Harold and granted a lot of the land to his people
These people would go on to only make decisions in William’s
favor.
THE RISE OF THE MONARCH
Absolute Monarchy
oThe power to rule land freely without laws or legally-organized direct
opposition in force.
All the power and authority rests with the monarch
oLocal autonomy taken away in exchange for peace and safety
It was the concept that individuals didn’t have any rights but they
could live safely and peacefully.
Society based on feudalism
oLords and serfs
A system in which two groups existed
- Lords: They have all the power
- Surfs: Individuals who work on the land. They are peasants
(no better than slaves)
If there was any conflict between the Lords, they would gather up
the surfs and the surfs would fight on their behalf. This is how the
Lords would resolve disputes.
Lord’s courts
oThey were developed and no longer had “surf vs. surf” battles.
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THE EMERGENCE OF THE KING’S COURT
Re-defined private wrongs as crimes against the state
oIf someone stole from another individual, if someone assaulted another
individual, etc., it was no longer seen as a crime against individual but
rather a crime against the state.
Henry II streamlined procedures and made them fairer
oWord traveled that taking your case to the King’s court would get you a
fairer and faster trial and decision.
oThe Lord’s court diminished in popularity and the King’s court
dominated.
Circuit judges: replaced informal methods if seeking justice based on local
practises
oThe judges would get together and talk about the cases they had seen and
together, decided that the best decision was.
oThis allowed for a similar trial/decision no matter where you were.
oThey are trying to replace informal methods of justice with a formal
justice system.
Established Common Law
oCommon law was created by sending judges on circuit.
oStare Decisis: Deciding cases based on situations of similar facts
All cases that were similar should get similar punishments
Why is it important?
oFair treatment and equal punishment
oTo make it more insistent, uniform and predictable while removing all
biases and discrimination allowing for a neutral decision.
Henry II was the first king to make the attempt to work with the law however it
was the circuit judges who created common law.
The code of Hammurabi is known as the oldest written code.
o“Eye for an eye”
oAll about retribution (Lex Talionis)
THE DIVINE RIGHT OF KINGS
King inherited his authority directly from God
oThe belief that the kings were put in their positions directly by God. They
were acquired authority and authorized to rule by God.
oCommoners cannot question the king because it would be like questioning
God.
No one can question the king
oThe king should be obeyed in all things, if one questions the king, they are
also questioning God.
oThis shows that the church still has power
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find more resources at oneclass.com
Could be charged with?
oIf one questioned the king, they could be charged with heresy and/or
treason.
Form of social control
TRIALS BY ORDEAL (AKA BY TORTURE)
Trial by Heat (Hot Iron/Hot Water)
oIndividuals put their hand in a hot bowl and taking out stone
oAn individual would publically declare their innocence in the name of
God. They would have to walk a distance with a hot piece of rod or hot
coals.
oTheir hands or feet would be bandaged.
oIn three days, they would check on the individual’s wounds,
If the wounds were healing nicely, they were innocent
If they would were not properly healing, they were guilty
Trial by cold water
oThe individual’s hands and legs are tied and they were thrown in the
water.
oIf the individual sank, they were guilty. If the individual floated they were
innocent.
oWater was considered the purest of substances and it would repel the
guilty (the evil)
TRIAL BY BATTLE
Higher status individuals will participate in the trial by battle
Rooted from the idea that God would never let an innocent person die.
Champions would be payed to fight your battles for you.
The person that won was innocent; the one that lost was guilty
Modern day version
If an individual is wealthy, they can afford a good lawyer.
If an individual does not have money they can get legal aid, however the
quality will not be as good.
TRIAL BY CURSED MORSEL (THE CLERGY)
The individual must eat food. There is a feather hidden in the food. If the
individual chocked on the feather, they were considered guilty. If the individual
didn’t choke, they were innocent.
TRIAL BY WAGER OF LAW
Individuals who were accused of a crime would be given the opportunity to go
into the community and pick 12 people that could attest to their character and
could swear that the person was innocent.
The idea is that no one would lie because if they did, they would be punished by
God.
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
England broken up into principalities: princes held absolute power with their own borders, each prince owed his allegiance to the king (king harold had the ultimate authority) Communication was poor: laws were localized. Each village had its own system; therefore, the prince would decide what is considered a criminal act. There was a great amount of discretion meaning the law was not a fair system: not much literacy. Books would be hand written because there was no printing: there were no roads people traveled by horse. It was difficult to get from destination a to destination b: news traveled slowly, william of normandy won the battle over king harold. William sailed to england and challenged his cousin for power. William beat harold and granted a lot of the land to his people. These people would go on to only make decisions in william"s favor. Absolute monarchy: the power to rule land freely without laws or legally-organized direct opposition in force.
