Criminal Ancestors
In recent generations there have been several members of the family that have found jobs and careers somewhere in the Criminal Justice System whether it is in a Police Force or Border Force. This is in stark contrast to some of the ancestors in the family, specifically in the 1800's that seemed to fall foul of the law quite a lot. This was due to the economic conditions of East Anglia at the time due to the general economic downturn, unemployment, the urbanisation and industrialisation of the country, and the effects of the Poor Laws and the need for their reform.
The Poor Laws in the 1800s were a series of laws that provided a framework for dealing with poverty and welfare. They were an evolution of earlier legislation dating back to the Elizabethan Poor Law of 1601, which established a system for supporting the poor in local communities. The 19th century saw significant changes and developments in how poverty was addressed, reflecting the social and economic challenges of the time, particularly the effects of the Industrial Revolution.
The Old Poor Law (Pre-1834)
Before 1834, the Poor Law system was based on the principles established in the Elizabethan Poor Law. Each parish was responsible for its own poor, and the system was funded through local taxes known as the "poor rate." Assistance was given in two main forms: "outdoor relief," where poor individuals received support in their own homes, and "indoor relief," where the destitute were housed in workhouses.
There are several of my ancestors that found themselves in some of the 8 workhouses in Suffolk during these times. Most prominently was The Blything Union Workhouse which was in Bulcamp, near Halesworth. Detailed information can be found here at the fantastic site Workhouses.org.uk. Some of these people have been there as young children, some have been born in them, and some have found themselves there later in life. As an indication of how these people were seen and treated is the fact that they are referred to as inmates. This wasn't helped by the amendment to the law in 1834.
The Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834
The most significant change came with the Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834, often referred to as the New Poor Law. This Act was designed to reduce the cost of poor relief and to discourage dependency on welfare. The central principle of the New Poor Law was the idea of "less eligibility," meaning that conditions for those receiving aid should be less desirable than the lowest-paid labourer’s conditions.
To achieve this, the Act centralized the administration of poor relief, grouping parishes into "Poor Law Unions," each governed by a Board of Guardians. The New Poor Law emphasized "indoor relief" in workhouses, where conditions were intentionally harsh to deter people from seeking help. Workhouses became infamous for their austere and often brutal conditions, where families were separated, and the inmates were subjected to strict regimens of work. The workhouse system was seen as cruel and inhumane. Over time, various reforms were introduced to make the system more humane, but the basic framework of the New Poor Law persisted throughout the 19th century.
By the end of the 1800s, the Poor Law system was increasingly seen as inadequate and out of step with the needs of a modern, industrial society. It was eventually replaced in the early 20th century by more comprehensive social welfare programs, laying the groundwork for the modern welfare state.
The Criminal Justice System
To go with this harsh treatment of the less fortunate and the unemployed, the criminal justice system was also beginning to change and during the 1800s it underwent significant transformations, in response to industrialization, urbanization, and evolving attitudes towards crime and punishment. At the beginning of the century, the system was characterized by harsh punishments, public executions, and a lack of a formalized police force. Crimes were often met with severe penalties, including transportation to penal colonies, typically in Australia, and the death penalty for offenses ranging from murder to theft.
In the early 1800s, the criminal justice system was heavily influenced by the Bloody Code, a legal framework that prescribed the death penalty for over 200 offences. This harsh approach was intended to deter crime but led to widespread criticism and a push for reform. Public executions were common, serving as both a punishment and a deterrent, but they gradually fell out of favour as they were seen as barbaric and ineffective. This was only 200 years ago, which considering that this could be spanned by only 3 generations, can you imaging nowadays there being public executions as seen by our own great grandparents?
It wasn't until 1829 where the first professional police force in London was created by the then Home Secretary Sir Robert Peel. This marked the beginning of modern policing in Britain and represented a shift from reactive to preventive measures in law enforcement. The development of the police force was crucial in managing the rising crime rates in rapidly growing urban areas.
From researching the local newspapers at the time, there were several of my direct ancestors that were clearly well known to the local Police as they seemed to want to keep trespassing and poaching on the local Farmer's land. Punishments for these lower offences have ranged from birching, to fines, to hard labour for a few months.
The Quarter Sessions
The Quarter Sessions were established back in the 14th century and were the local courts that would oversee less serious criminal offences, some civil matters and had administrative duties to oversee the local government too. They were run by the locally appointed magistrates.
With a fairly prolific criminal element to my ancestors from the mid 1800's to the early 1900's (albeit maybe just one particular family), it was inevitable that there would be reports from these Quarter Session trials that would hold genealogical evidence.
The Assize Courts
Assize courts were a key component of the criminal justice system in the UK, operating from medieval times until their abolition in 1971. These courts were established to handle the most serious criminal cases, such as murder, rape, and major thefts, as well as some significant civil disputes. The assizes were part of a system of itinerant justice, where judges from the central courts in London would travel, or "ride the circuit," to various counties and towns to preside over cases, usually two or three times a year, in each county. These sessions were divided into civil and criminal sittings. The civil sittings dealt with disputes over land, debts, and other such issues, while the criminal sittings, known as the "Crown Court" sessions, dealt with serious criminal offenses.
Judges of the assize courts were typically senior judges from the King's Bench or the Court of Common Pleas. They would arrive in a county with great ceremony and conduct trials with the assistance of local juries. These courts were highly significant as they provided a way to administer justice in areas far from London, helping to enforce the authority of the Crown across the country. The assize courts were eventually replaced by the Crown Courts in 1971.
I have found Assize Court trials for theft, poaching, robbery, and concealing the birth of an infant. Luckily I have not found anyone sentenced to death that I can confirm are my ancestors, most have been acquitted. I will update this when that has been confirmed.
The following report has all of the people that have been linked to criminality at some point. Keeping coming back as I am sure that there will be many more.
Criminal Ancestors