How did crime and punishment change in the early modern period, c.1500 to 1700?
The new crimes of the early modern period (vagabondage, witchcraft, smuggling and heresy), the continuing reliance on amateur law enforcement, the harsher and more public punishments, and the influence of religion and economic change, c.1500 to 1700.
A focused answer on the early modern section of the WJEC Crime and Punishment thematic study, covering new crimes (vagabondage, witchcraft, smuggling, heresy), amateur law enforcement, harsher public punishments, and the influence of religion and economic change.
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What this dot point is asking
This dot point covers the early modern period of WJEC's Unit 3 thematic study, Changes in Crime and Punishment. You need to explain the new crimes of the age (vagabondage, witchcraft, smuggling and heresy), the continuing reliance on amateur law enforcement, the harsher and more public punishments, and the influence of religion and economic change. As a thematic study, focus on change and continuity: what was new, and what stayed the same.
The new crimes of the early modern period
Vagabondage and economic change
Witchcraft and religious fear
Law enforcement and harsher punishment
Try this
Q1. What new crimes appeared in the early modern period? [Knowledge recall]
- Cue. Heresy (driven by the Reformation), witchcraft (peaking 1560 to 1660), vagabondage (driven by economic change) and smuggling (driven by new taxes).
Q2. Explain how law enforcement showed continuity in this period. [Short explanation]
- Cue. It still relied on amateurs, the unpaid parish constable, the night watch and the sheriff, with no police force, while it was punishment, not policing, that grew harsher and more public.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of WJEC exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
WJEC Wales (Unit 3)4 marksDescribe two features of the treatment of witchcraft, c.1500 to 1700.Show worked answer →
The thematic-study describe question (AO1). Reward two distinct, developed features, each with one supporting detail.
Feature one. Witchcraft was made a serious crime by law (for example the Witchcraft Acts), and accusations rose sharply, especially between about 1560 and 1660, driven by religious turmoil, poverty and fear.
Feature two. Prosecutions peaked during the chaos of the Civil War, when self-styled witch-finders such as Matthew Hopkins were paid to hunt witches in East Anglia in 1645 to 1647, leading to many executions.
Top marks. Two distinct features, each developed with precise detail.
WJEC Wales (Unit 3)8 marksExplain why new crimes appeared in the period c.1500 to 1700.Show worked answer →
The thematic-study explain question (AO1 and AO2). Reward a developed analysis of reasons, each with precise support.
Reason one. Religious change after the Reformation created new crimes: heresy was harshly punished as the official religion swung between Catholic and Protestant, and witchcraft fears were fuelled by religious turmoil.
Reason two. Economic and social change created vagabondage: rising population, enclosure, unemployment and inflation swelled the wandering poor, who were feared and treated as criminals.
Reason three. New taxes and trade made smuggling profitable and common, so a once-minor activity became a widespread crime.
Top band. Connect each reason to why new crimes appeared, and finish with the most important factor.
Related dot points
- Crime and punishment in the industrial period c.1700 to 1900: the Bloody Code and its decline, the end of public execution and the rise of the prison (Pentonville and reformers such as Elizabeth Fry), transportation to Australia, and the creation of the first professional police force, the Metropolitan Police of 1829.
A focused answer on the industrial-period section of the WJEC Crime and Punishment thematic study, covering the Bloody Code and its decline, the rise of the prison and reformers, transportation to Australia, and the creation of the Metropolitan Police in 1829.
- Crime and punishment in the modern period c.1900 to present: new crimes (cybercrime, terrorism, hate crime, driving offences), the abolition of the death penalty in 1965, the move towards rehabilitation and alternatives to prison, and the modernisation of policing with science and technology.
A focused answer on the modern section of the WJEC Crime and Punishment thematic study, covering new crimes such as cybercrime and terrorism, the abolition of the death penalty in 1965, the move towards rehabilitation, and the modernisation of policing.
- The long-term change and continuity in law enforcement (from amateur constables and the watch, to the 1829 Metropolitan Police, to modern scientific policing) and in the purpose of punishment (from deterrence and retribution, through prison, to rehabilitation), and the factors that drove change.
A focused answer on the long-term change and continuity in law enforcement and the purpose of punishment across the whole WJEC Crime and Punishment study, and the factors (such as religion, government, attitudes and technology) that drove change.
- The Welsh perspective on crime and punishment: the Rebecca Riots of the 1840s as a Welsh protest crime, the Merthyr Rising of 1831 and Dic Penderyn, the impact of poverty and industry on crime in Wales, and how the Welsh context illustrates the wider themes of change and continuity.
A focused answer on the Welsh perspective in the WJEC Crime and Punishment thematic study, covering the Rebecca Riots, the Merthyr Rising and Dic Penderyn, and how the Welsh context illustrates the wider themes of change and continuity.
Sources & how we know this
- WJEC GCSE History (Wales) specification (3100) — WJEC (2017)