Jails In The 18th Century Britain example essay topic

The decision to coloni se New South Wales in the late 18th century was influence by a number of social and political situations, which developed throughout Britain in the 18th century. The British society was dramatically changing due to the Industrial Revolution, soaring birth rates and higher age of death. The dramatic rise in the birth rate led to a lot of people being unable to find work and in desperation turning to crime. In 1776, Britain lost America as a colony and also a place to send their convicts. British jails were in desperate ruin and ran in appalling condition. They were also overflowing and Britain needed to find a way to accommodate all the prisoners.

The Industrial Revolution took place primarily between 1750-1850. It was a time of dramatic change in Britain. Due to the increase in national wealth, generated by economic growth the gap between rich and poor was becoming wider. 'Many wealthy people took the convenient view that this social order had been ordained by God and should not be interfered with.

' People before the Industrial Revolution manufactured goods in their own home, which was gradually phased out by factories. This meant for some a job in a factory under very harsh conditions and for others it meant unemployment, which led to idleness and also poverty. During the Industrial Revolution the general health of people increased. Nothing compared to what we are today but a big change for the British. One thing that helped improve their health was the manufacture of cotton. People started to wear clothes made of cotton.

The cotton was lightweight and could be washed unlike the heavy woollen clothes, which were unable to be washed, and were usually full of vermin. The population during this period was increasing dramatically. From 1700-1740 the population stayed at around 5.5 million but by 1750 it had soared to 6.5 million. The rising birth rate and an increase in the age of death were very important factors to the 18th century Britain.

The lowering of the death rate meant more young people were surviving to have children of their own. The rise in the birth rate contributed largely to the overwhelming crime rate. Britain now had an influx of young people facing unemployment - something in such a large scale, that Britain had never faced before. Crime was often a form of desperation and many of the young faced crime or starvation. The swelling wave of crime helped shaped the laws. Britain had over 200 offences, mostly relating to property, which carried capital convictions but very few people were actually hung.

Decade Capital Convictions Executions Percentage 1749 - 58 527 365 69.31759 - 68 372 206 55.41769 -78 787 357 45.4 There is no real explanation for why so many capital convictions were commuted to transportation. But due to this decision convicts had to be placed somewhere. Most jails were falling down and overflowing. Jails in the 18th century Britain were decaying around the prisoners. Most of them had been built hundreds of years before and were not equipped to hold so many prisoners. There was no segregation between prisoners, women were thrown in with men, 12-year-old boys were with homosexual rapists.

Nobody cared about prisoners, they were in jail for punishment, not reform. About 1/2 the jails were privately owned. Prisoners had to pay for their own food, water and the privilege of a space to sleep. Often prisoners had to pay to be released from being on chains. Those that didn't have means to support themselves, suffered greatly. Once Britain lost America in 1776 as a colony and a place to send prisoners, the British jails become terribly overcrowded.

To solve this problem, from 1776-1787, the prisoners sentenced to transportation were kept in old hulks on the Thames so they could clean it up, while it was decided where the prisoners would be sent. In 1786 it was decided to coloni se New South Wales. The growing number of prisoners could no longer be ignored. So plans started to be formulated for the long journey of the First Fleet.

Britain decided to coloni se New South Wales because of desperate social conditions. The conditions of the British society in the 18th Century were one of desperation and despair for the poor. The Industrial Revolution brought about many changes in the way the society was structured. Some of these changes were for the good - others were not. Because the changes evolved so quickly, Britain had little way of handling the problems.

The rich were getting richer and the poor were living in squalor, fighting to survive. Laws had been brought out to protect the property of the rich - many resulting in capital conviction, which were commuted to transportation. After losing America in 1776 as a place to send their convicts, Britain started to experience overflowing jails. The amount of convicts waiting for transportation forced Britain's hand to make a decision on where to send their convicts.

Finally Britain made the decision to coloni se New South Wales and also use it as an isolated prison for their convicts.