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Watch: Punishing crime in Anglo-Saxon Britain

Watch this video to find out how crime was punished in Anglo-Saxon times.

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What were the Anglo-Saxons like?

King Alfred the Great. 849-901CE.
Image caption,
Alfred the Great was king from 849 to 901CE.
  • The Anglo-Saxon period in Britain was from around 410AD to 1066AD.
  • A lot of the population lived in small villages in the countryside and very few lived in towns. This meant that many people knew their neighbours well.
  • Most people grew their own food and farmed the land where they lived.
  • Children were considered adults at 10 years old!
King Alfred the Great. 849-901CE.
Image caption,
Alfred the Great was king from 849 to 901CE.
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Did the Anglo-Saxons have a police force?

Men awaiting trial.
Image caption,
Men bound awaiting trial.
  • There wasn't a police force like we have today. Keeping law and order was the responsibility of everyone in the village.
  • If someone was seen committing a crime then the witness could raise a hue and cry (shouting for help). Everyone who heard it was expected to help chase and capture the suspects.
  • There was a system in place called Tithing in which a group of ten men were made responsible for each other鈥檚 behaviour. If one of them broke the law, the other members of the tithing had to bring them to court. If they didn't, they would have to pay a fine.
  • Every male over the age of twelve was expected to join a tithing.
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How did the Anglo-Saxons punish people?

Anglo-Saxon silver pennies.
Image caption,
Anglo-Saxon silver pennies. Coins like these would have been used to pay fines and weregild.
  • The leader of the village would use the laws written by the King to decide what punishments you would receive.
  • The church and local lords had the power to decide punishments.
  • The church had its own courts and a different system of punishment.
  • The Anglo-Saxons didn't have prisons. Most people found guilty of crimes were punished with fines.
  • Some crimes, such as treason against the king or betraying your lord, were thought to be so serious that they carried the death penalty.
  • Regular offenders were punished very harshly. If they were found guilty of stealing more than once they might have their hands cut off.
Anglo-Saxon silver pennies.
Image caption,
Anglo-Saxon silver pennies. Coins like these would have been used to pay fines and weregild.
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What was weregild and how was it used?

  • Weregild, which means blood price, was a system of fines where, if you injured someone, the victim received money.
  • If a person killed someone, they paid the weregild fine to the dead person's relatives.
  • The King set the fines and there was a system of payments:
InjuryFine
Broken thigh12 shillings
Loss of a thumb20 shillings
Loss of an eye50 shillings

Did you know?

Three question marks
  • Before weregild was developed, early Saxon Kings allowed victims of crimes to punish criminals themselves.
  • So, if someone was murdered, the family had the right to track down and kill the murderer. This obviously led to more violence.
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What was trial by ordeal?

Alwin and Edgar looking at heading.

In trial by ordeal, the accused would be made to perform a task that caused injury. If their wounds healed cleanly after 3 days then they would be considered to be innocent in the eyes of God.

Alwin and Edgar looking at heading.
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Activities

Activity 1: Anglo-Saxon crime quiz

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