What 18th Century event ended the transportation of felons to North America?

The 17th century saw the government introduce import duties on a range of goods. Smugglers brought goods into a country without paying these duties and so could sell them at a cheaper price compared to traders who had paid the duty. As more and more goods were taxed in the 18th century, smuggling activity increased as people wanted greater access to cheaper goods.

Smuggling further developed with the introduction of larger smuggling gangs, such as the Hawkhurst Gang in Kent who operated on a far greater scale than previous smugglers. The leaders of this gang were caught and hung, however the authorities found it hard to tackle the crime of smuggling.

This was because smuggling was a social crime- people benefitted from the cheaper goods smuggled and so did not see it as wrongdoing, they even viewed smugglers as heroes in some areas. As a result, local communities would help to conceal smugglers rather than report them.

Smuggling was only really tackled by prime minister William Pitt, who lowered import duties in the 1780s, making prices of legally traded goods more competitive with the smugglers who were breaking the law. This meant that the extent of smuggling dropped dramatically.

This involved threatening or attacking travellers, forcing them to hand over valuable possessions and money. Highway robbery existed in the middle ages but became far more common place in the 18th century for several reasons:

1. With increasing trade there was greater need to move goods and money around- as there were very few banks travellers often carried lar
   ge sums of money around with them. This made them targets of highway robbery.
2. There were many isolated country roads in-between towns where robberies could take place.
3. Roads were improved in the 18th century, this led to more travel, including stagecoach services, which meant far more people travelling, thus more targets for highway robbers to steal from.

Instances of highway robbery decreased as a result of the use of mounted patrols on major roads in the 19th century. The growth of the banking system also meant individuals carried less money on them which saw a deterioration in the use of highway robbery.

Poaching continued to be a widespread crime in the 18th century, and like smuggling, there was a rise in gangs operating on a much larger scale.

The 1723 Black Act was passed to make poaching a capital offence and deal with these gangs. Such anti-poaching laws were resented because only landowners with land worth over £100 a year could hunt freely and without restrictions.

The Black Act was repealed in 1823- poaching was still illegal, just no longer punishable by death.

A new witchcraft law was passed in 1736, during the reign of George II. This decriminalised witchcraft. People no longer believed in witches, and those who claimed to be as such were seen as con artists or confidence tricksters taking advantage of others. 

This act set much less severe punishments for these individuals, handing out fines and imprisonment, rather than the death penalty.

Changing attitudes to punishment

Convicts were initially transported to North American colonies. However, because of the American War of Independence, England lost these colonies and after 1783 they could no longer be sent there. Convicts were then sent to Australia- approximately 160,000 people were transported to Australia.

The journey to Australia could take up to three months and the convicts were kept in cramped, unhygienic conditions. Upon arrival they would be set to work for settlers. Once their seven year sentence had been served, most convicts could not afford to return home, so remained in Australia.

Transportation to Australia officially ended in 1868. This was because of changing attitudes in both Britain and Australia. In Britain, campaigners called the conditions of transporting ships inhumane, the reform of the prison system meant this was a good alternative now, and people actually wanted to settle in Australia as it was viewed as a desirable place to live, so it was less of a deterrent. In Australia, people thought that the ex-convicts living there contributed to high crime rates in Australian towns, and the existence of convicts meant there was very little work for free settlers, with employers paying very low wages. 

Executions were often a spectacle that people would travel miles to see. They had a carnival atmosphere and often employers would let workers leave early to go to watch the execution. 

Reformers argued that executions were inhumane and those condemned to death should have more dignity during their execution. Other concerns included:

• The watching crowd was often drunk and disorderly- such a large crowd created opportunities for further crimes.
• Spectators viewed executions as a fun event, they did not take home the message of deterrent intended.
• Crowds would often mock the authorities and treat the condemned as a hero.

Public executions stopped in 1868- executions still took place, just no longer in public view.

Prisons were initially used as a holding cell for a suspect before a trial, they were rarely used as a punishment. However, during the 18th and 19th century the use of imprisonment as a punishment grew. Prisons were viewed as a suitable alternative to the Bloody Code and transportation for offenders because:

• It could be used to rehabilitate offenders.
• It was seen as an effective deterrent.
• Prison sentences involved hard work for the offender to pay back to society.
• It made society safer as it separated criminals away from everyone else.

Prisoners were made to do hard labour such as the treadwheel which was used to pump water around the prison. The use of such hard labour was for those who saw prison as a place of punishment. Reformers such as John Howard and Elizabeth Fry thought that prison should be used for rehabilitation where prisoners live in humane conditions and are taught skills and given a chance for reflection. 

Elizabeth Fry had great influence with politician Robert Peel reforming the prison system. In his 1823 Gaols Act, Peel ensured that:

• Prisoners were visited regularly by chaplains
• Gaolers would be paid so they did not exploit prisoners- this was to stop corruption within prisons
• Female prisoners were to be watched by female wardens
• Prisoners were not to be held in chains or irons.

However, these changes saw little effect as there were no inspectors used to ensure that the changes had been met. It wasn't until 1853 that prisons had an official inspectorate, and these changes were properly observed.

Pentonville Prison was a prototype prison built in 1842. It used a separate system focusing on the isolation of prisoners which were meant to encourage self-reflection and reform, ensure the prisoner was not influenced by other more hardened criminals, deter others from committing similar crimes because of the harsh system, and ensure retribution by ensuring that being in prison was a severe punishment.

The solitary conditions at Pentonville meant many prisoners suffered from depression and psychosis. There was also a high rate of suicide.

There was great opposition to the separate system, with many arguing that it was inhumane. Reformers like Elizabeth Fry felt that the system was being used as a deterrent, not for rehabilitation. 

In the early 18th century methods of law enforcement included a combination of parish constables, watchmen and part-time soldiers, all used to deal with different levels of disruption and crime. The system was inefficient and had the potential to be corrupt. However a change in law enforcement was just around the corner.

This was a crime fighting team set up in London in 1748 by Henry Fielding. He used a team of volunteers to attend crime scenes and detect criminals. The Bow Street Runners were so successful that by 1785 they were officially paid by the government and were the first modern detective force and formed the origins of the early police force.

There was much opposition to the foundation of an official police force- people were worried about their personal freedom and privacy, they thought it would be too expensive to fund and would make little difference to halting crime. 

Nonetheless the first professional police force was established in London in 1829. The emphasis of this force was to deter criminals by having a public presence on the streets. It was better organised than the Bow Street Runners and involved far more constables. 

Although developments in the police force were slow, by 1856 the Police Act meant that all areas in the country had to have a professional police force that was centrally controlled. It also established the principle of deterrence across the country- the idea that criminals would be less likely to commit crimes if they knew that the police were actively searching for them.

In 1860 the National Crime Records was set up- this saw new technology being used in policing, with telegraph communications being used to allow police forces to communicate with each other quickly and effectively.

This was further developed in 1878 with the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) which developed new, more technical methods of detection, by using fingerprint evidence or handwriting as a way of detecting criminals. 

Why did transportation to America end?

How did the transportation Act of 1718 affect North America?

Why did transportation to America stop in 1783?

Why did transportation end?