CAPITAL PUNISHMENT IN BRITAIN

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With a foreword by Rt. Hon. Ann Widdecombe, this is a thought-provoking analysis of the history, ethics, and methods of capital punishment in Britain. Capital punishment has played its part as the ultimate judicial penalty in the UK for centuries. Often a graphic exercise in physical mutilation, it was once a highly popular form of entertainment. Within the pages of this chilling book, condemned victims and the methods in which they met their plight come to life once more. The death penalty is examined in its different guises through the centuries to the modern day, from execution methods pre-1800 by hanging, to other sickening alternatives which included burning and boiling alive. Witches fell to watery graves through violent drownings, whilst damned women were often pressed slowly to death. Execution methods after 1800 are also examined, with reference to specific cases including hanging in drop gallows or being slowly hung, drawn and quartered. Grisly post mortem punishments are revealed, where hapless victims were left gibbeting before being brutally anatomised. Perfect for social historians and those with an interest in the macabre, or for anyone eager to discover the darker side of justice.

Contents:

• Foreword
• 1 – Introduction
• 2 – The Tudor Period
• 3 – Treason and It’s punishment
• 4 – Beheading
• 5 – Burning at the Stake
• 6 – English Witchcraft Executions, Scottish Witchcraft Executions
• 7 – The Halifax Gibbet and the Scottish Maiden
• 8 – On Tyburn Tree
• 9 – The Later 18th Century
• 10 – The Early 19th Century
• 11 – The Execution of Children and Teenagers
• 12 – Execution Dock and post mortem punishments
• 13 – The Ending of Public Executions
• 14 – Within the Walls – The early private hangings
• 15 – A time of change and many unfortunate incidents
• 16 – into the 20th Century
• 17 – The early 1900s
• 18 – The inter-war years
• 19 – World War 2 and its Aftermath
• 20 – The post-war Period
• 21 – The Effects of the Homicide Act of 1957
• 22 – The Road to Abolition of the death penalty
• 23 – The reprieve system and the treatment of mentally ill criminals
• 24 – Hangmen and Women
• 25 – The roles of the Officials in post 1868 Executions
• Epilogue
• Index

Continent: Europe
Country: UK

Tag cloud: widdecombe ethics plight death violent women gallows hung mortem macabre darker justice clark tudor treason stake witchcraft scottish halifax gibbet tyburn tree children dock inter-war post-war homicide hangmen

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