Who Decided What Punishments People Got?

In the ‘Middle Ages’ period, is was believed that the only way to keep the peasants in-line was to make them scared of the punishments that they could receive if they committed a crime. So, for this reason if they did happen to fall out of line, they would receive harsh and brutal punishments. The punishment that you were received rested on what crime you did. Also, what crime you did, determined who chose your punishment.

If you organised a crime that was offensive to the village or to the king, you would receive exile or banishment. The king would be the one to decide the banishments, and the common period of time would be at least 10 years of exile. Closely related to exile was confiscation. Confiscations of estates or properties were not only a harsh loss for the individual but also for the family.

Minor crimes such as stealing or spitting, would be dealt with by the medieval lords in the local courts, and major crimes such as murder would be prescribed to the king amongst his officials and qualified lawyers.

In every village there would be a sheriff or constable. This position was not paid and anyone could be appointed for a year, therefore this job was not performed as well. The sheriff or constable had the job of arresting every victim of crime and had to report them to the king or the lords. They also had the job of confining the victim in gaol until their time in court.