Staff

Introduction

In this seminar we will examine the various staff involved with policing and justice. These staff include: constables/police, scribes, lawyers, inquisitors, elected community officials, coroners, judges, and executioners. We will divide into groups looking at the staff in England, the German states, Holland, the Italian states, and Russia.

Seminar Questions

What were the similarities and differences in policing and judicial staff across early modern Europe? [Focus on staff such as: constables/police, scribes, lawyers, inquisitors, elected community officials, coroners, judges, and executioners]

Required Reading

Each group should read the relevant items below for the state(s) they are investigating:

Baker, J. H., An Introduction to English Legal HistoryLink opens in a new window, 5th ed. (Oxford, 2019), Chapter Ten.

Beattie, J. M., Policing and Punishment in London, 1660-1750: Urban Crime and the Limits of TerrorLink opens in a new window (Oxford 2001), Chapters Two, Three, Four, and Five.

Boes, Maria R., Crime and Punishment in Early Modern Germany: Courts and Adjudicatory Practices in Frankfurt am Main, 1562-1696Link opens in a new window (Farnham, 2013), Chapters Two and Three.

Dean, Trevor, 'Police Forces in Medieval Italy: Bologna, 1340-1480', Social HistoryLink opens in a new window 44 (2019), 151-172

Fosi, Irene, Papal Justice: Subjects and Courts in the Papal State, 1500-1750Link opens in a new window, trans. Thomas V. Cohen (Washington, DC, 2011), Chapters One, Two, and Three.

Gaskill, Malcolm, Crime and Mentalities in Early Modern EnglandLink opens in a new window (Cambridge, 2000), Chapter Seven.

Heijden, Manon van der, Women and Crime in Early Modern HollandLink opens in a new window, trans. David McKay (Leiden, 2016), Chapter Two.

Ingram, Martin, Carnal Knowledge: Regulating Sex in England, 1470-1600Link opens in a new window (Cambridge, 2017), Chapter Eleven.

Kollmann, Nancy Shields, Crime and Punishment in Early Modern RussiaLink opens in a new window (Cambridge, 2015), Chapters Two, Three, and Eight.

Walker, Garthine, Crime, Gender and Social Order in Early Modern EnglandLink opens in a new window (Cambridge, 2003), Chapter Six.

Further Reading

Dalton, Michael, The Countrey JusticeLink opens in a new window (London, 1618) [This manual was used by English justices of the peace. It offers advice on a wide range of issues including levying customs, highways, prisons, riots, soldiers, murder, felonies, rogues, vagabonds, and high treason]

Gray, Drew D., Crime, Policing and Punishment in England, 1660-1914Link opens in a new window (London, 2016), Chapters Nine and Ten.