"During the Elizabethan era, crimes of treason and offenses against the state were treated with the same severity that murder and rape are today" (Beyer 1). Treason was the worst crime according to Queen Elizabeth (Lestikow 1). "Offenses such as manslaughter, robbery, rape, piracy, and capital crimes entitled one to hanging, usually in the town square" (Beyer 1). During Queen Elizabeth's time, the punishments were designed to fit the crime committed. One may complain about the consequences of crimes one commits, but looking back at Elizabethan times, punishments are far less brutal now than they were then.

Queen Elizabeth had very cruel ways of dealing with criminals. Burning was used for killing witches and for religious crimes (Dyer 2). Anyone caught poisoning another was boiled to death. Criminals could also be held in prisons for long terms. These prisoners would often die of starvation, or be quartered right before dying (Lestikow 1-2). Criminals were tortured while in prison. If an accused person wouldn't confess to the crime for which they were convicted, they would be "pressed". A weight would be put on their chest until they confessed, or d

Torture and Its Tools: Elizabethan Crime and Punishment

Dersin, Denise, ed. What Life Was Like In the Realm of Elizabeth. Alexandria: Time Life Books, 1998.

feet were locked up. They were used for public drunkenness and for temporarily holding a criminal (Peter 1-2). In another type of pillory, toes were put through holes and smashed by a hammer and wedge (Lestikow 2). The finger pillory was used for higher classed people for unacceptable behavior during social gatherings. Fingers were put into a block of wood and kept bent at a ninety-degree angle at the middle knuckle (Dyer 1).

Elizabethan crime and punishments are very different from those of today. Judicial systems, prisons, and the Constitution prevent these cruel and unusual punishments from happening. Treason is no longer a reason for death, and strange torture devices are not used for punishing a criminal.

Woodsworth, Frank W. "William Shakespeare." The World Book Encyclopedia. 1989 ed.

be carried through town. Sometimes an impersonator would ride the pole. This is called "riding the stang" (Dersin 84).

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