ANGLO-SAXON LEGAL SYSTEM

Anglo-saxon

legal system

Jessica Alvial Hernán Aguayo Cultura de los Pueblos de Habla Inglesa I 733970-1

OBjectiveS

The objective of this class is for students to understand and learn about the Anglo-Saxon legal system and its influence in Britain.

Anglo-Saxon Law

Body of legal principles that prevailed in England from the 6th century until the Norman Conquest (1066). It was directly influenced by early Scandinavian law as a result of the Viking invasions of the 8th and 9th centuries and indirectly influenced (primarily through the church) by Roman law.

Anglo-saxon law had three components:

1.- Laws and collections promulgated by the king.2.- Authoritative statements of custom such as those found in the Norman-instituted Domesday Book. 3.- Private compilations of legal rules and enactments.

Domesday Book, illustration from William Andrews's Historic Byways and Highways of Old England, 1900.

The primary emphasis was on criminal law rather than on private law, although certain material dealt with problems of public administration, public order, and ecclesiastical matters.

Anglo-saxon legal system

- At large was actually based on legislation which was derived through a form of law codes.- It was really decentralized: basically the legal system took on the form of what is kwown as "shires" and "hundreds".

Shire --> Unit of authority

Shire-Reeve --> Representative of The King, so he was the King's voice

Hundred --> Smaller municipality/authority than the shires.

Judge --> Were called "suitors"; made up of men who attended Shire Court.

2. PUTTING THEM ON TRIAL: The shire-reeve would put accused criminals on trial and to begin with there would be a jury trial (people who needed to know the accuser and the accused) sometimes they might not be able to make a decision so they would put it in god's hands (trial by ordeal) the accused was put in some kind of test to declare him/her guilty or not. Oath Helping: Swearing and re-enforcement by fire or water. BY FIRE --> Hot iron-ointment-wrapped with silk. Festered=guilty. BY WATER --> Dropped in water; if sank = not guilty

Legal system

1. CATCHING CRIMINALS: Everyone was responsible for catching criminals in two ways. a) TITHING --> small groups of 10 men, over 12 years old who were responsible for each other if one of them committed a crime the others had to hand him over to the shire-reeve (if they didn't they would have to pay heavy fines) b)THE HUE AND CRY --> If someone was a victim or witness of a crime they had to "raise the alarm", caught everyone's attention and all had to chase the criminal.

3. PUNISHING THE GUILTY: Physical punishment --> they had brutal corporal punishments, such as mutilations, exile and execution. Weregild --> "blood price" the victim and the family would pay for the killing or injuring of someone with amputations or even death.

WRIT

Influence in britain

Legal document from a court telling somebody to do or not to do something.

JURY

The process of being judge by a group or a jury of one's peers.

• Legislation in the form of law codes.
• Unwritten constitution of the UK (it has never been codified or brought together in a single document)

ThankSfor your attention!