A Medieval murder ‘Keep running, don’t stop, can’t breathe’, thought Roger. He ran. He didn’t know how long for. He stopped to catch his breath in the wood. Roger already knew what would be happening back in the village. Isobel’s screams would have raised the hue and cry. Every villager would have downed tools immediately to join in the hunt. No one would risk the fine for not doing so. The constable Out in the woods Roger leant against a large oak tree. He could hear the villagers now. One voice could be hear above the rest; Jethro the constable. Jethro was a blacksmith by trade but had volunteered to be the constable for that year. He had respect in the village and people looked up to him to keep the peace in his spare time. It was his job to keep an eye out for any crime that took place during the night and lead the hue and cry when needed. It was an unpaid role but Jethro took the job seriously. It was only a matter of time before Roger was caught. But Roger was lucky, the hue and cry went the wrong way. He could hear their shouts disappearing in the opposite direction. Roger relaxed a little. The coroner and the sheriff Back in the village, Jethro had to tell the coroner about the death (since 1190 all unnatural deaths had to be reported to the coroner). In this case it was clear what had happened and the coroner would confirm this with Isobel before informed the sheriff of the county, another royal official. The sheriff’s men would send a posse to track down and imprison Roger. Sanctuary Out in the woods, Roger planned to head to the nearest church in Duntown to bang on the sanctuary door knocker. Once a criminal had reached sanctuary, even the sheriff could not take him by force. Roger would then have to face the choice of standing trial for his crime of leaving the country within 40 days. Yes, he decided he’d go to France. Roger moved slowly so no one could hear him – avoiding country paths. But this was unfamiliar land now and Roger was well and truly lost. There in the wood Roger slumped against a tree and slowly drifted off to sleep. Morning ‘He’s over here! Wake up! On your feet!’ Roger woke up with a start to see a finely dressed man, the county sheriff, towering above him. There were several men from a nearby village who had been summoned to track down Roger. He recognised his fifteen year old cousin as one of them, but Roger didn’t blame him as all men of that age could be summoned. They bound him with rope and led Roger away. The royal court Roger was accused of the murder. After a week in the local gaol, he was taken, by his tithing, before the royal court which dealt with the most serious crimes. A row of five judges dressed in fine red robes awaited him in the court, with people writing everything down on large scrolls of paper and the jury to his left. He knew them all because they were from his local village. Isobel stood and gave evidence as an eye witness and the jury swore an oath that Roger was guilty. Without any evidence they might have sworn an oath of innocence based on his good character, as Roger was well liked and trusted by the villagers. The noose ‘at least I didn’t have to go through trial by ordeal’, thought Roger. This had been abolished in 1215. Even so, serious crimes and even some minor crimes like theft were now punished by death. Roger could not afford to buy a pardon from the King and he wasn’t needed to go into the army. He couldn’t read so there was little point in claiming benefit of the clergy. This would have involved him reading a verse from the Bible and being tried by the church courts – they never executed people. No, Roger’s fate was sealed. He twitched and convulsed at the end of the hangman’s rope.
Policing
Trials
Punishments