NCJ Number
161818
Editor(s)
C Emsley,
L A Knafla
Date Published
1996
Length
319 pages
Annotation
This book reviews the status and findings of research on the historiography of crime and criminal justice in modern history in 10 countries.
Abstract
The European section is comprised of England, France, Germany, Italy, and the Scandinavian countries, and the section on the Americas and the Pacific focuses on Canada, the United States, Mexico, Brazil, Australia, and New Zealand. The first chapter provides an overview of the main currents in the history of crime and criminal justice in Europe from late medieval times into the early 19th century; from the emergence of the state out of the communal worlds of a rural environment, to the age of the Enlightenment, revolution, and the urban, industrial, and bureaucratic nation state. Each of the chapters on historical research on crime and criminal justice is written by a scholar or scholars from each of the countries. The authors address some of the major themes in the historiography of crime and criminal justice history: notions of criminality, the criminal courts, police, gender, bandits, and punishment. Concepts of criminality are discussed throughout the chapters, more usually in their individual circumstances than in any theoretical construct. The roles of class, gender, ethnicity, and socioeconomic conditions are often prevalent, depending on time and place. The chapters also point to the increasing amount of work that has been done on the machinery of the criminal justice system, particularly regarding magistrates, juries, and police officers. The rise of the modern police is an additional theme that has become central to the history of crime since the Industrial Revolution. Most authors point to the relative lack of females prosecuted for crime, except for prostitution. Bandits (brigands, bushrangers, and gunslingers) represent a major group of criminals who have emerged in the research. Chapters also provide insight into the circumstances and considerations that go into sentences of punishment in numerous countries. The bibliographical essay at the end of the book provides some guidelines to the major works from Europe, the Americas, and the Pacific. For individual chapters, see NCJ-161819-29. Chapter notes and a subject index