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Medieval Society

Criminals

One other group and we'll be done with this social history stuff. One way to understand a society is to look at outcasts. The previous page does a bit of that, but here I look specifically at those who are outside the law: outlaws.

There are two kinds of law-breakers: those who have been caught and those who haven't. Criminals are caught, tried, and judged. In the Middle Ages, the result of judgment was usually a fine. Cash on the barrel head covered an astonishing variety of crimes, even up to and including murder. Whipping, branding, and dismemberment was another common punishment. Jail time was by comparison rather rare. There weren't all that many jails, they were particularly large, and anyway it was expensive to keep a criminal locked up. But jail time certainly was another form of punishment.

If you weren't caught, then you were outlawed. That is, the lord (a king or some royal court) declared that you were beyond the law. This meant that you did not enjoy any legal protections. Your property and possessions could be confiscated, and you yourself could be killed on sight without penalty to the killer. About the only way out of this conundrum was to find a way to get into the king's presence and beg for mercy, a risky proposition. Most chose exile, if they were rich enough. Most commoners who became outlaws were ones who refused to obey a summons to court, usually because they expected conviction. Common folk fled to some other part of the country, or to another country. There they might find work, but they might also simply become a bandit.

They didn't necessarily flee so far, however. The forests and swamps of Europe were formidable places in the Middle Ages, and a man could disappear into them easily. When the bandit had formerly been a minor noble or wealthy peasant, he still had plenty of friends in the neighborhood, who could help him and hide him at need. He also had relatives, and through them could still exert a certain influence.

What developed was a complex network that grew up on both sides of the law. It Italy it was exiles: those exiled from one town fled to another, or fled to castles in the countryside, and from there worked all sorts of mischief and mayhem. The thirteenth century was the heyday for this, but it persisted right through the Middle Ages and into more modern times. In Germany and in England, the forests provided nearly-impregnable refuges that could hide not just individuals but whole bands of men. The case most English-speakers will know is that of Robin Hood, who was a minor noble outlawed and turned to banditry not only to survive but also to continue to affect events. There were innumerable such cases all across Europe.

Between bandits, robber barons, exiles, and under-employed bands of mercenaries, the countryside could be a dangerous place indeed. These dangers tended to be transitory and local, but every once in a while they grew large and required the attention of central authorities. Robin Hood might be a romantic figure to most, but in early fifteenth century England there were bands numbering hundreds of men that can only be described as gangs, complete with collecting protection money and practicing vendetta. Nor was the problem unique to England. Because they were outlaws, when they were apprehended, the only justice they could expect was summary.