Trial of Mary Wade | Hacker News Reader

Trial of Mary Wade

oldbaileyonline.org

25 pointsqwertyuiop_8 comments

It says death but they were sent to Australia instead.

https://www.digitalpanopticon.org/life?id=obpt17890114-58-de...

Perhaps worse?

It sounds like things turned out ok after all https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Wade

> On 11 March 1789, King George III was proclaimed cured of an unnamed madness; it is assumed that he suffered from porphyria, a degenerative mental disease. A month later, in the spirit of celebration, all the women on death row, including Mary Wade, had their sentences commuted to penal transportation to Australia.

What a time

At one time there were actually more capital crimes than non-capital ones under British law, I believe.

Edit: According to Wikipedia, there were 220 capital offenses under the so-called "Bloody Code".

Offenders as young as 7 years old were subject to capital punishment.

However, many who were sentenced were reprieved, for various reasons. Between 1770 and 1830, out of an estimated 35,000 death sentences, only about 7,000 were actually executed.

That's interesting. I'm assuming it wasn't because of legal tricks to drag the process out as long as possible as you see today. Any idea what the reasons were?

Typically not, apparently given the station of most transportees. In Australia the policing was less harsh (at least for those who had served a sentence) and food was more plentiful.

I saw a 19th century photo of a returned transportee and a Londoner and the Londoner appeared scrawny and malnourished.

I’m not trying to make it sound good. Apparently my great great grandfather’s history (such as it is) begins with him as an adult in eastern South Australia (a free colony, no transportation). The best theory is he escaped from Victoria. It must have really sucked for someone to make that journey.

If you believe the stories from my ancestors, they found out what crime would get you shipped to australia and committed it (Stealing bread, iirc).

I understand the most common offense was being Irish

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