Free US delivery on orders $35 or over

Victorians Against the Gallows

Capital Punishment and the Abolitionist Movement in Nineteenth Century Britain

Victorians Against the Gallows cover

Victorians Against the Gallows

Capital Punishment and the Abolitionist Movement in Nineteenth Century Britain

Out of stock
$135.00 RRP $150.00 Website price saving $15.00 (10%)
Notify me by email when this item is available

For information on how we process your data, read our Privacy Policy

Description

By the time that Queen Victoria ascended the throne in 1837, the list of crimes liable to attract the death penalty had effectively been reduced to murder. Yet, despite this, the gallows remained a source of controversy in Victorian Britain and there was a growing unease in liberal quarters surrounding the question of capital punishment. Unease was expressed in various forms, including efforts at outright abolition. Focusing in part on the activities of the Society for the Abolition of Capital Punishment, James Gregory here examines abolitionist strategies, leaders and personnel. He locates the 'gallows question' in an imperial context and explores the ways in which debates about the gallows and abolition featured in literature, from poetry to 'novels of purpose' and popular romances of the underworld. He places the abolitionist movement within the wider Victorian worlds of philanthropy, religious orthodoxy and social morality in a study which will be essential reading for students and researchers of Victorian history.

Table of Contents

Introduction
1. The Rise and Decline of a Movement
2. Capital Punishment as an Imperial Problem
3. Personnel of the S.A.C.P.
4. Abolitionism in Operation
5. The Abolitionists and Parliament
6. The Mental World of Abolitionism
7. Capital Sentences
8. Abolitionism; an Appraisal
Conclusion

Product details

Bloomsbury Academic Test
Published Nov 11 2011
Format Hardback
Edition 1st
Extent 384
ISBN 9781848856943
Imprint Bloomsbury Academic
Illustrations 13 bw integrated
Dimensions 9 x 5 inches
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing

About the contributors

Author

James Gregory

James Gregory is Associate Professor of Modern Bri…

Related Titles

Environment: Staging