Informative Essay

British Prison Systems in the 1800s

The Horrors of Newgate
The Newgate Prison is located in London, England and was where many English
prisoners were held before theyre execution. The jail, courtyard, and execution point
still stand to this day, however, they havent been used for nearly one hundred years.
As stated in the novel Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, the prison was a vile
place to be kept. Newgate was notorious for being closest place to hell on the planet.
Rodents constantly caused infections in prisoners and food was often scarce. Prisoners
werent given proper cleaning items and normally smelled of rotten fish and sewage.
Probably the most terrifying bit of information about Newgate was the fact that if the
parent of an infant was convicted of a crime, the infant would be locked up with the
parent. This resulted in many cases of death from disease, cold, and mistreatment for
these young children. The majority of prisoners were also denied clothing or they were
left with incredibly filthy clothes.
Punishments enacted at Newgate were of the utmost severity. To begin, prison guards
had absolutely no intent of treating prisoners with any sort of care. They were often
brutally kicked, shoved, and thrown. Prison guards were hardened and acted what
many deemed very cruelly. Prisoners were also subject to being branded based on why
they were in prison. A T brand exhibited thief, an F indicated felon, while an M
signified murderer. Furthermore, women occasionally received different punishments
than men, and often increasingly painful. Women who were found guilty of treason were
burned alive at the stake and women who were found to be hanged were lowered
slower than men to suffer through choking rather than immediately die by their necks
snapping. Additionally, women who claimed they were pregnant at the time they were
sentenced to death could "plead their belly". Such women were then examined by a
matron, and then if found to be pregnant, their punishment was respited until after the
baby was born. Men, on the other hand, were drawn and quartered if found guilty of
treason. This process involved being hanged, cut down while still alive, and then
disembowelled, castrated, beheaded and quartered.