Royal Commission on Capital Punishment 1864–66

The Royal Commission on Capital Punishment was chaired by the Duke of Richmond. It worked from 1864 to 1866 and was in disagreement on abolition.

Appointment

The Government agreed to a Royal Commission on 3 May 1864 [1]

The Commission was appointed by Queen Victoria on the 8 July 1864.

The task

". . . to inquire into the Provisions and Operation of the Laws now in force in the United Kingdom, under and by virtue of which the Punishment of Death may be inflicted upon persons convicted of certain crimes, and also into the manner in which Capital Sentences are carried into execution, and to report whether any, and if any what alteration is desirable in such Laws, or any of them, or in the manner in which such sentences are carried into execution."

Commissioners

Secretary to the Commission: James Henry Patteson

Report

The Report of the Commission was published in December 1865.[5]

Bibliographical reference

Great Britain. Royal Commission on Capital Punishment (1864–66)

Royal Commission on Capital Punishment together with the minutes of evidence and appendix. London, 1866. (Parliamentary Papers. Session 1866. vol. 21) [6]

Witnesses

Evidence

The Commission took evidence on 15 days, between 29 November 1864 and 25 March 1865, dealing with three or four witnesses a day.

In their Report, they included a section summarising the response to the following questions:

The verbatim evidence occupies 471 pages of the Report; there then follows an Appendix of 195 pages and an index to the Appendix. The Appendix contains answers to questions sent by the Commission to foreign countries and to Her Majesty's judges &c.

Appendix

The Questions:

Sent by the Foreign office to France, Belgium, Holland, Prussia, Bavaria, Austria, Saxony, Hanover, Italy, Tuscany, Spain, Portugal, Russia, Switzerland, Denmark, Sweden, Nassau, Anhalt, Oldenberg, Brunswick, New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Ohio, Maine and Rhode Island, Columbia, Indiana, Venezuela, Wisconsin, Ecuador, the Australian colonies, Scotland, Ireland together with responses from various judges and legal persons and statistical tables, together with, lastly, draft legislation on infanticide, prepared by Mr. Justice Willes.

Recommendations

The Commission did not come to agreement on abolition. On most matters, it offered a range of options for legislation. The exception was unanimity of the need for a law to stop public executions and to regulate executions within prisons.

A declaration, drafted by Stephen Lushington, was included in the Report: "[We] . . . are not prepared to agree to the Resolution respecting private executions." Signed by Stephen Lushington, Wm Ewart, Charles Neate, J Moncreiff, John Bright. This is presumably because they strongly favoured abolition.

William Ewart, Stephen Lushington, John Bright and Charles Neate signed a declaration drafted by Ewart: "[we]. . . are of opinion that Capital Punishment might, safely, and with advantage to the community, be at once abolished."

O'Hagan made a longer declaration: "I am of opinion,—with much deference for the great authority of those who think otherwise,—that the weight of evidence and reason is in favour of the abolition of Capital Punishment.

"I should, therefore, sign the declaration prepared by Mr. Ewart, but that I doubt whether public opinion in this country is yet ripe for the acceptance of such a change; and if it should be accomplished, without the sufficient sanction of that opinion, I fear the reaction which might follow on the perpetration of some great crime. I think, also, that the substitution of a minor penalty would render essential serious modifications in the discipline and machinery of our prisons; and such modifications, whilst I believe them to be possible, may be difficult, and remain to be devised. On these grounds, having regard to the practical scope of Your Majesty's Commission, I cannot join in simply advising immediate abolition; but, so far qualifying my adhesion to the terms of the declaration, I am prepared to adopt the principle which it embodies."

See also

References

  1. William Ewart's Commons resolution requesting a Select Committee be appointed to consider Punishment of Death, Resolution withdrawn and Charles Neate's resolution requesting a Royal Commission accepted: Hansard HC Deb 3 May 1864 vol 174 cc2055-115
  2. Notice of retirement of Horatio Waddington, in The Times, Friday, Aug 16, 1867; pg. 7; Issue 25891; col C
  3. Notice of funeral of Horatio Waddington, in The Times, Wednesday, Oct 09, 1867; pg. 9; Issue 25937; col B: (News Shorts)
  4. ODNB article by A. C. Howe, ‘Neate, Charles (1806–1879)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, Sept 2004; online edn, Jan 2008 accessed 29 Dec 2009
  5. Pall Mall Gazette, Tuesday, December 26, 1865; Issue 275, page 6: "Capital Punishment".
  6. The initiating editor of this article is extremely grateful to Harvard University and GoogleBooks for making this report available online.
  7. George Denman: see ODNB article by William Carr, ‘Denman, George (1819–1896)’, rev. Hugh Mooney, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 accessed 30 Dec 2009
  8. Col. Henderson: Convict service, western Australia
  9. Thomas Kittle: Policeman
  10. Richard Tanner: Policeman
  11. John Davis: Ordinary of Newgate
  12. William Tallack: Hon. Secretary of the Society for the Abolition of the Punishment of Death see ODNB article by Bill Forsythe, ‘Tallack, William (1831–1908)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, Sept 2004; online edn, Jan 2008 accessed 30 Dec 2009. His correspondence is at the University of Syracuse Library and further notebooks and papers at the University of Warwick, Modern Records Centre, Coventry.
  13. Hilary Nicholas Nissen: Former Sheriff of the City of London
  14. Henry Avory: Clerk of Arraigns at the Central Criminal Court
  15. John Jessop: Chaplain of Horsemonger Lane Gaol
  16. Thomas Beggs: Hon. Secretary of the Society for the Abolition of the Punishment of Death
  17. Thomas Harrington Tuke: Member of the Association of Medical Officers of asylums
  18. J.H.Parry: see ODNB article by J. A. Hamilton, ‘Parry, John Humffreys (1816–1880)’, rev. H. C. G. Matthew, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 accessed 30 Dec 2009
  19. Henry Cartwright: Governor of Gloucester Prison
  20. Dr. Hood: Visitor in Lunacy
  21. James A. Lawson: Attorney General for Ireland see ODNBarticle by G. C. Boase, ‘Lawson, James Anthony (1817–1887)’, rev. Sinéad Agnew, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 accessed 30 Dec 2009
  22. William Morrish: Governor of Portland Prison
  23. Emile Chedieu: French barrister
  24. Osborne: see ODNB article by Thomas Seccombe, ‘Osborne, Lord Sydney Godolphin (1808–1889)’, rev. Mark Clement, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 accessed 30 Dec 2009
  25. Former Governor of Oxford Gaol
  26. Rev. W.C. Cook: Chaplain at Bath Gaol
  27. ODNB article by Lawrence Goldman, ‘Crofton, Sir Walter Frederick (1815–1897)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 accessed 30 Dec 2009. He was a prison administrator and penal reformer.
  28. Auguste Visschers: Belgian lawyer. He chaired the International Peace Congress in Brussels in 1848.
  29. Sir Mordaunt Wells: Former judge in Bengal
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