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Crime And Punishment In Medieval Times

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In Medieval times, the law was local, not national. Meaning that should you commit a misdemeanour(e.g. walking around drunk) and be branded, in another town or village in the same country, the punishment could be completely different. It also depended on whose rule the people were under, for there were a few kings and queens of whom were quite sadistic. It also depended on your occupation(s). For example, if you were a baker selling stale or mouldy bread, you'd be placed inside the pillory and have the bread you were selling lobbed at you. In Medieval Europe, your ear could be cut off should you be found speaking ill of the theatre or published a book that upset a noble and you could be branded on the cheek for disrespecting someone of a higher

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