Purpose and History

History of Punishment

History of punishment exists since of thousands of years. Though, it is very tough to decide when exactly human civilization started punishment system. There are some records to support the start of punishment system. The earliest legal code may have been that of Ur-Nammu, Founder of third dynasty of Ur at about 2050 BC. In this legal code actually a person will have to pay for something he does wrong. Usually the payment will be done in Silver Mina. Later, In Samarian records there was actually death penalty was given at murder trial. In the "Law of Eshunna" the upper class and lower class were given different punishment. This law use to cover every aspect of social life including marriage, divorce, Loans etc. The punishments were in form of monetary.

The code of Hammurabi written around 1750 BC. By this code, abiding principle was Talio which has to do with mutilating the part of the body which has committed crime. In the kingdom, the legal rights and judicial process were available for everyone. But slaves and prisoners of war were not included in this judicial process. In this code, death penalty was very common.

In biblical era, the punishments follow Hammurabi law. Romans also borrowed their Law from Hammurabi. Later in 450 BC they made "Twelve Tables" to ensure the rights of average citizens. The Law of India and China were developed on the basis of European and Middle East. The common Indian Law called Manu was complied in 1st or 2nd century and that of china called Tang code was in 8th century.

History of Prison Development

The exact date or year of development of cannot be found but the history of prison is very old. In mythology of Ramayana it is already into picture. In the civilization of human being prison can be seen into existence since 16th and 17th centuries. These prisons were called houses of correction and so many of them were built in England. During this period prison was not a punishment at all. It was the place where criminals were kept who are awaiting their sentences or looking for judicial process to complete. During this period prisons were poorly maintained and commanded by irresponsible commandants. During mid-18th century prison development was on track as confinement with hard labor was beginning to seen as substitute for petty crime. In 18th century solitary confinement was seen as a punishment. The idea was first tried out in USA at Eastern State Penitentiary, which was opened in Cherry hill in Philadelphia in 1829. The management of this type of system was called separate System. Meanwhile another management system called "Silent System" arouses.

In 19th century capital punishment was seen as inappropriate and Jail was the good replacement for it. 19th century saw a birth of state prison. The first national penitentiary was completed at Millbank in