the guilty were caught and punished, and it was presumed that the identity of a
miscreant would not be a mystery for long among his friends and neighbours.
Everybody knew each other, many were related to each other, and in Anglo
Saxon society, the concept of a‘Neighbourhood Watch’was fundamental.
There were, of course, problems. Personal animosities or friendships could
easily affect the judgement of the moot, and they could be at the mercy of
gangs applying intimidation tactics. But on the whole, the system seems to
have worked.
Evidence was asked for, however, in cases of wounding, especially in Irish
laws. In Ireland, a physician was called to testify as to the severity of the
wounds and whether or not the victim was likely to die or be permanently
maimed.
Judgements were often on the basis of local knowledge of the character of
the accused and the witnesses, but where innocence or guilt was unclear, the
matter could sometimes be solved by the application of a trial by ordeal, in
which God would make his judgement clear to all. Trial by ordeal is often
misrepresented. It was only used in particular circumstances, where a
defendant insisted on oath that he was innocent. The priest would impose a
fast for three days on the defendant, and say a mass that included an invitation
to confess the crime. If he still maintained he was not guilty, the defendant
could then choose whether to undertake a trial by water or by iron. The water
ordeal was of two kinds–cold and hot. The cold water ordeal consisted of
drinking holy water and then being thrown into a river or pond. The guilty
floated, the innocent sank. (And were pulled out before they drowned!)
In the hot water ordeal, first mentioned in the sixth century, a stone was
placed in a container of boiling water, which the defendant had to take out
with his bare hand. In the ordeal of iron, he had to carry a glowing bar of iron
for nine feet (Plate 3). In both cases, his hand would then be wrapped in
bandages. Three days later, it was unwrapped, and if it was healing cleanly, his
innocence was proved. These ordeals took place in a church before witnesses.
A less physical but more psychological ordeal was recorded in Franconia.
The defendant had to give a solemn oath that he was innocent, and then take
the Eucharist, swallowing down the blessed wafer or bread. He would know
that if he lied, he would either choke to death or be dead within a year by
God’s hand. It was the force of suggestion that would decide the matter. It has
been described as a sort of early liedetector – the guilty would betray
themselves with their reaction, while the innocent would know they were safe.
Law and judgement in the later AngloSaxon period was increasingly
codified. Each shire, hundred (a part of a shire nominally supporting a
DARK AGE CRIMES