Prison Hulks of Victorian England By Tyler Gray

Prison Hulks of Victorian England By: Tyler Gray

About -Back in the 19 th century, people convicted of a crime would spend a little while in the local gaol before being placed onto a ship to be transported to wherever the criminal was suppose to carry out their sentence. -The Hulks were old navy ships anchored along the shores of places such as Plymouth and Portsmouth just to name a couple. -The populations in the local prisons increased so much that in 1776, Parliament began to use the Hulks as permanent gaols. This went on for 82 years. - Some prisoners even carried out their full sentence in the Hulks rather than being transported out of England.

Life Aboard the Hulks -Living conditions in the Hulks was terrible to say the least. far worse than those in the actual prisons. -The hygiene standards were so awful that diseases spread rapidly. -Some of the common diseases aboard the Hulks that held a high death rate were known to be typhoid and cholera. -Most of the prisoners died on the ships due to disease so they didn’t make it to the end of their sentence. -The living conditions on board the Hulks did improve some, they were stilled considered “poor” living conditions compared to conditions in the prisons on land.

Life as a Prisoner -During the daylight hours, prisoners was put to manual, hard labors on the docks. -While at night, the prisoners were chained to their bunks to help prevent them from escaping the hulks and reaching shore. -If any prisoner committed a crime on board, they were punished by being placed in heavy irons or flogging. -Prisoners were often beaten and abused by the guards, because who would the prisoners report to on the ships? -Some prisoners reported that living in the hulks was the equivalent to living in Hell.

How the Hulks Came to an End -In 1816, the Millbank prison was built in London next to the Thames River. -This institution could accommodate up to 1, 200 prisoners male or female. -With Millbank being built, this allowed for more convicts to go to that institution rather than the Hulks. -The prisoners who had served time on the hulks and then were moved to an institution on land said that they were thankful for being relocated off of the ships.

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Sources Used Ø http: //www. victorianlondon. org/prisons/hulks. htm Ø http: //vcp. e 2 bn. org/justice/page 11382 -sentencing-to-departure -prison-hulks-convict-gaols. html Ø http: //www. londonlives. org/static/Prisons. jsp