Fornication in Puritan New England: Crime, Court and Punishment
In short
New England's Puritan colonies treated fornication as a crime under laws drawn largely from Scripture. In Plymouth Colony, records from 1633 to 1643 show 19 fornication convictions, punished by whipping, the stocks, fines or a bond for good behavior. In the 1660s, fornication convictions matched drunkenness convictions in number.
What the full article will cover
- Why did Puritan colonies make fornication a crime?
- How did Plymouth Colony courts punish fornication?
- How common were fornication cases?
- How did punishments for adultery differ?
- What legacy did Puritan morals laws leave?
Frequently asked questions
- Did the Puritans execute people for adultery?
- Were married couples prosecuted for early births?
- Were men and women punished equally?
Sources
- histarch.illinois.edu — http://www.histarch.illinois.edu/plymouth/ccflaw.html
- loc.gov — https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/rel01.html
- britannica.com — https://www.britannica.com/topic/Puritanism
General information, not legal or religious advice.