"Beyond the Law": The Politics of Ending the Death Penalty for Sodomy in Britain

In nineteenth-century England, sodomy was punishable by death, and the last executions were in 1835. This book recounts the political process through which the law allowing for the death penalty for sodomy was almost ended in 1841, revealing the ethical, religious, and humanitarian arguments against punishing sodomy and how social change came from reformist momentum, family affection, elite politics, class privilege, enlightenment philosophy, and personal desires.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 326 pages
Publication date: 15 October 2021
Publisher: Temple University Press,U.S.

In the nineteenth century, England, sodomy carried a severe punishment of death, even an accusation could tarnish a man's reputation for life. The last executions for this private, consensual act took place in 1835, but the arduous and fragile effort to amend the law that sanctioned those executions persisted until 1861. In his groundbreaking book, "Beyond the Law," renowned historian Charles Upchurch meticulously reconstructs historical fragments and employs a queer history methodology to recount the untold story of the political process that nearly abolished the death penalty for sodomy in 1841.

Upchurch vividly portrays the legal and political endeavors of reformers such as Jeremy Bentham and Lord John Russell, the latter of whom contended that the death penalty for sodomy transcended the law and reached a higher realm. He also discloses that a same-sex relationship connected the families of the two men who jointly sponsored the pivotal legislation. By resurrecting the diverse ethical, religious, and humanitarian arguments against punishing sodomy, "Beyond the Law" challenges long-held assumptions of nineteenth-century British history. Upchurch compellingly argues that social change emerged from a confluence of reformist momentum, familial affection, elite politics, class privilege, enlightenment philosophy, and personal desires.

Weight: 502g
Dimension: 154 x 229 x 22 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781439920343