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Judgments and punishments varied by place and status. A vast majority of judgments were handed out by the assize - a group of knights traveling to various towns and cities to hold court, hear claims, and judge and punish those who broke the law.

Because it was impossible for the king to hear every case, the knights, landholders he appointed and trusted, were assigned to judge people in his stead. The king's court primarily dealt with very high ranking nobles and foreign heads of state.

The knights were wealthy land owners and while some were fair and honest, many times judgments could be skewed and fines or punishments did not fit the crime. This is why the Provisions of Oxford and later the Magna Carta required a jury of peers - a jury equal in rank and standing to the person accused.

Larger towns might have a seneschal or autocrat who could also hand out judgments and punishments but if something happened that directly involved the seneschal or the high ranking person of the town, many times they would have to wait for the assize to make the circuit.

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The person who carried out the punishments in the medieval times were the executioners and the torturers.

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12y ago
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Q: Who gave out punishments and why in the middle ages?
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