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Prisons continued to play only a limited role in the early modern period. However, the bridewell was a new institution that was used to house vagrants (also known as vagabonds) and to punish other kinds of behaviour.

Prisons

The use of prisons, or gaols, was limited to generally only holding people who were in debt, or people awaiting execution or another form of punishment.

Some new prisons were built following the 1531 Gaol Act. This act forced Justices of the Peace (JPs) to construct a prison where there was a need. However, they were still rarely used as a punishment in their own right.

Bridewells

As a response to the growing concerns about vagrancy, Bridewell Palace in London was turned into a prison in 1556. It was used to house vagrants. They were forced to work or were physically punished if they refused.

Other towns began to build these ‘houses of correction’ in the late 16th century too. They were usually referred to as bridewells. Vagrants, unmarried mothers and runaway apprentices were sent to bridewells for hard work and sometimes physical punishment, such as whipping.

Eventually, JPs were required to build bridewells in every county.