Policing London - The Thief-Taker General - Extra History - Part 1

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  • Опубликовано: 20 сен 2024
  • 📜 History of Policing London: The Thief-Taker General -These days we kind of assume that police are a normal part of law and order. But that wasn't always the case. In fact, it wasn't the case for a lot of human history. So how did we start thinking of police as a natural part of a city? It all starts in London with the Thief-Taker General Jonathan Wilde, a man of two faces. Which one is real: valiant crime fighter or the puppet master of London's underbelly?
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    #ExtraHistory #London #History

Комментарии • 1,3 тыс.

  • @extrahistory
    @extrahistory  4 года назад +2128

    Thief-Taker General and Cutthroat Criminal Mastermind? Get yourself someone who can do both.

    • @Matt-qv6od
      @Matt-qv6od 4 года назад +18

      Can you do an extra history on midway please.

    • @justusrichard5544
      @justusrichard5544 4 года назад +7

      I love your vids ps pls make a Bismarck card

    • @greymind9815
      @greymind9815 4 года назад +4

      Acab

    • @ParasaurolophusEwan
      @ParasaurolophusEwan 4 года назад +1

      Hello ThereerehT olleH

    • @maticstudios
      @maticstudios 4 года назад +1

      Extra Credits
      Love most of the history stuff... hate most of your staff.

  • @avonic2874
    @avonic2874 4 года назад +2523

    Wilde: "He's a liar!"
    Public: "hm yeah yeah"
    Wilde: "and... gay"
    Public: *GASP*

    • @countbinfaceglobalpresiden7926
      @countbinfaceglobalpresiden7926 4 года назад +118

      Public to Hitchin:"why are you gae"

    • @LostSwiftpaw
      @LostSwiftpaw 4 года назад +12

      @@CrazyNerdMonkey
      Being gay isn't bad?

    • @garrettallen7427
      @garrettallen7427 4 года назад +118

      Wild: he’s a liar your honor and corrupt
      The judge: yeah so what everyone is
      Wild: *HE ALSO HAS THE BIG GAY*
      The judge: *UNACCEPTABLE*

    • @finndonnelly9062
      @finndonnelly9062 4 года назад +15

      BE GAY DO CRIME

    • @joshuamarvin7400
      @joshuamarvin7400 4 года назад +37

      @@garrettallen7427 Honestly, Corruption was considered simply the 'necessary upkeep' of law and order at the time. It was so entrenched that you just hoped to find someone so good at their job that whatever they stole or extorted could be called a reasonable salary.

  • @Mathmachine
    @Mathmachine 4 года назад +6175

    "Running a prominent gang known as The Mathematicians." I mean, if you ask most people, multiplication and division are really scary.

    • @tommyfox854
      @tommyfox854 4 года назад +65

      agreed.

    • @bthsr7113
      @bthsr7113 4 года назад +84

      And most people need more education, see?

    • @NotHPotter
      @NotHPotter 4 года назад +101

      They got nothing on exponentiation.

    • @Pyrian
      @Pyrian 4 года назад +140

      Especially if you're the one being divided.

    • @robertwalpole360
      @robertwalpole360 4 года назад +22

      Maths.

  • @Shawn_Babcock
    @Shawn_Babcock 4 года назад +4606

    Ah so Wilde used the tried and true argument to discredit someone
    “Ur gay”

    • @bigguy978978
      @bigguy978978 4 года назад +190

      No u

    • @MrLDAndrade
      @MrLDAndrade 4 года назад +158

      He actually got cancelled

    • @fluoridegood4you622
      @fluoridegood4you622 4 года назад +164

      We've evolved from such base accusations, Now its
      "Ur antisemitic"

    • @greymind9815
      @greymind9815 4 года назад +151

      @@fluoridegood4you622 yeah stuff like
      "Ur a commie"
      Yeah and? Workers rise up

    • @Boyd2342
      @Boyd2342 4 года назад +24

      @@fluoridegood4you622 shut the fuck up boomer

  • @Diceyed
    @Diceyed 4 года назад +3087

    Hitchen: "Wilde is a thief!
    Wilde: "Hitchen is Gay!"
    Everyone else: "huh, he makes a point"

    • @MerkhVision
      @MerkhVision 4 года назад +97

      Seems like some things never change lol

    • @skyes4552
      @skyes4552 4 года назад +56

      *IF YOU'RE GAY, THEN YOU'RE TO BLAME*
      (SARCASM)

    • @peterson7082
      @peterson7082 4 года назад +52

      @@skyes4552 If he breathes, he's a thot.

    • @GarthTheMighty
      @GarthTheMighty 4 года назад +60

      I mean, totally independent of that, he was a terrible person. We should remember that.

    • @friendlyindianscammer2887
      @friendlyindianscammer2887 3 года назад +3

      1k like

  • @rayandabintangmarkiano6700
    @rayandabintangmarkiano6700 4 года назад +234

    Imagine being in a brothel then hearing people scream "run! its the bloody *mathematicians* "

  • @Pikazilla
    @Pikazilla 4 года назад +2941

    side note: discharging soldiers and sailors at this time period also lead to The Golden Age of Piracy.

    • @greymind9815
      @greymind9815 4 года назад +182

      And its great that we take care of our vets so they aren't homeless or things like that

    • @chowyee5049
      @chowyee5049 4 года назад +244

      It's quite a common phenomenon. Civil War veterans also became bandits in the Wild West such as in the case of Jesse James. Even ISIS was substantially composed of former members of Saddam Hussein's military. Disenfranchised soldiers make deadly criminals.

    • @evanulven8249
      @evanulven8249 4 года назад +36

      @@greymind9815 Easier to make sure police are more heavily armed than the populace and given carte blance to "enforce the law" as they see fit.

    • @PrototypeSpaceMonkey
      @PrototypeSpaceMonkey 4 года назад +38

      That and Gol D. Roger's execution.

    • @blueberry1vom1t
      @blueberry1vom1t 4 года назад +38

      @@evanulven8249 Wow it sure is nice heavily armed police forces have no flaws and that our vets are taken good care of today. America certainly is the best country in the world. Nothing could ever possibly go wrong from here.

  • @Finn_the_Cat
    @Finn_the_Cat 4 года назад +680

    The biggest thing that they didn’t understand is that over-harsh punishments will not deter crime because if you have no other options then the benefits of the crime outweigh the punishment as long as you don’t get caught.

    • @fieldy409
      @fieldy409 3 года назад +70

      I know right? If people are stealing because otherwise they'd starve to death or die of the elements due to homelessness, then the death penalty isn't worse than what they were already facing without crime.

    • @Finn_the_Cat
      @Finn_the_Cat 3 года назад +42

      @@fieldy409 exactly, that is why these types of policies almost never work, because for people in extreme desperate situations death is a preferred alternative to what they have

    • @fabianschobinger2765
      @fabianschobinger2765 9 месяцев назад +11

      I think another big reason for the many death sentences was the fact that prisons were (as said in the video) overcrowded and basically an university for crime. So even if they knew that harsher sentences don‘t work, they likely would‘ve still kept the same system.

    • @FreakyPhilch
      @FreakyPhilch 8 месяцев назад +6

      It’s like having strict parents. Instead of teaching you not to steal, a snicker bar for example, they teach you to take it while they’re distracted and to put the wrapper in your sibling’s room.

  • @DragoniteSpam
    @DragoniteSpam 4 года назад +1570

    So in case anyone was ever wondering about real-life thieves guilds, I guess this would be a good one?

    • @parrek1384
      @parrek1384 4 года назад +19

      How did you get here 16 hours early? Do Patreons get early access?

    • @DragoniteSpam
      @DragoniteSpam 4 года назад +86

      @@parrek1384 Time travel.
      (Also, yes.)

    • @marsar1775
      @marsar1775 4 года назад +75

      @@parrek1384 he's in good with the thieves guild, you cant touch him

    • @kathrynsummers1735
      @kathrynsummers1735 4 года назад +9

      I wonder if there's a vetanati type about to show up.

    • @jlw35cudvm
      @jlw35cudvm 4 года назад +1

      This sounds like US politics

  • @curumu_yt
    @curumu_yt 4 года назад +2839

    "He runs a criminal empire"
    Georgians: Hmmm
    "He also is gay"
    Georgians: Now that's it! Do him in!

    • @alexis_electronic
      @alexis_electronic 4 года назад +152

      Thank god things have changed, right!
      RIght?
      Oh.

    • @Elizabeththegreatest
      @Elizabeththegreatest 4 года назад +51

      Oh yeah, being a criminal mastermind is just fine, but being gay? Nope!

    • @fluoridegood4you622
      @fluoridegood4you622 4 года назад +68

      Based georgians, very red pilled.

    • @LucasOliveira-dj6gg
      @LucasOliveira-dj6gg 4 года назад +46

      "That's all you had to say, boy"

    • @kanyewest_vevo
      @kanyewest_vevo 4 года назад +17

      Amber yea thank god things have changed and you are not arrested for being gay

  • @rickpgriffin
    @rickpgriffin 4 года назад +382

    So this is exactly where Pratchett got the idea that the Thieves' Guild was the de facto police force in Ankh-Morpork before the City Watch got their act together

    • @josephskiles
      @josephskiles 4 года назад +41

      I was thinking about Ank Morpork the whole time I was watching this, we really lost a treasure when Sir Terry died 😟

    • @fillosof66689
      @fillosof66689 4 года назад +26

      Ankh-Morpork started as more or less typical fantasy metropolis, but as time went on, he started to have more and more of historical London and New York in it. Sir Pratchett has created something really unique there, as he always did.

    • @ericwills932
      @ericwills932 4 года назад +16

      Also why Vimes reacted so explosively to being labelled a 'Thief Taker' in Jingo

    • @josephskiles
      @josephskiles 4 года назад +4

      @@ericwills932 nice catch, I forgot about that

  • @eugenio5774
    @eugenio5774 4 года назад +669

    this is totally a tv series that I would watch!! I've NEVER heard of this man, and honestly? sometimes reality is truly stranger than fiction.

    • @pandemonium2594
      @pandemonium2594 4 года назад +7

      I know right

    • @jacobnoelle8428
      @jacobnoelle8428 4 года назад +9

      John wild life was a wild life!

    • @TheForbiddenChode
      @TheForbiddenChode Год назад +3

      Wait till you see his downfall.

    • @game_boyd1644
      @game_boyd1644 11 месяцев назад +5

      This would have served as an excellent Assassin's creed setting

    • @l.psimer6124
      @l.psimer6124 11 месяцев назад +3

      It is stranger than fiction cause while fiction has no bounds to reality, it has to be thought of by humans, but real events are not thought up, they happen and are not bound to human creative limits.

  • @mr.cypher604
    @mr.cypher604 4 года назад +285

    Hitchen: *I'm about to end this man's whole career*
    Wild: ***UNO REVERSE CARD***

  • @Windona
    @Windona 4 года назад +440

    "Left his wife and son..." Later "his new girlfriend"... Did his wife and son ever see all the papers on him and go 'wow I wish he would come back sometime"

    • @kayeka4123
      @kayeka4123 4 года назад +138

      As much as his exploits are fun to listen to, this guy was an asshole of the highest degree, and his wife was probably glad to be rid of him.

    • @edwardnygma8533
      @edwardnygma8533 4 года назад +7

      Following.

    • @Tragedous
      @Tragedous 4 года назад +12

      Good question

    • @mr.numbers5968
      @mr.numbers5968 4 года назад +3

      Ouch

    • @angelwhispers2060
      @angelwhispers2060 2 года назад +7

      Honestly probably not him taking up with a new girlfriend was cheaper and easier than a divorce and since he had left her with whatever property they were already living in. She was probably fine not good but possible especially in the area before divorce with even a possibility marital abandonment was pretty common.

  • @bradleyogilvie8869
    @bradleyogilvie8869 4 года назад +5151

    So really harsh penalties DIDN’T deter crime? Well I guess it’s a good thing no one’s ever tried doing that again

    • @greymind9815
      @greymind9815 4 года назад +175

      Ikr we such an good society! Its not like we put people in jail for stealing 159$ jacket in for life!
      ruclips.net/video/g_fO4Bw4XU8/видео.html
      Oh wait

    • @scoop765
      @scoop765 4 года назад +249

      Yep how funny would it be if we tried that again hahaha

    • @neeneko
      @neeneko 4 года назад +475

      And who would have known for-profit prisons would create an incentive structure that did not include decreasing crime.

    • @AbsolXGuardian
      @AbsolXGuardian 4 года назад +162

      It's really hard for rulers to get it into their head that most criminals, especially thieves, commit these crimes because they have to, not because they want to.

    • @MDFification1
      @MDFification1 4 года назад +145

      Criminals are, as a rule, not very good at calculating risk vs reward. Well, not white-collar criminals because they make *a lot* of money for much less risk, but in general it's true.
      My dad used to work as a public defender for petty criminals (it used to be the norm in Canada that all lawyers would put in a few years of defending people who couldn't afford lawyers before moving on to more lucrative careers). There was one guy who was a repeat customer - he'd break into houses, get caught, go to jail and just do the same thing upon release. At one point my dad sat down with the guy and walked him through the math - how much he made from breaking into houses, how much he lost to the fences taking their cut, how much time he took to pull off these jobs, etc. It turns out the guy was making far less than minimum wage.
      My dad (still young and naive) assumed that having taught the guy how little he was actually making would convince him to give up crime for a more lucrative, legal career. Instead, the guy tries to rob a corner store with a fake gun. He's probably still in jail, if he's still alive.

  • @OrdonWolf
    @OrdonWolf 4 года назад +379

    The sad irony of a place supposed to reform criminals actually turning into THE place to train them...
    This episode is great, what a story! I was on the edge of my seat the whole time!

    • @SystemLordNemo
      @SystemLordNemo 4 года назад +18

      Many think that this still is the case specially in the cases of first timers and young people.

    • @iliatchaplinski
      @iliatchaplinski 4 года назад +37

      I heard an ex-con talking about this once. He said it is still the case: prison is where criminals learn from other criminals how to improve their crime. After all, they have a lot of time on their hands in a place full of criminals. What else is there to talk about?

    • @jrggrop
      @jrggrop 4 года назад +22

      Prisons at the time weren't ever intended to reforms criminals, simply serve as holding pens. The theory of reformation of criminals in confinement was developed in the early 19th century United States, with the primary push coming from Pennsylvania Quakers and expressed in Eastern State Penitentiary (hence the name "penitentiary" it was a place for the criminal to undertake penance, reflect on their failures, and come out as a reformed member of society).

    • @timothycarney9652
      @timothycarney9652 4 года назад +8

      @@jrggrop Quakers also invented solitary confinement- the idea being the prisoner would take the time to read the bible and become a better person- instead they suffered extreme psychological damage (humans aren't built to handle isolation, or confinement well, so being completely alone for an extended period in a tiny cell wrecks havock on one's psyche)- so much so that they stoped doing it because of how inhumane it turned out to be- today we have not only brought back this torturous practice, but expanded on it- Supermaxprisons are prisons made solely of solitary confinement cells, for profit institutions using a model of imprisonment known to cause insanity, on a mass scale.

    • @d4n4nable
      @d4n4nable 4 года назад +1

      Well, if you just execute them all, they can't learn to become better criminals.

  • @skyes4552
    @skyes4552 4 года назад +107

    "He ran a prominent gang named the Mathematicians"
    Huh, never knew that my Math Teacher was a Gang Member

  • @storyspren
    @storyspren 4 года назад +463

    EC: (describes pickpockets taking advantage of crowds watching an execution)
    Me: (gets a Skyrim flashback)

    • @insaincaldo
      @insaincaldo 4 года назад +24

      Been pilfering the Solitude execution?

    • @storyspren
      @storyspren 4 года назад +13

      @@insaincaldo Absolutely

    • @insaincaldo
      @insaincaldo 4 года назад +3

      @@storyspren Seems quite obvious. Then again my last member of the guild had a really short run and pretty much only did it for the armor, thought It would be a cool starting armor on a Van Helsing like character.

    • @thomasbrady3827
      @thomasbrady3827 4 года назад +2

      Storyspren sneak behind the rocks at the winking sleeved. Put poison on your bow. Take one shot and kill the headsman. Run in unrelenting force the guards and hack them to death with your sword. Take there loot kill all witnesses and join the stormcloaks.

    • @jakerosenberg3767
      @jakerosenberg3767 4 года назад +2

      Pickpocket 100

  • @JohnVance
    @JohnVance 4 года назад +467

    This is hilarious and I can’t believe I never learned about this in school.

    • @baconpantsable
      @baconpantsable 4 года назад +27

      They don't teach you about it because they don't want you to know about the shitty prisons

    • @Matthew-jv7ej
      @Matthew-jv7ej 4 года назад +2

      this is actually a case study in my gcse history course.

    • @alexis_electronic
      @alexis_electronic 4 года назад +3

      I can believe it!~ Man, wouldn't it suck if you learned the society you lived in was inherently exploitative?

    • @fluoridegood4you622
      @fluoridegood4you622 4 года назад +7

      @@baconpantsable shitty government*

    • @tams805
      @tams805 4 года назад +12

      To be fair, there's an awful lot of history to learn in just the three years of a GCSE course. Teachers need to decide what they think is best to teach*.
      *unless the likes of Gove decide that learning the names of all the monarchs is the most important.

  • @ChadtronicFan
    @ChadtronicFan 4 года назад +83

    My favorite part of Extra History is how they switch the art style every series.

    • @va960
      @va960 3 года назад +5

      One favorite art style of mine is that one from Genghis Khan.

    • @aminadoce
      @aminadoce 11 месяцев назад +5

      I guess they usually do it to make the other two/three artists recover. I guess that art for a whole series takes about a whole 2 months to do without crunching (and if nothing else happens). So I think that they work on this time, while the other is starting the next series, and the other one or two waits to be called up again.
      If true, it seems fantastic.

    • @davidedwards1635
      @davidedwards1635 9 месяцев назад

      7:03 ​@@va960

  • @connormclernon26
    @connormclernon26 4 года назад +1895

    So for profit prisons don’t work. Gee, I hope we never repeat tha.
    Oh.
    Oh.

    • @lucar6897
      @lucar6897 4 года назад +52

      I’m sure it will work great if we try just one last time😁

    • @Lgs260495
      @Lgs260495 4 года назад +7

      Nice pic of BB64

    • @connormclernon26
      @connormclernon26 4 года назад +3

      LG COC The Lagging Offencoch thanks, took that at least a decade ago on an old flip phone

    • @countbinfaceglobalpresiden7926
      @countbinfaceglobalpresiden7926 4 года назад +11

      TORIES WOULD LIKE TO
      HAVE A WORD WITH YOU

    • @fluoridegood4you622
      @fluoridegood4you622 4 года назад +16

      It provides wonderful services to the low wages sector.
      You know, by pricing out the people who can't live off a prisoners salary.
      Because pricing out the lower class workers with slavery has always been successful in the past yea?

  • @TheTheRedWolf
    @TheTheRedWolf 4 года назад +65

    And I laughed so hard in the PC-game Thief: "Thief-Taker-General? Oh, c'mon, got no other title to give this guy? Did you had to make it so artificial, just to explain his hate against Garret (the thief)?"

    • @angelwhispers2060
      @angelwhispers2060 3 года назад +11

      Yes titles for British positions used to have names that would be laughable today

  • @TheAriusDural
    @TheAriusDural 4 года назад +62

    This explains so much about Anglo-american culture... it also makes a great tabletop plot!

  • @Ergogre
    @Ergogre 4 года назад +63

    One of Patrician's greatest contributions to the reliable operation of Ankh-Morpork had been, very early in his administration, the legalizing of the ancient Guild of Thieves.
    Crime was always with us, he reasoned, and therefore,
    if you were going to have crime, it atleast should be organized crime.

  • @sunsparkda
    @sunsparkda 4 года назад +177

    Very interesting learning some of the history that inspired the Discworld books.

    • @kokuinomusume
      @kokuinomusume 4 года назад +15

      Oh, you have to read Pratchett's "Dodger". en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dodger_(novel)
      I assume we'll meet Robert Peel later in this series, and he's a character in the novel, along with Charles Dickens and other famous Victorians.

    • @arturoreyescortez2476
      @arturoreyescortez2476 4 года назад +8

      sunsparkda Assassins and thieves got lots of benefits during Vetinari's government. Paying to not get your properties stolen, and the thieves get government permission. That is scary.

    • @felixleidinger1670
      @felixleidinger1670 4 года назад +3

      @@arturoreyescortez2476 But thievery is also regulated via the Guild- who rather efficently sells protection against non-guild-members and you are protected against being robbed more than once a month.
      If you are robbed, you get the adequate paperwork and the robbery is done in a more civil manner, and for Ankh-Morpork, thats certainly an improvement in crime statistics.
      Also, it realistically heightens the security for the citizens compared to how the City Watch acted before the revolution.
      The thieves have an interest in keeping crime professional and keeping the crime rate down in order to protect the trade and their profits.
      That was why they only needed 3 guys in the watch until the dragon incident, in its own way compared to before the city got along just fine.
      The assassins themselves have agreed upon a no-kill list if they decide a target isnt worth it- they gave up on killing our favourite protagonist Commander because he was to important for the cities ecosystem- and besides a certain gentleman in Hogfather, the patrician was once their most dangerous member anyway. Remember, thats how he got the position in the first place ;)
      Vetinari didnt make the guilds exist, they were, as there were no rules, more dangerous before he showed up.
      He made them operate in legal guidelines, chained their interests to the interest of the city and therefore made them controllable until he could let Sam build the New City Watch. Thats called pragmatism. Fighting fire with fire. If you cant fight the crime because its a bushfire, make it self-regulate and burn itself out until you have the ressources to stamp the rest out yourself. If you want to, that is.
      Pratchett wrote interesting satire about the legal system and the states role in fighting crime. Rigid militarised crime codes focusing on "law and order" often may not be able to cope with the amount of crime existent and only bring harm to the innocent. Community policing combined with the adequate ressources wont stop the mafia due to inevitable corruption- but it at least keeps general street crime at bay, therefore protecting more normal people, and keeps the gears of the community turning until you can controll it because it shifts the crime from an economic factor into the hands of a few individuals. Pratchett is basically describing the setup of a working community police force under those conditions that slowly replaces the corruption by creating a power outside of professional crime fighting crime by creating stability first, to make people want to live by rules and protect them.
      Note that this system is an semi-utopia run by an infallable dictator with assassin education and a demon-possessed super cop, though. Applicability to real live may vary.

    • @Rainbowthewindsage
      @Rainbowthewindsage 4 года назад +11

      @@arturoreyescortez2476 Lord Vetinari is a scary man in general: "I believe you find life such a problem because you think there are good people and bad people. You're wrong, of course. There are, always and only, the bad people, but some of them are on opposite sides."

    • @majacovic5141
      @majacovic5141 4 года назад +7

      @@Rainbowthewindsage early Vetinari is scary because he is depresed. That speech is a diagnosis. He lost faith in people so je doesn't give a damn if he's brutal. Fortunatelly he gets better later.

  • @eldermoose7938
    @eldermoose7938 4 года назад +62

    I just get the felling this is going to be Matt's "south seas bubble" series. which I consider to be the Best Extra Histroy short series

  • @rabidkiwi361
    @rabidkiwi361 4 года назад +17

    @5:56 you are telling me that at one point in time, there was a rude group of scoundrels that called " the mathematicians"

    • @AStoryteller-for-fun
      @AStoryteller-for-fun 10 месяцев назад +7

      I mean... math is kind of the embodiment of Evil

    • @BIGTHANKSHEESH
      @BIGTHANKSHEESH 8 месяцев назад +5

      😨🔫😈
      "What's the pythagorian thereom?"

  • @mollye
    @mollye 4 года назад +174

    "prisons in georgian britain were run for profit"
    USA: *sweats nervously* haha, glad we had that revolution to get out from tyranny heh

    • @JoshSweetvale
      @JoshSweetvale 4 года назад +8

      To keep slaves.

    • @IkeOkerekeNews
      @IkeOkerekeNews 4 года назад +8

      @@JoshSweetvale
      Not really.

    • @operleutnant7235
      @operleutnant7235 4 года назад +2

      Joshua Sweetvale they ran the prisons for profit because of slaves or started the revolutionary war because of slaves

  • @alexie832
    @alexie832 4 года назад +38

    Hitchen: "Wild is a thief!"
    Wild: "Hitchen is gay."
    Everyone: *la gasp*
    Me: *wheeze*

    • @Bloodlyshiva
      @Bloodlyshiva 4 года назад +2

      You Laugh now, but it was deadly serious. Emphasis on 'deadly'.
      'The Georgian era is a period in British history from 1714 to c. 1830-37.'
      'United Kingdom
      From 1533 the capital felony for any person to "commit the detestable and abominable vice of buggery with mankind or beast", was repealed and re-enacted several times, until it was reinstated in 1563 remaining unchanged until 1861.[25] The last execution took place on 27 November 1835 when James Pratt and John Smith were hanged at Newgate.'
      Homosexuality carried the death sentence.

    • @Kirbeden
      @Kirbeden 4 года назад

      Bloodlyshiva Oh

  • @dataexpunged2827
    @dataexpunged2827 4 года назад +17

    4:46 ‘the intricate language of London’s underworld’
    Oi mate, the lads and us is going for a spot of cheeky Nando’s. Sounds nice innit?

  • @smellfish1430
    @smellfish1430 4 года назад +46

    Hitchen: tries to end wild’s whole career.
    Wild: i’m aboutta end this man’s whole career.

    • @lunaequinox7333
      @lunaequinox7333 10 месяцев назад +1

      Hitchen: You’re done for Wilde
      Wilde: *pulls out uno reverse card*

  • @Nazo-kage
    @Nazo-kage 10 месяцев назад +19

    So… anybody else watching this and getting ideas for a D&D campaign?

  • @jamcdonald120
    @jamcdonald120 4 года назад +13

    1:00 lets just say i am suspicious of any cop who can set up a trade for you with the theif

  • @hanzup4117
    @hanzup4117 4 года назад +66

    One minute in and I can tell this is going to be another good one :D

  • @tennesseefairfield8497
    @tennesseefairfield8497 4 года назад +21

    I am loving all these Extra History series y'all are making. I'm super excited for this one!

  • @aubreywean680
    @aubreywean680 4 года назад +139

    "Oh so ill just make people steal things, then get the stolen things back?"
    "This is a good idea"
    Edit: also wild was in deubt, but has these awesome clothes

    • @angelwhispers2060
      @angelwhispers2060 3 года назад

      That's more for the consistency of the animation than realistic depiction

  • @ViggleTheVirgil
    @ViggleTheVirgil 4 года назад +17

    I swear, you guys come up with the most amazing and interesting things in history to talk about. Never ceases to amaze me.

  • @Gala-yp8nx
    @Gala-yp8nx 4 года назад +27

    This sounds like the premise for a TV series, not gonna lie.

  • @deltasquad8817
    @deltasquad8817 3 года назад +17

    Wilde: is a mob boss
    Society:🗿🗿🗿🗿
    Hitchen: is gay
    Society:😡😡😡

  • @paulpeterson4216
    @paulpeterson4216 4 года назад +12

    Gotta say that the English of the 18th century were wise beyond their years, believing that "Professional police were an inherently repressive and militarized organization." The problem is that in America, too many see "inherently repressive and militarized" as a good thing.

    • @SaltpeterTaffy
      @SaltpeterTaffy 4 года назад +2

      Would...would you have preferred petty crime to be handled by mafiosi like what was shown in this video? These are the kinds of scandals that cause governments to implement the police in the first place.

    • @justinbeath5169
      @justinbeath5169 4 года назад

      Oh yeah, militarized police are so bad. Im sure that a guy with a stab proof vest and a glock would be just as effective at dealing with hostage situations as a swat team

    • @Tom-2142
      @Tom-2142 4 года назад

      SaltpeterTaffy they weren’t militarised though.

    • @SaltpeterTaffy
      @SaltpeterTaffy 4 года назад

      ​@@Tom-2142 Non-militarized criminals are still criminals.

    • @Darqshadow
      @Darqshadow 6 месяцев назад

      ​@Tom-2142 well criminals are now with Cartels and Gangs having access to some very impressive hardware. Part of why I support cops AND having the 2A

  • @beretperson
    @beretperson 4 года назад +29

    Last time I was this early, it hadn't been Walpole.

  • @davidschaftenaar6530
    @davidschaftenaar6530 4 года назад +18

    Man, Wild was W I L D. I can't believe we had a real-life House of Cards + GoT Bronn at some point and nobody ever told me.

  • @thevoidlookspretty7079
    @thevoidlookspretty7079 4 года назад +39

    But my question: did this ever work into the South Sea Company?

    • @tat3179
      @tat3179 4 года назад +6

      Doubt it. The what Wilde maange is blue collar crime. Unsophisticated, violent and for the dregs of society. The whole South Sea Bubble is classic white collar shenanigans. Same like today. People went to jail for potential decades for break ins and theft while only one unlucky wall street schmuck gets prosecuted for literally giving the trillions of dollars global economy a heart attack because greed and big bonuses.

    • @lemmingrad
      @lemmingrad 4 года назад +3

      The Void Looks Pretty I’m sure it was Walpole.

    • @kamanashiskar9203
      @kamanashiskar9203 3 года назад +1

      Well, Wildes's reign happened during the same time as the South Sea Bubble.

  • @verdragon5591
    @verdragon5591 3 года назад +12

    9:23 Ah, I see, one of the very few times in history where the phrase 'Consider the benefits of homophobia' has done any good

    • @danaa-
      @danaa- 10 месяцев назад +9

      _"If you shoot enough bullets, at least some of them are bound to hit!"_
      _"...even if you killed thousands of innocents..."_

    • @BIGTHANKSHEESH
      @BIGTHANKSHEESH 8 месяцев назад +1

      And even when the person doing good is worse than the person he is going against

  • @AverytheCubanAmerican
    @AverytheCubanAmerican 4 года назад +49

    London has some fascinating history, can't wait to see the rest of the series

  • @TheFiresloth
    @TheFiresloth 4 года назад +6

    In A Song of Ice and Fire (Game of Thrones), it is explained that this is how Varys and Illyrio started their career : Varys stole, and Illyrio "retrieved". This way, they buildt a criminal kingdom in Pentos.

  • @tenlosol
    @tenlosol 4 года назад +22

    Someone's going to find a lot of inspiration for persona 5 OCs/fanfics in this series.

  • @BlackoDragon
    @BlackoDragon 2 месяца назад +3

    “And you’ve just been mugged”
    ITS BEEN 2 SECONDS DAMN!!

  • @itwaswalpole
    @itwaswalpole 4 года назад +11

    5:07 Swipper no swiping

  • @kevinboros7427
    @kevinboros7427 4 года назад +4

    This first episode perfectly represents a life that goes according to plan. This guy, in this first episode, basically did everything perfectly and lived the good life. Honestly, he wasn't bad, he was just taking advantage of the situation, and inteligently too.

  • @tjoconnell2524
    @tjoconnell2524 4 года назад +26

    This is some oceans eleven type stuff being pulled off.

  • @pokemonprimed
    @pokemonprimed 4 года назад +137

    "...with little recourse against the state. The lesson the English took from this was that professional police were an inherently oppressive and militarized organization"
    Dangerously topical.

    • @Raziel312
      @Raziel312 4 года назад +28

      NOT having a professional police force didn't work out any better.

    • @SaltpeterTaffy
      @SaltpeterTaffy 4 года назад +30

      In fact you might say not having a standard police force created a justice vacuum that got filled in with mercenary corruption beholden to absolutely no one.

    • @alexanderchristopher6237
      @alexanderchristopher6237 4 года назад +7

      @@SaltpeterTaffy from a legal perspective, a standard police force paid by taxes is much better than a mercenary one. Since the people technically pays for them, they can demand for reforms in areas where the police force is lacking. Too much tyranny on their part? Yeah, the people can demand for them to ease it down a bit. Accountability is key in here.
      Where do you think the push for bodycams in cops after the strings of police brutality cases in the US a couple years ago came from?

    • @Tom-2142
      @Tom-2142 4 года назад +2

      Raziel312 A militarised police went against British ideals of liberty though.

    • @Raziel312
      @Raziel312 4 года назад +5

      @@Tom-2142 Yes, the freedom to get mugged in the filthy alley of your choice.

  • @dag1407
    @dag1407 4 года назад +23

    I love the wacky Extra Histories on stuff I've barely heard of like this and the South Sea Co.

    • @bkjeong4302
      @bkjeong4302 10 месяцев назад

      Which was actually happening at the same time as this, funnily enough.

  • @jp4431
    @jp4431 4 года назад +6

    4:10 imagine your prison system is so regressive that it's run in the same way as London in the 1700s
    USA #1!

    • @bearcatben4762
      @bearcatben4762 4 года назад +3

      Ineffective community policing and hangings for people stealing silverware, debtors prisons? Doesn't sound like America to me, we don't even execute rapists anymore we just give then 3-month sentences and let them go.

  • @AM-kf2zt
    @AM-kf2zt 4 года назад +8

    9:32 Homophobic prejudices aside, Hitchens' expression there is strangely hilarious.

  • @nailin18
    @nailin18 4 года назад +8

    9:16 Wow, early use of "Fake and Gay", the things you learn from history.

  • @user-xp6bl1my3j
    @user-xp6bl1my3j 4 года назад +12

    HE HAS CONTROL OF THE CRIMINALS AND THE COURTS! HE'S TOO DANGEROUS TO BE KEPT ALIVE

  • @orpheonkatakrosmortarchoft4332
    @orpheonkatakrosmortarchoft4332 4 года назад +27

    Just as I have to organize a presentation on London's crime world in the early modern period. Could you share your sources ?

    • @NotHPotter
      @NotHPotter 4 года назад +4

      Try hitting them up on Twitter. They get fewer messages there, so you're more likely to see a response.

    • @orpheonkatakrosmortarchoft4332
      @orpheonkatakrosmortarchoft4332 4 года назад +1

      @@NotHPotter Guess I will need to make a twitter account :(

    • @Kobolds_in_a_trenchcoat
      @Kobolds_in_a_trenchcoat 4 года назад +9

      They really should have been sharing their sources for a long time now. They sort of do with the lies episode but they need to fully list every source, it's just good practice.

  • @stretchchris1
    @stretchchris1 4 года назад +22

    This whole thing just sounds like modern day america.

  • @beruman
    @beruman 4 года назад +37

    "inherently repressive and militarized organization." totally different from now! right?

    • @Jackpkmn
      @Jackpkmn 4 года назад +6

      Yes. The police force is not 'inherently' repressive and militarized. It's just that having a repressive and militarized police force is the best thing for the nobles.

  • @zane4218
    @zane4218 4 года назад +5

    One of my favorite Extra History episodes in a while! Great job to all involved! (:

  • @camramaster
    @camramaster 4 года назад +7

    "Wild."
    ".... Shepherd."

  • @TransGirlMagic
    @TransGirlMagic 4 года назад +10

    That lesson about professional police needs to be learned again.

  • @a.dennis4835
    @a.dennis4835 3 года назад +4

    I remember reading about "The Beggar's Opera" (the source material of the "Threepenny Opera"). The opera actually talks about and satirizes this (since it was written three years after Jonathan Wild's death).

  • @TESkyrimizer
    @TESkyrimizer 4 года назад +8

    7:34 actually sounds like a very reasonable distribution of wealth. Thieves would only bother stealing from the rich, and only the rich would bother to pay the fee for expensive trinkets. Thus it becomes a sort of nonconsensual charity program.
    Wow this video is enlightening.

  • @DreadBirate
    @DreadBirate 4 месяца назад +14

    “The lesson the English took from this was that professional police were an inherently repressive and militarized organization” were they wrong?

  • @TESkyrimizer
    @TESkyrimizer 4 года назад +3

    Wait at his height Wilde made 400 pound a year or modern 70k USD. You telling me after all that work painting a giant target on his back he was only middle class?
    Truly the definition of society. Oof.

    • @chaosvii
      @chaosvii 4 года назад +2

      All the land was already owned by the aristocracy & royals, so he had to work very hard just to have the opportunity to exploit a labor base that benefited more from his professionalism than his fees extracted.
      Being upper class would require far too much extraction from someone. He’d have to get his hands on a nice slice of a colony or depose someone above him to get that much wealth. He’s just a humble peasant, not a lord.

  • @abdullahelgammal6196
    @abdullahelgammal6196 4 года назад +11

    0:18 *_THAT'S CSLLED FORESHAFIWING_*

    • @dinoricky5188
      @dinoricky5188 3 года назад

      Yee the mug said “best crime boss” lol

  • @johntoday1219
    @johntoday1219 4 года назад +6

    Wait... so are you saying that if you don't have a police force, you get more crime? This was released only six months ago, and it's already revolutionary.

  • @lukasmickevicius2173
    @lukasmickevicius2173 4 года назад +6

    Sounds like a much better plot for Assassin's Creed: Syndicate

  • @bigj1905
    @bigj1905 4 года назад +4

    “Sir, it appears our head of security it’s corrupt and taking bribes.”
    “Eh, don’t worry about.”
    “He is also gay, sir.”
    “GET THIS GUY OFF OF OUR STREETS!!!”

  • @TangySauce
    @TangySauce Год назад +2

    im going to me honest, this is by far one of my favorite serise from you, ive watched it so much its defietly my favorite, good work yall!

  • @ernestcline2868
    @ernestcline2868 10 месяцев назад +4

    The Mathematicians showed that the love of money is the square root of all evil.

  • @AhJong0
    @AhJong0 4 года назад +1

    Incredible some of the major figures I’ve simply never heard of. Rapidly falling in love with this channel .

  • @johnschmidt1262
    @johnschmidt1262 4 года назад +17

    Oh wow this really explains Oliver Twist.

    • @artofthepossible7329
      @artofthepossible7329 4 года назад

      @ Sorry, I saw comments talking about Bow Street so I thought it was in the same period (my phone only allowed me to read the comments for some reason).
      Although I do believe the crime policy was the same for the most part.

    • @artofthepossible7329
      @artofthepossible7329 4 года назад

      @ Like I said the crime policy was the same.

  • @Kenjilim524
    @Kenjilim524 7 месяцев назад +3

    What a wild story...

    • @meclov
      @meclov 6 месяцев назад

      Lol 😂

    • @meclov
      @meclov 6 месяцев назад

      This deserves to get pinned

  • @ramshacklealex7772
    @ramshacklealex7772 4 года назад +62

    _"The lesson that the English took from this was that professional police were an inherently repressive and militarized organisation."_
    I mean, they weren't wrong.

    • @justinjacobs1501
      @justinjacobs1501 4 года назад

      Yup.

    • @q345ify
      @q345ify 4 года назад +11

      considering that Paris was considerably safer than London at the time I would argue them being correct is at best a pyhrric victory

    • @JoshSweetvale
      @JoshSweetvale 4 года назад +2

      *Laughs in European.*

    • @dabtican4953
      @dabtican4953 4 года назад +2

      Nah just depends on the laws they enforce really

  • @fireironthesecond2909
    @fireironthesecond2909 3 года назад +4

    2:40
    Well this explains a lot

  • @venombug7476
    @venombug7476 2 года назад +4

    HOW have I missed the mug at 0:13 For 2 YEARS!?!?!

  • @Ada-kr4io
    @Ada-kr4io 4 года назад +6

    I actually really need this for my crime and punishment history paper

  • @Achillez098
    @Achillez098 4 года назад +9

    They need to make an HBO series on this

  • @michaelbetz4118
    @michaelbetz4118 4 года назад +1

    Thanks to Extra Credits for digging up such rarely known but most interesting stories.
    I love it and i want to see more of it.

  • @Bidmartinlo
    @Bidmartinlo 4 года назад +6

    It's ironic how one of the world's greatest empires had probably one of the worst run cities in history. Imagine every single mistake you could ever make and every crime against humanity, then you'll have the history of London. It's amazing that the city is even still standing!

  • @wezza668
    @wezza668 4 года назад +1

    this has to be one of the most interesting people you have ever talked about. Really looking forward to the other episodes

  • @abcdef27669
    @abcdef27669 4 года назад +5

    That was an intense episode! Holy cow!
    Even Walpole could get a lesson or two with John Wilde!

    • @BlueflameKing1
      @BlueflameKing1 4 года назад +2

      I think this took place during that event. Also what is with England having people named John who are amazing thieves/con men/politicians.

    • @kevinschultz6091
      @kevinschultz6091 4 года назад +2

      @@BlueflameKing1 - As a guess? John is historically a common name.

    • @bkjeong4302
      @bkjeong4302 10 месяцев назад +1

      This was happening at the same time as that and in the same city…

  • @SuperPyroFox
    @SuperPyroFox 4 года назад +2

    I know who's gonna be my next d&d rogue

  • @Shaftoe28
    @Shaftoe28 4 года назад +5

    If you would like a fantastic look into this topic, The Baroque cycle by Neal Stephenson touches upon it with great detail. Its also the book series that got me into my history degree and is my favorite series ever. Even covers more topics Extra History has done as well, from the siege of Vienna to paper money and so on.

  • @thil2894
    @thil2894 4 года назад +2

    he was the Guildmaster of the thieves guild, and commander Shepard rose to oppose him.

  • @AnAppleWithEyes
    @AnAppleWithEyes 3 года назад +8

    3:08. I mean… they are

    • @mnm1273
      @mnm1273 2 года назад +1

      no, they just are in some countries (include the US which I presume you come from). In the UK cops aren't militaristic, they are barely armed.

  • @va960
    @va960 3 года назад +1

    Jonathan Wild, the most badass double agent history ever known.

  • @VaradMahashabde
    @VaradMahashabde 4 года назад +7

    When you have fun listening about London and Britain great messups and realise one is happening right now

  • @torheadwiggen8181
    @torheadwiggen8181 Год назад +1

    This has got to be my favorite extra history series, I have seen it so many times

  • @YO-uj2jv
    @YO-uj2jv 4 года назад +4

    Hey guys. I am a big fan of yours. Especially the history episodes like Ned Kelly, Jonathan Wild and many more.
    I was wondering if you could cover the history of some of my favourite artists. I know you may not do this usually, but I like the way you interpret history with humour. So: here's a list of my favourite artists:
    King Crimson
    Pink Floyd
    Genesis (including Peter Gabriel era)
    KISS
    Led Zeppelin
    YES
    Simon And Garfunkel
    And of course: Queen
    Much appreciated. :)

  • @Crazt
    @Crazt 4 года назад +1

    Anyone read a series of books by Raymond E. Feist, these were popular enough to warrant a series of early video games? There was a character known as the Upright Man; he sounds like this was the source of that character.

  • @rogofos
    @rogofos 4 года назад +5

    8:51 wild sucsess of a Wild (the person)

  • @cj-ace
    @cj-ace 10 месяцев назад +2

    Always found it funny how they arrested people in debt and kept them in jail til they could pay up. Like if they had the money they wouldn't be there lol

  • @euansmith3699
    @euansmith3699 4 года назад +10

    This is an absolutely fascinating and utterly horrible period of History... although, I guess that applies to pretty much all of History.

  • @MovieFan1912
    @MovieFan1912 2 года назад +1

    2:16-2:25 Wow, that makes what Jean Valjean went through seem pleasant by comparison.

    • @mnm1273
      @mnm1273 2 года назад

      Les misérables was mainly a social critique, and not one prone to exaggeration.

  • @Ajc-ni3xn
    @Ajc-ni3xn 3 года назад +7

    0:53 so they literally snatched people’s wigs?

  • @JamesBrown-nn6ir
    @JamesBrown-nn6ir 4 года назад +1

    Anyone else notice that Wilde's coffee mug says "Best Crime Boss"? on it