Newgate Prison was England’s main criminal jail for more than 700 years. It was built in London in 1188. The prison was enlarged and redesigned many times. It was torn down in 1902 after years of protests about its harsh and shameful conditions. The site then became incorporated into London’s Central Criminal Court, also known as the Old Bailey.
Beginning in 1783, Newgate housed the London gallows. Executions were at first held in public but were moved inside the prison in 1868. In addition to its history of brutality, Newgate played a key role in prison reform. In 1813, Elizabeth Fry, a British social reformer, began working to improve the conditions of the prison and the treatment of the inmates, especially the women and their children. Until Fry’s policies were established, women, children, debtors, and convicted criminals were held together in open cells. In 1858, the interior was rebuilt with single cells.
See also Fry, Elizabeth Gurney ; Old Bailey .
