DALE'S CODE

'Dale's Code' was a system of laws, formally known as the "Lawes Divine, Morall, and Martiall," enacted in 1611 by the Governor of Virginia, Sir Thomas Dale. The code constructed a rather authoritarian system of government for Virginia by establishing a "single ruling group" that "held tight control of the colony." Additionally, the word "Martiall," contained in Dale’s Code, governed the duties of soldiers, while the terms "Divine" and "Morall" related to crime and punishment. The code provided that capital punishment be given to any colonist who committed rather trivial crimes such as stealing certain property deemed intrinsically valuable to colonial life.^[1] Dale’s Code remained in force until 1618.^[2]

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References

1. A History of American Law: Third Edition, , Lawrence M., Friedman, Touchstone, 2005,
2. 'Dale’s Laws' and the Non-Common Law Origins of Criminal Justice in Virginia, , Thomas, Konig, The American Journal of Legal History, 1982

External link

★ Article on Sir Thomas Dale from the Encyclopædia Britannica, 11th edition