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Do you know that there was a strange rule in London in 1895? There it was forbidden to beat one’s wife from ten o’clock in the night to seven in the morning. After this the husband could beat his wife severely.
London of 1895 was quite advanced. The glittering streets, horse-drawn carriages and foggy nights of the Victorian era. But there was a dark truth behind all this. Men had full rights over women’s lives. There were many such rules, after knowing which you will be shocked. Meanwhile, a by-law (local law) came into force in the City of London, which is still heart-wrenching.
No man can beat his wife between 10 pm to 7 am. Hearing this rule, you must be feeling how good a rule it is. This must have been made for the benefit of women. But let us tell you that this rule was not actually for the protection of women but rather reflected their helplessness. After all, what was the reason for this rule? Let us tell you also.
Women’s helplessness, not rules
The purpose of this law was not to protect women at all. Its purpose was to protect the neighbors from disturbing their sleep. Yes, the argument of the police and the court was that screaming at night disturbs public peace and people are unable to sleep. Therefore, beating should be banned only during these 9 hours of the night. For the remaining 15 hours the men had a free pass to beat the women. He could have beaten his wife brutally. No one came to save the woman. But it was forbidden to kill a woman only at fixed times of the night.
discipline means beating
In those times, beating one’s wife was considered to teach her discipline. To keep the wife in “discipline”, the husband could beat her as much as he wanted. This thinking came from the old common law of England. The “Rule of Thumb” was famous till the 19th century, that is, a husband can beat his wife, provided the stick is not thicker than his thumb. This bylaw of 1895 was a “civilized” version of that thinking. There are many cases registered in the court records, which clear this rule. A husband hit his wife at 10:45 pm. The police came and caught the husband and took him away. The court imposed a fine on the husband. But this fine was only for “making noise at night”. No punishment was given for the beating. In another case, the husband beat his wife at 3 o’clock in the day so much that her bone was broken, but the court said, “It was a moderate correction, the case was dismissed.”
