Answer to Question 1
By the middle of the ninth century, the majority of the English population lived in established towns and cities, each with its own system of rules and organization. During the reign of Alfred the Great (849899 AD), however, a new system of social organization was imposed. In an effort to make the collection of taxes and the maintenance of the king's peace easier, Alfred divided England into regions known as shires. Each shire, which was similar to the American county, consisted of geographic units known as hundredsso named because each contained 100 families. Each of the hundreds was composed of ten tithings, and a tithing consisted of ten families. Under this new arrangement, every citizen was tied to a particular tithe and was jointly responsible with all other members of his or her group for the payment of taxes and the maintenance of order. As a result, a crime committed by one person was held to be a crime committed by his or her entire community, with the punishment to be borne by the group as a whole. In essence, Alfred's aim was to make communities self-regulating when it came to the payment of taxes and the enforcement of law. Shire reeves, precursors to modern-day sheriffs, were the leaders of the shires and were appointed by the king. They were given the task of ensuring that law and order was maintained throughout their region. Drawing on the assistance of locally elected constables, shire reeves frequently organized villagers and other members of the community into posses that would track down and apprehend offenders.
Although by modern standards the system of policing established by Alfred the Great might appear to be crude, the introduction of shire reeves and local constables revolutionized the way in which laws were enforced throughout medieval England. In the space of a few decades, the administration of justice was taken out of the hands of individuals and made the responsibility of particular communities and their appointed leaders. Law enforcement ceased to be a private matter and became associated with the king and his agents.
Some three centuries later, this system was formalized by the Statute of Winchester
Answer to Question 2
FALSE
Stonehenge, Salisbury Plain, Wiltshire, England.
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