The legal system in England and Wales is over 1,000 years old and has seen many changes. In this article, we take you on a whistle-stop tour – from trial by fire and water to the full separation of legal and governmental powers.

From the Anglo-Saxons to the 12th century

Until the end of the 12th century, the principle of trial by ordeal held sway in local and royal courts.

A verdict of guilt or innocence wasn't delivered by a jury, but by God. The accused person was subjected to a painful ordeal – and how they responded was seen as proof of God's verdict.

Trial by ordeal involves practices like making the accused carry a red-hot iron bar for three metres, or tying them to a rope and then plunging them into a pool of cold water.

Another way of reaching a verdict was trial by combat, in which victory was attributed to strength granted by God. This remained in English law until 1818, but by this time it had mostly fallen out of use.

From the first judges to the "common law"

Up until the 12th century, the monarchy and judiciary were inseparable. This began to change with the creation of "justices in Eyre".

When Henry II came to the throne in 1154, there were 18 judges in England. He sowed the seeds for the justice system we know today by creating local juries of 12 knights. Their job was to resolve disputes relating to land ownership.

Henry also oversaw the creation of common law and legal "circuits". Laws created in Westminster replaced local customs. This new common law was implemented by travelling judges who went around the country's circuits settling cases.

The King's Bench

Henry also created the King's Bench – a collection of members from the Royal Household whose job was "to hear all the complaints of the realm and to do right". Eventually, this split into three courts – proceedings before the King, proceedings before the King's Bench and the Court of Exchequer, which dealt with royal finances.

Big changes took place in the 13th century. The demographic of judges on the bench changed from predominantly clergymen to "serjeants" who had professional experience of the law. The class of "serjeant" was the 13th-century equivalent of today's barristers and solicitors.

The birth of Magistrates' courts

Common law isn't the only legal concept that has hung around since the Middle Ages. There are also Magistrates' Courts, which were introduced by Edward I in 1285 – and which today carry out around 95% of all criminal cases.

From the Wars of the Roses to the Restoration

The civil wars fought between the Houses of Lancaster and York are an illustration of how the judiciary and the monarchy were slowly separating. Despite the impact of this conflict on English society, the judges remained separate, impartial and largely unaffected.

This trend continued through the Reformation, which strengthened the monarch's powers. On the surface, at least, the system was that the monarch made the laws and the judges interpreted them with an even hand.

However, it would be wrong to say that judges weren't extremely mindful of the sovereign's opinion. In the second half of the 17th century, Charles II sacked 11 judges and James II sacked 12 – so judges had to learn quickly which side their bread was buttered on.

The Court of Chancery

If a person felt they had been failed by the common law system, they could petition the King. Gradually, this power was given to the King's Council and eventually to just one man, the Lord Chancellor, who presided over the Court of Chancery.

Although ostensibly run on the principle of impartiality, it was vulnerable to the same problems as the common law courts – and, as it was the domain of one man, it wasn't as even-handed as it was presented. Nevertheless, by the time of Henry VIII, it was used as much as common law.

The 19th century

The next big change came in the 19th century. In 1830, the Court of Great Sessions was abolished and the Old Bailey was established. This was the Central Criminal Court, which sought to bring together the judiciary in London and its surroundings.

In 1856, Old Bailey judges were given the right to hear local trials when it was believed they were unfairly influenced by local bias or could be settled early. And today's County Courts – which cover civil cases – were introduced in 1846.

Things were starting to resemble today's legal system more closely. This reached a head in 1873 when the Judicature Act merged the common law courts with the Court of Chancery.

This Act also created the High Court and Court of Appeal. Along with the Court of Appeal came the right of appeal in civil cases. Rights of appeal in criminal cases were held off until 1907.

The Crown Court

Today, there are around 70 Crown Court centres in England and Wales. They deal with the most serious criminal cases.

The first of these were founded in Liverpool and Manchester in 1956 – with numbers ballooning in 1972 when assize courts and quarter sessions courts were replaced by Crown Courts.

The long road to judicial independence

It may surprise you to learn that a fully independent judiciary in England and Wales is only as old as Google Translate.

It wasn't until 2006 that the Lord Chancellor was unable to act as both government minister and judge – a setup that conflicted with both the separation of powers and the European Convention on Human Rights. This change was a result of the Constitutional Reform Act 2005.

This was the first time in the history of England and Wales that the judiciary was officially made independent from the government.

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