How to Starve a Prisoner Without Really Trying
In 18th-century New Spain, prison management was a complex affair. The Acordada court regulated prisons, with cases lasting up to two years. A document from Guadalajara (1789-1807) reveals struggles in funding prisoner meals due to collection delays and officials shirking duties.
Prisons. Those charming institutions where, for centuries, we’ve collectively decided to stash away society’s wrongdoers like the family silver at Christmas—just in case they ruin the festivities. You see, ever since man first realized that his neighbor was a bit of a scoundrel who couldn't be trusted with a pig, we’ve been finding ways to deal with them. And what better way to ensure someone regrets their dodgy decisions than by locking them in a cold, dim room for a while, presumably with a bed made of rocks and a view of absolutely nothing? That’ll teach them, right?
Except, as we all know, the art of punishing people is never quite as straightforward as it sounds. Take, for example, the grand experiment that was New Spain in the 18th century. At first glance, the prison system of that time may seem like an obvious solution to crime—an efficient, judicially savvy way to deal with the riff-raff. But beneath the surface, it was a bubbling cauldron of mismanagement, bureaucracy, and the kind of slapstick governance that makes you wonder how anyone kept track of anything, let alone actual people.
Let’s dive into the fascinating tale of New Spain's prison system, a place where time moved slower than the average traffic jam, and feeding prisoners became a comedy of errors worthy of the Monty Python crew.
