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British Journal of Criminology Advance Access originally published online on May 3, 2008
British Journal of Criminology 2008 48(4):502-521; doi:10.1093/bjc/azn026
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The British Journal of Criminology 48:502-521 (2008)
© The Author 2008. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Centre for Crime and Justice Studies (ISTD). All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org

Prisoners of the Sun

The British Empire and Imprisonment in Malta in the Early Nineteenth Century

Sandra Scicluna* and Paul Knepper{dagger}

* Institute of Forensic Studies, University of Malta, 113 New Humanities Bldg, Msida MSD 06, Malta; Sandra.scicluna{at}um.edu.mt.

{dagger} Department of Sociological Studies, University of Sheffield, Elmfield, Northumberland Rd, Sheffield S10 2TU, UK; p.knepper{at}sheffield.ac.uk.


  Abstract

The ‘birth of the prison' has been linked to replacement of the ancient regime and the emergence of industrial, capitalist society. But this explanation gives insufficient attention to the role of the British Empire in diffusion of the prison as an institution and the continuing role of the sovereign in its political message. This essay focuses on the establishment of the prison at Corradino, in Malta, from initial plans in the 1830s through to its inaugural year in 1850. Drawing on archival materials in London and Malta, we explore the role of British social attitudes in empire-making and prison construction. Specifically, we explore the making of colonial prison policy, the architecture of the prison and colonial social hierarchy, the role of Catholic ritual in prison discipline, beliefs about ‘race' and criminality, and the significance of prison labour in a non-industrial context. Building Her Majesty's prison in Malta made it impossible for the Maltese to forget that they were subjects of a sovereign and not citizens in their own republic.


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