Criminal Offenses and Capital Punishment in Ukrainian Cossack State in the Second Half of the 17th — 18th Centuries: Judicial Practice

Abstract

Based on primary sources, the study aims to identify the main types of criminal offenses in the Hetmanate that led to capital punishment, and to trace the transformation of legal norms that defined such punishments. It also examines external factors that influence judicial decisions. The research applies approaches from social history, historical anthropology, microhistory, and chronological-substantive analysis, allowing for a detailed examination of how capital punishment was perceived by hetmans, senior officers, urban magistrates, and rural communities through everyday case studies. The research also highlights exceptional (“casuistic”) instances where courts deviated from existing legal codes. The scientific novelty lies in the detailed presentation of numerous crimes and their diversity over a long period, placed within the context of evolving legal norms and changing expectations of citizen behavior. Conclusions. In the Zaporizhian Host, there were about fifteen main types of criminal offenses punishable by death. The most common among them included treason (especially against the hetman), various forms of murder, rape, and arson. Death sentences for land or property seizure were far less frequent. Theft of church property, blasphemy against clergy, and apostasy were punished with particular cruelty. Notably, after the execution of a criminal, part of their property — often including money — could be transferred not only to the relatives of the victim but also to high-ranking figures involved in the judicial process. This practice fostered material interest among the judiciary and created fertile ground for corruption.