Lessons of history

To learn about the law's past, a visit to the galleries of justice in nottingham is a must.

But, as victoria MacCallum explains, this intimidating place also reforms the criminals of today

Among the many slings and arrows frequently levelled at the legal profession in the press, one crime it is never accused of is being unfaithful to its heritage.The archaic court language and dress, the idiosyncratic judicial appointments system, and the sheer antiquity of much of the common law, are all held up as examples of Britain's legal history, of which some reformers say should be consigned to textbooks and glass display cases.

Given this weight of history pressing on its shoulders, it is surprising that the legal profession has so few museums devoted to its iconography.

Scotland's Invergarry Castle and Bodmin in Cornwall both have converted courtrooms, which serve as visitor attractions, whereas the centre of legal London has a pitiful showing.The Museum of London, at the heart of the maze-like Barbican Centre in the City, contains a brief history of London's prisons and courts: real leg shackles and keys from 16th century gaols sit alongside graphic eye-witness accounts of hangings, and a history of the justice system from Anglo-Saxon times onwards.

And London's Clink Prison museum offers some similar horrors.Likewise, the Royal Courts of Justice makes a stab at relaying some of its history, but limits itself to a few glass display cases telling waiting litigants the story of the court buildings, and attempting to explain some of its quirkier ceremonial usages.But for real legal history, a trip needs to be made to the east midlands, specifically the gloriously well-appointed Galleries of Justice in Nottingham's Lace Market.

The Galleries, based on the site of a court dating from 1375, and a later prison, are claimed to be the only museum of law in the country, and was opened to the public in 1995.The Galleries were rescued from picturesque dilapidation in the early 1990s by the Lace Market Heritage Trust, which began its restoration and exhibition work in 1994.

The 3.5 million raised by donors such as Nottingham City Council and the University of Nottingham was well repaid when the Galleries won the prestigious Gulbenkian Prize (a European-wide award for visitor attractions) a year after opening.Highlights include the crime and punishment galleries, where a mock trial - presided over by an intimidating, realistically bewigged judge - takes place in the building's original Victorian courtroom.

The 'condemned' (one of the visitors) is then taken to the 18th century prison cells in the basement, where hard labour, isolation cells and - if he is particularly reluctant to partake of the gift shop - the original gallows await.

There is also a fully stocked library, intending to show how the law has been perceived throughout the centuries: 15th century letters from murderers sit alongside 1950s detective novels, and original contraband copies of The Well of Loneliness, Radclyffe Hall's lesbian novel written in 1928.

The book was declared obscene, with the home secretary asking the publisher to suspend distribution.

Also on display are the judge's notes from the Nuremberg trials.These permanent exhibits stand alongside a temporary themed exhibition, which is currently an examination of witchcraft throughout the ages.

Other themes have included trial by fire and ritual drownings to rather more fictional pursuits such as the sport of Quidditch from the Harry Potter books.

The museum also boasts an impressive number of private collections on permanent loan, including the intriguing collection of handcuffs and restraints, apparently the country's largest.As Peter Armstrong, chief executive of the galleries, is at pains to explain, the museum is about far more than pulling in the crowds.

'Our aim is not merely to be a visitor attraction,' he says.

'Why bother just being a visitor attraction when you have the potential to be so much more? Yes, we have the "fun factor" - the interactive exhibitions and audio-visual displays, but what is more important for us is to educate people: to teach them about the law, show them how the law has developed over time, and help them see how it helps and protects them today,' he adds.

To this end, in 1998 the police galleries were opened in an Edwardian building adjacent to the main museum.

Here, in a fully refurbished police station, visitors can work a 'real' crime scene, collect forensic evidence, and spend time in a real cell.

'It's obviously a fun thing to do, as people have seen it all done on television, and now they have the chance to have a crack at being Inspector Morse,' says Mr Armstrong.

'But at the same time, we let them spend time in a real police cell (the gallery was a fully functioning police station until 1985) and we have an actor playing a police sergeant.

Tshe aim is to try and make people realise the reality of life post-arrest in a police station; it can be frightening, and it isn't pleasant.'This appears to be the galleries' philosophy: bringing the law, and law enforcement, to life, and encouraging visitors to consider arguments about the profession.Mr Armstrong continues: 'We want to be a forum for debate on the law - for example, we have a large display on capital punishment, including accounts from hangmen and eye-witnesses, and at the end we ask people to vote whether they are in favour or not.' Apparently, the split is 'usually 60% in favour', though this changes according to which crimes have been in the news that week.

To continue this aim of enlightenment, the centre runs a number of education schemes.

Not only the common or garden school tours and activity centre, but an ambitious and original programme for young offenders.The galleries are funded by the Home Office to run an educational scheme for 'socially excluded' children, a week-long course which runs annually over three months.

The youths, with the aid of volunteer mentors, are helped to understand the implications of their crime (which is usually burglary) on the victim, and try to grasp why they have been given their particular sentence.

'It's an intensive experience,' explains education officer Tim Desmond.

'We try and help them to face up to what they've done, and make them realise why they did it and how they can change.' Although he freely acknowledges that 'you can't change the world just through a course', Mr Armstrong maintains that the course can make a difference.

'A group of children from a rough estate came in, and they prepared and carried out a role play and debate on the death penalty.

They had never really considered this sort of question before, and at the end they all wrote to their MP giving their reasons for opposing the death penalty - but more importantly, every one said that as a result they would all vote at the next election to make their opinions heard,' Mr Armstrong says.

Heartwarming tales aside, there are more immediate benefits to be gained.

'Often these children don't know how to behave in court, and they are rude and aggressive to the judge, which obviously does not help their case,' says Mr Armstrong.'By making them carry out a mock trial in the traditional and intimidating courtroom here, they learn not to see the court as a battleground, and to be more respectful, which will help them if they end up in court again.' Though this sort of skills are not vital for the majority of the galleries' visitors, there are enough original artefacts, - such as a 15th century 'scold's bridle' - a metal helmet designed to prevent nagging wives from speaking - to keep even the most hardened adult amused, and provide appeal for the popular corporate use of the venue.With plans afoot to expand into London, it seems that the capital may soon get its own version of the galleries, and London's dearth of legal history museums will hopefully get an overdue boost.

And - if Nottingham will part with it - with the largest collection of handcuffs and restraints on loan, corporate functions in the City will never be the same again.