The following is an encore presentation of Everything Everywhere Daily.

In the TV series Game of Thrones, there were four different seasons where disputes were determined with trial by combat.

As fictional as the Game of Thrones universe is, the idea of resolving legal disputes by

fighting, sometimes to the death, was actually historically accurate. For centuries trial by combat

was a legitimate option for conflict resolution and according to some theories it

might actually still technically exist today.

Learn more about trial by combat,

and how it was actually conducted

on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. As insane as it sounds, the idea of people fighting to determine guilt or innocence,

aka the truth, was actually a thing at one time.

Trial by combat, also known as a judicial duel,

is an offshoot of something known as trial by ordeal.

And trial by ordeal was actually common in many ancient cultures. It would consist of having

to go through some unpleasant experience, usually involving fire or water. Examples of this could

include walking over hot coals, grabbing an object out of a vat of boiling water, being

submerged in water, or being forced to ingest poison. If the person could survive

the ordeal or come out unscathed, they would be declared innocent.

If there was an accuser, they would often be subject to the same ordeal

if the accused passed.

The legal theory behind a trial by ordeal in Christian Europe was that God would protect the innocent

and invoke a miracle on their behalf. However, the idea of a trial by ordeal

actually went all the way back to the code of Hammurabi.

...