ABSTRACT
Introduction Historically, the treatment and care of the mentally ill has been influenced by societal, cultural, political, religious and scientific factors. Beliefs about the nature of lunacy, insanity and subsequently mental illness, while divergent across the globe, demonstrate a concordance that has served to determine how those with mental illness have been cared for by the societies in which they live. As societies began the interrelated processes of industrialisation and urbanisation, an increasing drive towards classification and segregation of various groups within society including prisoners, vagrants, the poor, the sick and ultimately the mentally ill, emerged.
