Treason Act 1351
Encyclopedia
The Treason Act 1351 is an Act
of the Parliament of England
(25 Edw. III St. 5 c. 2) which codified and curtailed the common law offence of treason
. No new offences were created by the statute. It is one of the earliest English statute
s still in force, although it has been very significantly amended. It was extended to Ireland in 1495 and to Scotland in 1708. The Act was passed at Westminster
in the Hilary term
of 1351, in the 25th year of the reign of Edward III
and was entitled "A Declaration which Offences shall be adjudged Treason". It was passed to clarify precisely what was treason, as the definition under common law
had been expanded rapidly by the courts until its scope was controversially wide. The Act was last used to prosecute William Joyce
in 1945 for collaborating with Germany in World War II
.
This Act forms part of the law of New South Wales
, Australia
.
It was repealed for the Republic of Ireland
on 16 May 1983, and for New Zealand
on 1 January 1962.
and petty treason
(or petit treason), the first being disloyalty to the Sovereign, and the second being disloyalty to a subject. The practical distinction was the consequence of being convicted: for a high treason, the penalty was death by hanging, drawing and quartering
(for a man) or drawing and burning
(for a woman), and the traitor's property would escheat
to the Crown
; in the case of a petty treason the penalty was drawing and hanging without quartering, or burning without drawing; and property escheated only to the traitor's immediate lord
.
A person was guilty of high treason under the Act if they:
The penalty for counterfeiting coins was the same as for petty treason. The offence had previously been called petty treason, before the Act elevated it to high treason.
Under the Act petty treason was the murder of one's lawful superior: that is if a servant killed his master or his master's wife, a wife killed her husband or a clergyman killed his prelate
. This offence was abolished in 1828.
The Act originally contained a curious feature (now repealed), in that it envisaged that further forms of treason would arise
that would not be covered by the act, so it legislated for this possibility:
, Scotland continued to have its own treason laws until 1708, when an act of the British Parliament abolished Scottish treason law and extended English treason law to Scotland. The Treason Act 1708
also made it treason to counterfeit the Great Seal of Scotland
, and to kill the Scottish Lords of Session and Lords of Justiciary
(in addition to forging the British – formerly English – seal, and killing English judges). However while in England and Ireland forgery of the seal of Great Britain
ceased to be treason in 1861, this change did not take place in Scotland until years later. Also, forging the Scottish seal is still treason in Scotland, but has not been treason in England or Ireland since 1861.
The 1351 Act still applies in Scotland today, and is a reserved matter
which the Scottish Parliament
has no power to modify.
who in 1916 was accused of collaborating with Germany during World War I
the defence argued that the Act applied only to activities carried out on British soil while Casement committed the acts of collaboration outside Britain. However, closer reading of the medieval document allowed for a broader interpretation, leading to the accusation that Casement was "hanged by a comma". The court decided that a comma should be read in the text, crucially widening the sense so that "in the realm or elsewhere" meant where acts were done and not just where the "King's enemies" may be.
James Hewitt
's 1987–1992 affair with Diana, Princess of Wales
constituted high treason according to the act, since she was the wife of the heir to the throne at the time. However, the Treason Act 1695
requires that prosecutions are brought within three years, and Diana's admission of the affair in her Panorama
interview was not until 1995.
Act of Parliament
An Act of Parliament is a statute enacted as primary legislation by a national or sub-national parliament. In the Republic of Ireland the term Act of the Oireachtas is used, and in the United States the term Act of Congress is used.In Commonwealth countries, the term is used both in a narrow...
of the Parliament of England
Parliament of England
The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England. In 1066, William of Normandy introduced a feudal system, by which he sought the advice of a council of tenants-in-chief and ecclesiastics before making laws...
(25 Edw. III St. 5 c. 2) which codified and curtailed the common law offence of treason
Treason
In law, treason is the crime that covers some of the more extreme acts against one's sovereign or nation. Historically, treason also covered the murder of specific social superiors, such as the murder of a husband by his wife. Treason against the king was known as high treason and treason against a...
. No new offences were created by the statute. It is one of the earliest English statute
Statute
A statute is a formal written enactment of a legislative authority that governs a state, city, or county. Typically, statutes command or prohibit something, or declare policy. The word is often used to distinguish law made by legislative bodies from case law, decided by courts, and regulations...
s still in force, although it has been very significantly amended. It was extended to Ireland in 1495 and to Scotland in 1708. The Act was passed at Westminster
Palace of Westminster
The Palace of Westminster, also known as the Houses of Parliament or Westminster Palace, is the meeting place of the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom—the House of Lords and the House of Commons...
in the Hilary term
Hilary term
Hilary Term is the second academic term of Oxford University's academic year. It runs from January to March and is so named because the feast day of St Hilary of Poitiers, 14 January, falls during this term...
of 1351, in the 25th year of the reign of Edward III
Edward III of England
Edward III was King of England from 1327 until his death and is noted for his military success. Restoring royal authority after the disastrous reign of his father, Edward II, Edward III went on to transform the Kingdom of England into one of the most formidable military powers in Europe...
and was entitled "A Declaration which Offences shall be adjudged Treason". It was passed to clarify precisely what was treason, as the definition under common law
Common law
Common law is law developed by judges through decisions of courts and similar tribunals rather than through legislative statutes or executive branch action...
had been expanded rapidly by the courts until its scope was controversially wide. The Act was last used to prosecute William Joyce
William Joyce
William Joyce , nicknamed Lord Haw-Haw, was an Irish-American fascist politician and Nazi propaganda broadcaster to the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He was hanged for treason by the British as a result of his wartime activities, even though he had renounced his British nationality...
in 1945 for collaborating with Germany in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
This Act forms part of the law of New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
It was repealed for the Republic of Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
on 16 May 1983, and for New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
on 1 January 1962.
Content
The Act distinguishes two varieties of treason: high treasonHigh treason
High treason is criminal disloyalty to one's government. Participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplomats, or its secret services for a hostile and foreign power, or attempting to kill its head of state are perhaps...
and petty treason
Petty treason
Petty treason or petit treason was an offence under the common law of England which involved the betrayal of a superior by a subordinate. It differed from the better-known high treason in that high treason can only be committed against the Sovereign...
(or petit treason), the first being disloyalty to the Sovereign, and the second being disloyalty to a subject. The practical distinction was the consequence of being convicted: for a high treason, the penalty was death by hanging, drawing and quartering
Hanged, drawn and quartered
To be hanged, drawn and quartered was from 1351 a penalty in England for men convicted of high treason, although the ritual was first recorded during the reigns of King Henry III and his successor, Edward I...
(for a man) or drawing and burning
Execution by burning
Death by burning is death brought about by combustion. As a form of capital punishment, burning has a long history as a method in crimes such as treason, heresy, and witchcraft....
(for a woman), and the traitor's property would escheat
Escheat
Escheat is a common law doctrine which transfers the property of a person who dies without heirs to the crown or state. It serves to ensure that property is not left in limbo without recognised ownership...
to the Crown
The Crown
The Crown is a corporation sole that in the Commonwealth realms and any provincial or state sub-divisions thereof represents the legal embodiment of governance, whether executive, legislative, or judicial...
; in the case of a petty treason the penalty was drawing and hanging without quartering, or burning without drawing; and property escheated only to the traitor's immediate lord
Lord
Lord is a title with various meanings. It can denote a prince or a feudal superior . The title today is mostly used in connection with the peerage of the United Kingdom or its predecessor countries, although some users of the title do not themselves hold peerages, and use it 'by courtesy'...
.
A person was guilty of high treason under the Act if they:
- "compassed or imagined" (i.e. planned) the death of the King, his wife or his eldest son and heir;
- violated the King's companion, the King's eldest daughter if she was unmarried or the wife of the King's eldest son and heir;
- levied war against the King in his Realm;
- adhered to the King's enemies in his Realm, giving them aid and comfort in his Realm or elsewhere;
- counterfeited the Great SealGreat Seal of the RealmThe Great Seal of the Realm or Great Seal of the United Kingdom is a seal that is used to symbolise the Sovereign's approval of important state documents...
or the Privy SealPrivy SealA privy seal refers to the personal seal of a reigning monarch, used for the purpose of authenticating official government document.-Privy Seal of England:The Privy Seal of England can be traced back to the reign of King John...
(reduced to felonyFelonyA felony is a serious crime in the common law countries. The term originates from English common law where felonies were originally crimes which involved the confiscation of a convicted person's land and goods; other crimes were called misdemeanors...
in 1861); - counterfeited English coinage or imported counterfeit English coinage (reduced to felonyFelonyA felony is a serious crime in the common law countries. The term originates from English common law where felonies were originally crimes which involved the confiscation of a convicted person's land and goods; other crimes were called misdemeanors...
in 1832); - killed the ChancellorLord ChancellorThe Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, or Lord Chancellor, is a senior and important functionary in the government of the United Kingdom. He is the second highest ranking of the Great Officers of State, ranking only after the Lord High Steward. The Lord Chancellor is appointed by the Sovereign...
, TreasurerLord High TreasurerThe post of Lord High Treasurer or Lord Treasurer was an English government position and has been a British government position since the Act of Union of 1707. A holder of the post would be the third highest ranked Great Officer of State, below the Lord High Chancellor and above the Lord President...
(this office is now in commissionGovernment agencyA government or state agency is a permanent or semi-permanent organization in the machinery of government that is responsible for the oversight and administration of specific functions, such as an intelligence agency. There is a notable variety of agency types...
), one of the King's Justices (either of the King's BenchKing's BenchThe Queen's Bench is the superior court in a number of jurisdictions within some of the Commonwealth realms...
or the Common PleasCourt of Common Pleas (England)The Court of Common Pleas, or Common Bench, was a common law court in the English legal system that covered "common pleas"; actions between subject and subject, which did not concern the king. Created in the late 12th to early 13th century after splitting from the Exchequer of Pleas, the Common...
), a Justice in EyreJustice in EyreIn English law, the Justices in Eyre were the highest magistrates in forest law, and presided over the court of justice-seat, a triennial court held to punish offenders against the forest law and enquire into the state of the forest and its officers...
, an Assize judge, and "all other Justices," while they are performing their offices. (This did not include the barons of the ExchequerExchequer of pleasThe Exchequer of Pleas or Court of Exchequer was a court that followed equity, a set of legal principles based on natural law, and common law, in England and Wales. Originally part of the curia regis, or King's Council, the Exchequer of Pleas split from the curia during the 1190s, to sit as an...
.)
The penalty for counterfeiting coins was the same as for petty treason. The offence had previously been called petty treason, before the Act elevated it to high treason.
Under the Act petty treason was the murder of one's lawful superior: that is if a servant killed his master or his master's wife, a wife killed her husband or a clergyman killed his prelate
Prelate
A prelate is a high-ranking member of the clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin prælatus, the past participle of præferre, which means "carry before", "be set above or over" or "prefer"; hence, a prelate is one set over others.-Related...
. This offence was abolished in 1828.
The Act originally contained a curious feature (now repealed), in that it envisaged that further forms of treason would arise
Constructive treason
Constructive treason refers to the judicial extension of the statutory definition of the crime of treason. For example, the English Treason Act 1351 declares it to be treason "When a Man doth compass or imagine the Death of our Lord the King." This was subsequently interpreted by the courts to...
that would not be covered by the act, so it legislated for this possibility:
The Act in Scotland
Following the union of England and Scotland by the Acts of Union 1707Acts of Union 1707
The Acts of Union were two Parliamentary Acts - the Union with Scotland Act passed in 1706 by the Parliament of England, and the Union with England Act passed in 1707 by the Parliament of Scotland - which put into effect the terms of the Treaty of Union that had been agreed on 22 July 1706,...
, Scotland continued to have its own treason laws until 1708, when an act of the British Parliament abolished Scottish treason law and extended English treason law to Scotland. The Treason Act 1708
Treason Act 1708
The Treason Act 1708 is an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain which harmonised the law of high treason between the former kingdoms of England and Scotland following their union as Great Britain in 1707. It came into effect on 1 July 1709. Some of it is still in force today...
also made it treason to counterfeit the Great Seal of Scotland
Great Seal of Scotland
The Great Seal of Scotland allows the monarch to authorise official documents without having to sign each document individually. Wax is melted in a metal mould or matrix and impressed into a wax figure that is attached by cord or ribbon to documents that the monarch wishes to make official...
, and to kill the Scottish Lords of Session and Lords of Justiciary
Senator of the College of Justice
The Senators of the College of Justice are judges of the College of Justice, a set of legal institutions involved in the administration of justice in Scotland. There are three types of Senator: Lords of Session ; Lords Commissioner of Justiciary ; and the Chairman of the Scottish Land Court...
(in addition to forging the British – formerly English – seal, and killing English judges). However while in England and Ireland forgery of the seal of Great Britain
Great Seal of the Realm
The Great Seal of the Realm or Great Seal of the United Kingdom is a seal that is used to symbolise the Sovereign's approval of important state documents...
ceased to be treason in 1861, this change did not take place in Scotland until years later. Also, forging the Scottish seal is still treason in Scotland, but has not been treason in England or Ireland since 1861.
The 1351 Act still applies in Scotland today, and is a reserved matter
Reserved matters
In the United Kingdom reserved matters and excepted matters are the areas of government policy where Parliament had kept the power to make laws in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales....
which the Scottish Parliament
Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood", is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament...
has no power to modify.
Interpretation
During the trial of Roger CasementRoger Casement
Roger David Casement —Sir Roger Casement CMG between 1911 and shortly before his execution for treason, when he was stripped of his British honours—was an Irish patriot, poet, revolutionary, and nationalist....
who in 1916 was accused of collaborating with Germany during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
the defence argued that the Act applied only to activities carried out on British soil while Casement committed the acts of collaboration outside Britain. However, closer reading of the medieval document allowed for a broader interpretation, leading to the accusation that Casement was "hanged by a comma". The court decided that a comma should be read in the text, crucially widening the sense so that "in the realm or elsewhere" meant where acts were done and not just where the "King's enemies" may be.
James Hewitt
James Hewitt
James Hewitt is a former British household cavalry officer in the British Army. He had an affair with Diana, Princess of Wales for five years, receiving extensive media coverage after revealing details of the affair.-Early life:...
's 1987–1992 affair with Diana, Princess of Wales
Diana, Princess of Wales
Diana, Princess of Wales was the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales, whom she married on 29 July 1981, and an international charity and fundraising figure, as well as a preeminent celebrity of the late 20th century...
constituted high treason according to the act, since she was the wife of the heir to the throne at the time. However, the Treason Act 1695
Treason Act 1695
The Treason Act 1695 is an Act of the Parliament of England which laid down rules of evidence and procedure in high treason trials. It was passed by the English Parliament but was extended to cover Scotland in 1708 and Ireland in 1821...
requires that prosecutions are brought within three years, and Diana's admission of the affair in her Panorama
Panorama (TV series)
Panorama is a BBC Television current affairs documentary programme, which was first broadcast in 1953, and is the longest-running public affairs television programme in the world. Panorama has been presented by many well known BBC presenters, including Richard Dimbleby, Robin Day, David Dimbleby...
interview was not until 1995.
See also
- TreasonTreasonIn law, treason is the crime that covers some of the more extreme acts against one's sovereign or nation. Historically, treason also covered the murder of specific social superiors, such as the murder of a husband by his wife. Treason against the king was known as high treason and treason against a...
- Treason ActTreason ActTreason Act or Treasons Act is a stock short title used for legislation in the United Kingdom and in the Republic of Ireland on the subject of treason and related offences...
- Treason Act 1397Treason Act 1397The Treason Act 1397 was an Act of the Parliament of England. It was supplemented by three other Acts . The four Acts together dealt with high treason....
- Treason Act 1495Treason Act 1495The Treason Act 1495, which is sometimes referred to as the Rex de facto statute, is an Act of the Parliament of England which was passed in the reign of Henry VII of England...
(special defence to treason) - Treason Act 1695Treason Act 1695The Treason Act 1695 is an Act of the Parliament of England which laid down rules of evidence and procedure in high treason trials. It was passed by the English Parliament but was extended to cover Scotland in 1708 and Ireland in 1821...
(statute of limitations) - Treason Act 1702Treason Act 1702The Treason Act 1702 is an Act of the Parliament of England, passed to enforce the line of succession to the English throne, previously established by the Bill of Rights 1689 and the Act of Settlement 1701....
(further form of treason) - Treason Act 1708Treason Act 1708The Treason Act 1708 is an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain which harmonised the law of high treason between the former kingdoms of England and Scotland following their union as Great Britain in 1707. It came into effect on 1 July 1709. Some of it is still in force today...
(further forms of treason) - Treason Act 1814Treason Act 1814The Treason Act 1814 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland which modified the penalty for high treason for male convicts....
(the penalty for treason) - Treason Felony Act 1848Treason Felony Act 1848The Treason Felony Act 1848 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. The Act is still in force. It is a law which protects HM the Queen and the Crown....
(still-existing offences which used to be treason)