The Act of Proscription (19 Geo. 2, c. 39), also called the Act of Proscription 1746, was an Act of the

Parliament of Great Britain The Parliament of Great Britain was formed in May 1707 following the ratification of the Acts of Union by both the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland. The Acts ratified the treaty of Union which created a new unified Kingdo ...

, which came into effect in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

on 1 August 1746. It was part of a series of efforts to assimilate the

Scottish Highlands The Highlands ( sco, the Hielands; gd, a’ Ghàidhealtachd , 'the place of the Gaels') is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland S ...

, ending their ability to revolt, and the first of the "King's laws" that sought to crush the Clan system in the aftermath of the

Jacobite rising of 1745 The Jacobite rising of 1745, also known as the Forty-five Rebellion or simply the '45 ( gd, Bliadhna Theàrlaich, , ), was an attempt by Charles Edward Stuart to regain the British throne for his father, James Francis Edward Stuart. It took ...

. These laws were finally repealed on 1 July 1782.

Background

From 1745 to 1746, government forces led by the Duke of Cumberland gradually suppressed the

. As the majority of the Jacobite Army consisted of men from the Scottish Highlanders, the Hanoverian regime made plans to suppress the Highland clan system to prevent future rebellions.

Penalties

It was mainly a restatement of the earlier

Disarming Act The Disarming Act (1 George 1 session 2 C.26) was an 18th-century Act of Parliament of Great Britain that was enacted to curtail Jacobitism among the Scottish clans in the Scottish Highlands after the Jacobite rising of 1715. The new law, which ca ...

, but with more severe punishments which this time were rigorously enforced. Punishments started with fines, with jail until payment and possible forced

conscription Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to Ancient history, antiquity and it continues in some countries to th ...

for late payment. Repeat offenders were "liable to be transported to any of his Majesty's plantations beyond the seas, there to remain for the space of seven years", effectively

indentured servitude Indentured servitude is a form of labor in which a person is contracted to work without salary for a specific number of years. The contract, called an " indenture", may be entered "voluntarily" for purported eventual compensation or debt repayme ...

. The penalties for wearing " highland clothing" as stated in the Dress Act 1746 were "imprisonment, without bail, during the space of six months, and no longer; and being convicted for a second offence before a

court of justiciary The High Court of Justiciary is the supreme criminal court in Scotland. The High Court is both a trial court and a court of appeal. As a trial court, the High Court sits on circuit at Parliament House or in the adjacent former Sheriff Cour ...

or at the circuits, shall be liable to be transported..." No lesser penalties were allowed for.

Geographical Coverage

The elements of the act relating to the proscription of arms applied to the

Highlands of Scotland The Highlands ( sco, the Hielands; gd, a’ Ghàidhealtachd , 'the place of the Gaels') is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland ...

, i.e. the counties of Dunbarton, on the north side of the water of Leven,

Stirling Stirling (; sco, Stirlin; gd, Sruighlea ) is a city in central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the royal citadel, the medieval old town with its me ...

on the north side of the river of

Forth Forth or FORTH may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''forth'' magazine, an Internet magazine * ''Forth'' (album), by The Verve, 2008 * ''Forth'', a 2011 album by Proto-Kaw * Radio Forth, a group of independent local radio stations in Scotla ...

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

, Kincardine,

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), a ...

Inverness Inverness (; from the gd, Inbhir Nis , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness"; sco, Innerness) is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands. Histor ...

Nairn Nairn (; gd, Inbhir Narann) is a town and royal burgh in the Highland council area of Scotland. It is an ancient fishing port and market town around east of Inverness, at the point where the River Nairn enters the Moray Firth. It is the tradit ...

, Cromarty,

Argyll Argyll (; archaically Argyle, in modern Gaelic, ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a historic county and registration county of western Scotland. Argyll is of ancient origin, and corresponds to most of the part of the ancient kingdom of ...

, Forfar, Banff,

Sutherland Sutherland ( gd, Cataibh) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area in the Highlands of Scotland. Its county town is Dornoch. Sutherland borders Caithness and Moray Firth to the east, Ross-shire and Cromartyshire (later c ...

Caithness Caithness ( gd, Gallaibh ; sco, Caitnes; non, Katanes) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. Caithness has a land boundary with the historic county of Sutherland to the west and is otherwise bounded ...

, Elgin and Ross. The Dress Act applied to the whole of Scotland.

Comment

Dr.

Samuel Johnson Samuel Johnson (18 September 1709 – 13 December 1784), often called Dr Johnson, was an English writer who made lasting contributions as a poet, playwright, essayist, moralist, critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer. The ''Oxford ...

commented that "the last law by which the Highlanders are deprived of their arms, has operated with efficacy beyond expectations ... the arms were collected with such rigour, that every house was despoiled of its defence". They were also, of course, despoiled of the ability to hunt which, their cattle having been seized, meant starvation for many.

Sections of the Act

A new section, which became known as the

Dress Act The Dress Act 1746 was part of the Act of Proscription which came into force on 1 August 1746 and made wearing "the Highland Dress" — including the kilt — illegal in Scotland as well as reiterating the Disarming Act. The Jacobite Risings betw ...

, banned wearing of "the Highland Dress". Provision was also included to protect those involved in putting down the rebellion from lawsuits. Measures to prevent children from being "educated in disaffected or rebellious principles" included a requirement for

school prayer School prayer, in the context of religious liberty, is state-sanctioned or mandatory prayer by students in public schools. Depending on the country and the type of school, state-sponsored prayer may be required, permitted, or prohibited. Countries ...

s for the King and Royal family. The most severe penalties, at a minimum six months' incarceration and transportation to a penal colony for a second offence, made these the most severe portion of this act.

Following Act

The Act of Proscription was followed by the Heritable Jurisdictions (Scotland) Act 1746 which removed the

feudal Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was the combination of the legal, economic, military, cultural and political customs that flourished in medieval Europe between the 9th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structur ...

authority the Clan Chieftains had enjoyed. Scottish heritable sheriffdoms reverted to the Crown, and other heritable jurisdictions, including regalities, came under the power of the courts.

References

External links

Act of Proscription 1747
{{UK legislation History of the Scottish Highlands Acts of the Parliament of Great Britain concerning Scotland Great Britain Acts of Parliament 1746 Repealed Great Britain Acts of Parliament Jacobite rising of 1745 1746 in Scotland Firearm laws Gun politics in the United Kingdom de:Disarming Act