The Indemnity and Oblivion Act 1660 was an Act of the

Parliament of England The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England from the 13th century until 1707 when it was replaced by the Parliament of Great Britain. Parliament evolved from the great council of bishops and peers that advise ...

(12 Cha. II c. 11), the

long title In certain jurisdictions, including the United Kingdom and other Westminster-influenced jurisdictions (such as Canada or Australia), as well as the United States and the Philippines, primary legislation has both a short title and a long title. The ...

of which is "An Act of Free and General Pardon, Indemnity, and Oblivion". This act was a general pardon for everyone who had committed crimes during the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I (" Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of r ...

and subsequent Commonwealth period, with the exception of certain crimes such as murder (without a licence granted by King or Parliament), piracy, buggery, rape and witchcraft, and people named in the act such as those involved in the regicide of

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

. It also said that no action was to be taken against those involved at any later time, and that the Interregnum was to be legally forgotten. An act of free and general pardon, indemnity and oblivion

History

The Indemnity and Oblivion Act fulfilled the suggestion given in the

Declaration of Breda The Declaration of Breda (dated 4 April 1660) was a proclamation by Charles II of England in which he promised a general pardon for crimes committed during the English Civil War and the Interregnum for all those who recognized Charles as the la ...

that reprisals against the establishment which had developed during the

English Interregnum The Interregnum was the period between the execution of Charles I on 30 January 1649 and the arrival of his son Charles II in London on 29 May 1660 which marked the start of the Restoration. During the Interregnum, England was under various for ...

would be restricted to those who had officiated in the

regicide Regicide is the purposeful killing of a monarch or sovereign of a polity and is often associated with the usurpation of power. A regicide can also be the person responsible for the killing. The word comes from the Latin roots of ''regis'' ...

of King

. The passage of the Indemnity and Oblivion Act through the Convention Parliament was secured by Lord Clarendon, the first minister of King Charles II, and it became law on 29 August 1660 during the first year of the

English Restoration The Restoration of the Stuart monarchy in the kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland took place in 1660 when King Charles II returned from exile in continental Europe. The preceding period of the Protectorate and the civil wars came to ...

. The lands of the Crown and the established Church were automatically restored, but lands of Royalists and other dissenters confiscated and sold during the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polici ...

and interregnum were left for private negotiation or litigation, meaning that the government would not help the Loyalists in regaining their property. Disappointed Royalists commented that the Act meant "indemnity for harles'enemies and oblivion for his friends". Historians, on the other hand, have generally praised the King and Clarendon for the generosity and clemency of the Act, in an age not normally noted for mercy. Twenty years later, during the

Popish Plot The Popish Plot was a fictitious conspiracy invented by Titus Oates that between 1678 and 1681 gripped the Kingdoms of England and Scotland in anti-Catholic hysteria. Oates alleged that there was an extensive Catholic conspiracy to assassinate ...

, Charles tried unsuccessfully to stand against the relentless demand for the execution of

Catholic priests The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the Holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in layman's terms ''priest'' refers only ...

, and reminded the public sharply of how many of them had previously benefited from his reluctance to shed blood. The act is often viewed from the perspective of those who were not pardoned and thus condemned to death. However, the debate in Parliament continued almost every day for over two months and names were added and taken off the list of those who were not to be pardoned. Initially, there were only seven on the list: Thomas Harrison, William Say, John Jones Maesygarnedd,

Thomas Scot Thomas Scot (or Scott; died 17 October 1660) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1645 and 1660. He was executed as one of the regicides of King Charles I. Early life Scot was educated at Westmi ...

, John Lisle, Cornelius Holland, and John Barkstead. On 7 June, the Commons, mindful of the Declaration of Breda, stated they as the Commons could add to the list others who would not be covered by the general pardon. They immediately added John Cooke, Andrew Broughton, Edward Dendy, and the "Two Persons who were upon the Scaffold in a Disguise" (i.e. the executioners). On 8 June, the Commons voted "That the Number of Twenty, and no more, (other than those that are already excepted, or sat as Judges upon the late King's Majesty) shall be excepted out of the Act of general Pardon and Oblivion, for and in respect only of such Pains, Penalties, and Forfeitures, (not extending to Life) as shall be thought fit to be inflicted on them by another Act, intended to be hereafter passed for that purpose". One of the people to benefit directly from the Act was

John Milton John Milton (9 December 1608 – 8 November 1674) was an English poet and intellectual. His 1667 epic poem ''Paradise Lost'', written in blank verse and including over ten chapters, was written in a time of immense religious flux and politica ...

, who was released from prison.

Overview of sections

Sections:

Timeline for the English legislation

* 9 May 1660: Pardon and Oblivion, First reading. * 12 May 1660: Pardon and Oblivion, Second reading. * 17 May 1660: Bill of Pardon and Oblivion, to go to committee. * 11 July 1660 Pardon and Oblivion, That the Title of this Bill be, "An Act of free and general Pardon, Indemnity, and Oblivion" Passed and was sent to the House of Lords. * 20 July 1660: Proceedings of Regicide, Ordered, That the Instrument for proclaiming the High Court of Justice for judging of the late King's Majesty, together with the Journal of their Proceedings, be sent to the Lords, to be by them made use of. * 7 August 1660: Lords reminded of Bills, including "The Act of General Pardon, Indemnity, and Oblivion". * 11 August 1660: Pardon and Oblivion, back from House of Lords with Provisoes, Alterations, and Additions. Passed to committee. * 13 August 1660: passed amendments and the Bill was sent to the House of Lords. * 16 August 1660: Lords desired a conference concerning the Act of Indemnity. * 28 August 1660: Pardon and Oblivion, the House agreed to the final amendments to which a joint house conference had agreed and ordered that the Bill of "General Pardon, Indemnity, and Oblivion" be sent to the Lords, as it was now amended. The reply came back from the House of Lords that his Majesty would "be pleased to come To-morrow Morning, to pass the Bill, as is desired". * 29 August 1660: Bills passed. One of which was "An Act of Free and General Pardon, Indemnity, and Oblivion". The Act was repealed by the

Statute Law Revision Act 1948 The Statute Law Revision Act 1948 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Section 5(3) of the Statute Law Revision Act 1950 provided that this Act, so far as it repealed chapter 34 of the Statute of Westminster 1285 (13 Edw. 1 St. ...

Irish Act

An Irish act by the same name "An Act of Free and General Pardon, Indemnity, and Oblivion or Ireland was sent to the Duke of Ormonde on 16 August 1664 by Sir Paul Davys, the Irish Secretary of State.Carte Calendar Volume 40, June–December 1664

Bodleian Library The Bodleian Library () is the main research library of the University of Oxford, and is one of the oldest libraries in Europe. It derives its name from its founder, Sir Thomas Bodley. With over 13 million printed items, it is the sec ...

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

Includes a number of correspondence on the "Act of Free and General Pardon, Indemnity, and Oblivion or Ireland.

In popular culture

The Act forms the basis for Robert Harris's 2022 novel ''Act of Oblivion ''.

References

Charles II, 1660: An Act of Free and Generall Pardon Indemnity and Oblivion
Statutes of the Realm: volume 5: 1628–80 (1819), pp. 226–34.

Footnotes

External links

Pepys Diary: Thursday 30 August 1660
{{DEFAULTSORT:Indemnity And Oblivion Act 1660 in law 1660 in England Acts of the Parliament of England Pardon legislation Stuart England Political history of England