The Riot Act ( 1 Geo. 1. St. 2. c. 5), sometimes called the Riot Act 1714 or the Riot Act 1715, 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 1707, Acts of Union by both the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland. The Acts ratified the treaty of Union which created a ...

which authorised local authorities to declare any group of 12 or more people to be unlawfully assembled and order them to disperse or face punitive action. The act's full title was "An Act for preventing tumults and riotous assemblies, and for the more speedy and effectual punishing the rioters", and it came into force on 1 August 1715. It was repealed in England and Wales by section 10(2) and Part III of Schedule 3 of the

Criminal Law Act 1967 The Criminal Law Act 1967 (c. 58) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that made some major changes to English criminal law, as part of wider liberal reforms by the Labour government elected in 1966. Most of it is still in force. ...

. Acts similar to the Riot Act passed into the laws of British colonies in Australia and North America, some of which remain in force today. The phrase " read the riot act" has passed into common usage for a stern reprimand or warning of consequences.

Introduction and purpose

The Riot Act 1714 was introduced during a time of civil disturbance in

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

, including the Sacheverell riots of 1710, the Coronation riots of 1714 and the 1715 riots in England. The preamble makes reference to "many rebellious riots and tumults

hat A hat is a Headgear, head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorpor ...

have been aking place of latein diverse parts of this kingdom", adding that those involved "presum so to do, for that the punishments provided by the laws now in being are not adequate to such heinous offences".

Main provisions

Proclamation of riotous assembly

The act created a mechanism for certain local officials to make a proclamation ordering the dispersal of any group of twelve or more people who were "unlawfully, riotously, and tumultuously assembled together". If the group failed to disperse within one hour, then anyone remaining gathered was guilty of a

felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "''félonie''") to describe an offense that r ...

without

benefit of clergy In English law, the benefit of clergy ( Law Latin: ''privilegium clericale'') was originally a provision by which clergymen accused of a crime could claim that they were outside the jurisdiction of the secular courts and be tried instead in an ec ...

, punishable by death. The proclamation could be made in an incorporated town or city by the

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bailiff A bailiff is a manager, overseer or custodian – a legal officer to whom some degree of authority or jurisdiction is given. There are different kinds, and their offices and scope of duties vary. Another official sometimes referred to as a '' ...

or "other head officer", or a justice of the peace. Elsewhere it could be made by a justice of the peace or the

sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland, the , which is common ...

undersheriff An undersheriff (or under-sheriff) is an office derived from ancient Kingdom of England, English custom that remains in, among other places, England and Wales and the United States, though performing different functions. United States In Policing ...

parish constable A parish constable, also known as a petty constable, was a Law enforcement agency, law enforcement Police officer, officer, usually unpaid and part-time, serving a Civil parishes in England, parish. The position evolved from the ancient ''headboroug ...

. It had to be read out to the gathering concerned and had to follow precise wording detailed in the act; several convictions were overturned because parts of the proclamation had been omitted, in particular "God save the King". The wording that had to be read out to the assembled gathering was as follows: In a number of jurisdictions, such as Britain, Canada and New Zealand, wording such as this was enshrined and codified in the law itself. While the expression "reading the Riot Act" is cemented in common idiom with its figurative usage, it originated fairly and squarely in statute itself. In New Zealand's Crimes Act 1961, section 88, repealed in 1987, was specifically given the heading of "Reading the Riot Act".

Consequences of disregarding the proclamation

If a group of people failed to disperse within one hour of the proclamation, the act provided that the authorities could use force to disperse them. Anyone assisting with the dispersal was specifically indemnified against any legal consequences in the event of any of the crowd being injured or killed. Because of the broad authority that the act granted, it was used both for the maintenance of civil order and for political means. A particularly notorious use of the act was the

Peterloo Massacre The Peterloo Massacre took place at St Peter's Field, Manchester, Lancashire, England, on Monday 16 August 1819. Eighteen people died and 400–700 were injured when the cavalry of the Yeomen charged into a crowd of around 60,000 people who ...

of 1819 in

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

Other provisions

The act also made it a felony punishable by death without

for "any persons unlawfully, riotously and tumultuously assembled together" to cause (or begin to cause) serious damage to places of religious worship, houses, barns, and stables. In the event of buildings being damaged in areas that were not incorporated into a town or city, the residents of the

hundred 100 or one hundred (Roman numerals, Roman numeral: C) is the natural number following 99 (number), 99 and preceding 101 (number), 101. In mathematics 100 is the square of 10 (number), 10 (in scientific notation it is written as 102). The standar ...

were made liable to pay damages to the property owners concerned. Unlike the rest of the act, this required a civil action. In the case of incorporated areas, the action could be brought against two or more named individuals. This provision encouraged residents to attempt to quell riots in order to avoid paying damages. Prosecutions under the act were restricted to within one year of the event.

Controversies

Impracticality

At times, it was unclear to both rioters and authorities as to whether the reading of the Riot Act had occurred. One example of this is evident in the

massacre of St George's Fields The Massacre of St George's Fields occurred on 10 May 1768 when government soldiers opened fire on demonstrators that had gathered at St George's Fields, Southwark, in south London. The protest was against the imprisonment of the radical Membe ...

of 1768. At the trials following the incident, there was confusion among witnesses as to when the Riot Act had actually been read.

Use of force

In the 1768 massacre of St George's Fields, large numbers of subjects gathered outside

King's Bench Prison The King's Bench Prison was a prison in Southwark, south London, England, from the Middle Ages until it closed in 1880. It took its name from the King's Bench court of law in which cases of defamation, bankruptcy and other misdemeanours were he ...

in Southwark, south London, to protest against the incarceration of

John Wilkes John Wilkes (17 October 1725 – 26 December 1797) was an English Radicalism (historical), radical journalist and politician, as well as a magistrate, essayist and soldier. He was first elected a Member of Parliament in 1757. In the Middlese ...

. Officials feared that the crowd would forcibly release Wilkes, and troops arrived to guard the prison. After some time, as well as provocation by the rioters, the troops opened fire on the crowd. There were several fatalities, including non-participants of the riot who were struck by stray bullets. Some scholars believe that this massacre set the legal precedent for the justified use of force in future riots. The provision pertaining to the use of force can be found in section 3 of the Riot Act: There was also confusion regarding the use of troops as it pertained to the one-hour mark. Rioters often believed that the military could not use force until one hour had passed since the reading of the proclamation. This is evident in the actions of the rioters at the massacre of St George's Fields, particularly their provocative behaviour towards the soldiers.

Subsequent history of the Riot Act in the UK and colonies

The Riot Act caused confusion during the

Gordon Riots The Gordon Riots of 1780 were several days' rioting in London motivated by anti-Catholic sentiment. They began with a large and orderly protest against the Papists Act 1778, which was intended to reduce official discrimination against British ...

of 1780, when the authorities felt uncertain of their power to take action to stop the riots without a reading of the Riot Act. After the riots, Lord Mansfield observed that the Riot Act did not take away the pre-existing power of the authorities to use force to stop a violent riot; it only created the additional offence of failing to disperse after a reading of the Riot Act. The Riot Act was read prior to the

of 1819 and the Cinderloo Uprising of 1821, as well as before the Bristol Riots at Queen's Square in 1831. Both are held to be related to the

Unreformed House of Commons The "unreformed House of Commons" is a name given to the House of Commons of Great Britain (after 1800 the House of Commons of the United Kingdom) before it was reformed by the Reform Act 1832, the Irish Reform Act 1832, and the Scottish Reform ...

, which was righted in the

Reform Act 1832 The Representation of the People Act 1832 (also known as the Reform Act 1832, Great Reform Act or First Reform Act) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (indexed as 2 & 3 Will. 4. c. 45), enacted by the Whig government of Pri ...

. Lieutenant-Governor

Sir Francis Bond Head Sir Francis Bond Head, 1st Baronet Royal Guelphic Order, KCH Privy Council (United Kingdom), PC (7 December 1793 – 20 July 1875) was Lieutenant-Governor of Upper Canada during the Upper Canada Rebellion, rebellion of 1837. Biography Head wa ...

and his administrators read the act during the

Upper Canada Rebellion The Upper Canada Rebellion was an insurrection against the Oligarchy, oligarchic government of the British colony of Upper Canada (present-day Ontario) in December 1837. While public grievances had existed for years, it was the Lower Canada Rebe ...

of 1837. The death penalty created by sections one, four and five of the act was reduced to

transportation Transport (in British English) or transportation (in American English) is the intentional Motion, movement of humans, animals, and cargo, goods from one location to another. Mode of transport, Modes of transport include aviation, air, land tr ...

for life by section one of the Punishment of Offences Act 1837. The Riot Act eventually drifted into disuse. The last time it was definitely read in England was in

Birkenhead Birkenhead () is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England. The town is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the west bank of the River Mersey, opposite Liverpool. It lies within the Historic counties of England, historic co ...

, Cheshire, on 3 August 1919, during the second police strike, when large numbers of police officers from Birkenhead,

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

and

Bootle Bootle (pronounced ) is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England, which had a population of 51,394 in 2011; the wider Bootle (UK Parliament constituency), Parliamentary constituency had a population of 98,449. It is pa ...

joined the strike. Troops were called in to deal with the rioting and looting that had begun, and a magistrate read out the Riot Act. None of the rioters subsequently faced the charge of a statutory felony. Earlier in the same year, at the battle of George Square on 31 January, in

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

, the city's sheriff was in the process of reading the Riot Act to a crowd of 20,000–25,000 when the sheet of paper he was reading from was ripped out of his hands by one of the rioters. The last time it was read in Scotland was by the deputy town clerk James Gildea in Airdrie in 1971. The act was repealed on 18 July 1973 for the United Kingdom by the Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1973.

In other countries

The Riot Act passed into the law of those countries that were then colonies of Great Britain, including the

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n colonies that would become the

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and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. In many

common-law Common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law primarily developed through judicial decisions rather than statutes. Although common law may incorporate certain statutes, it is largely based on prec ...

jurisdictions, a lesser disturbance such as an

affray In many legal jurisdictions related to English common law, affray is a public order offence consisting of the fighting of one or more persons in a public place to the terror (in ) of ordinary people. Depending on their actions, and the laws ...

or an unruly gathering may be deemed an unlawful assembly by the local authorities and ordered to disperse. Failure to obey such an order would typically be prosecuted as a summary offence.

Australia

Acts similar to the Riot Act have been enacted in some Australian states. For example, in Victoria the Unlawful Assemblies and Processions Act 1958 allowed a magistrate to disperse a crowd with the words (or words to the effect of): Anyone remaining after 15 minutes may be charged and imprisoned for one month (first offence) or three months (repeat offence). The act does not apply to crowds gathered for the purpose of an election. The same act allows a magistrate to appoint citizens as "special oliceconstables" to disperse a crowd and provides indemnity for the hurting or killing of unlawfully assembled people in an attempt to disperse them. The Act was significantly amended in 2007.

Belize

Belize Belize is a country on the north-eastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a maritime boundary with Honduras to the southeast. P ...

, another former British colony, also still retains the principle of the Riot Act; it was last read on 21 January 2005, during the 2005 Belize unrest. While there is no specific form of words provided for such proclamations, they must be made "in the King's name". The provisions are formed in sections 231, 246 and 247 of the country's criminal code, providing particularly that: Any person who does not disperse within one hour of the proclamation being read is liable to receive a maximum penalty of five years imprisonment.

Canada

In Canada, the Riot Act has been incorporated in a modified form into the ''Criminal Code'', a federal statute. Sections 32 and 33 of the Code deal with the power of police officers to suppress riots. The Code defines a riot as an "unlawful assembly" that has "begun to disturb the peace tumultuously". When twelve or more persons are "unlawfully and riotously assembled together", the proclamation can be read by a number of public officials, such as justices of the peace, provincial court judges, mayors, and sheriffs. The proclamation can also be read during prison riots: Quebec and Manitoba have designated senior correctional staff as justices of the peace for the purpose of reading the proclamation, while other provinces will ask a local justice of the peace to travel to the prison to read the proclamation. In the act the proclamation is to be worded as follows, or words to the same effect: (Since the monarch is now a King, the obvious changes are made.) Unlike the original Riot Act, the ''Criminal Code'' requires the assembled people to disperse within thirty minutes. When the proclamation has not been read, the punishment for rioting is up to two years of imprisonment. When the proclamation has been read and then ignored, the penalty increases, up to life imprisonment. The maximum penalty of life imprisonment also applies to someone who wilfully uses force to hinder the reading of the proclamation, or to those fail to disperse and who have reasonable grounds to believe the proclamation would have been made had the official not been hindered by force. The proclamation was read during the

Winnipeg general strike The Winnipeg General Strike of 1919 was one of the most famous and influential strikes in Canadian history. For six weeks, May 15 to June 26, more than 30,000 strikers brought economic activity to a standstill in Winnipeg, Manitoba, which at the ...

of 1919 and the 1958 riot over racial discrimination against First Nations in

Prince Rupert, British Columbia Prince Rupert is a port city in the province of British Columbia, Canada. It is located on Kaien Island near the Alaskan panhandle. It is the land, air, and water transportation hub of British Columbia's North Coast, and has a population of 12, ...

. One recent reading was during Vancouver's Stanley Cup riot in June 2011. Despite the reading of the proclamation, rioters were almost always charged under s 65 due to the difficulty of proving the elements of the offence in s 68. Many rioters also faced charges related to assaulting peace officers, mischief, theft, arson and assault.

Caribbean region

In St Kitts on 29 January 1935 the act was read at Buckley's Estate located on the western outskirts of

Basseterre Basseterre (; Saint Kitts Creole: ''Basterre'') is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Saint Kitts and Nevis with an estimated population of 14,000 in 2018. Geographically, the Basseterre port is located at , on the south-wester ...

during a strike of sugar workers that turned violent. In St Vincent on 21 October 1935 the act was read in Kingstown during a violent protest by unemployed sugar workers.

New Zealand

In New Zealand the Riot Act was incorporated into sections 87 and 88 of the Crimes Act 1961, and repealed in March of 1987. The proclamation was worded as follows: The need to read the Riot Act was removed by section three of the Crimes Amendment Act (1987 No 1).

United States

A riot act was passed by the

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

state legislature in 1786 during

Shays' Rebellion Shays's Rebellion was an armed uprising in Western Massachusetts and Worcester, Massachusetts, Worcester in response to a debt crisis among the citizenry and in opposition to the state government's increased efforts to collect taxes on both in ...

. At the federal level, the principle of the Riot Act was incorporated into the first Militia Act (1 Stat. 264) of 2 May 1792. The act's long title was "An act to provide for calling forth the militia to execute the laws of the Union, suppress insurrections and repel invasions". Section 3 of the Militia Act gave power to the

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to issue a proclamation to "command the insurgents to disperse, and retire peaceably to their respective abodes, within a limited time", and authorized him to use the militia if they failed to do so. Substantively identical language is currently codified in

title 10 of the United States Code Title 10 of the United States Code outlines the role of United States Armed Forces. It provides the legal basis for the roles, missions and organization of each of the services as well as the United States Department of Defense. Each of the fi ...

, Chapter 13, Section 254. Prohibitions against inciting riots were further codified in United States federal law under '' 18 U.S. Code § 2101 – Riots'', as part of the

Civil Rights Act of 1968 The Civil Rights Act of 1968 () is a Lists of landmark court decisions, landmark law in the United States signed into law by President of the United States, United States President Lyndon B. Johnson during the King assassination riots. Titles ...

, passed by the United States Congress.

"Read the Riot Act"

Because the authorities were required to read the proclamation that referred to the Riot Act before they could enforce it, the expression " to read the Riot Act" entered into common language as a phrase meaning "to reprimand severely", with the added sense of a stern warning.

Notes

References

External links

Full text of the Riot Act (c. 1714 – 1715)The Criminal Code of Canada (R.S. 1985, c. C-46)

* ttp://news.bbc.co.uk/today/hi/today/newsid_7862000/7862402.stm BBC interview with a historian, featuring the Reading of the Riot Actby Peter Donaldson
Image of the 1714 Riot Act on the Parliamentary website
{{Use dmy dates, date=July 2018 Great Britain Acts of Parliament 1714 Repealed Great Britain Acts of Parliament Emergency laws in the United Kingdom