List of acts of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1780 facts for kids
This page lists the laws, also called acts, that were passed by the Parliament of Great Britain in the year 1780. The Parliament of Great Britain was the main law-making body for England, Scotland, and Wales from 1707 until 1801. After 1801, the Parliament of the United Kingdom took over.
Each law has a special number, called its chapter number. This number helps people find and refer to the law. For example, a law might be called "20 Geo. 3 c. 1," which means it was the first law (chapter 1) passed in the 20th year of King George III's rule.
Back then, laws didn't always have short, easy-to-remember names. Sometimes, later laws gave them shorter titles to make them easier to talk about. Also, before 1793, a new law was considered to be in effect from the very first day of the parliamentary meeting (session) when it was passed, even if it was approved much later in the session.
Laws from 1780: What Parliament Did
The laws passed in 1780 were part of the sixth meeting of the 14th Parliament of Great Britain. This meeting started on November 25, 1779, and ended on July 8, 1780.
Public Laws
Public laws affect everyone in the country. In 1780, Parliament passed many public laws covering different areas. Many of these laws were temporary or have since been "repealed," meaning they are no longer in effect.
Here are some of the types of public laws passed in 1780:
- Money and Taxes: Parliament passed laws to collect taxes, like the Land Tax and Malt Duties, to help pay for government services and ongoing wars. They also introduced new duties on things like advertisements, legacies (money left in wills), wines, vinegar, starch, and hair powder.
- Trade and Economy: Several laws aimed to control or encourage trade. Some laws changed how trade happened with Ireland and British colonies, making it easier to import and export goods. There were also laws about importing specific items like silk, tobacco, and cotton.
- Military and Defence: Laws were passed to manage the army (Mutiny Act) and marine forces, and to pay the militia (a citizen army). Other acts helped secure important military locations like Plymouth, Sheerness, Gravesend, Tilbury, and Chatham by allowing land to be used for fortifications.
- Public Order and Safety: One important law was the Habeas Corpus Suspension Act, which allowed the King to hold people suspected of treason without trial during the American War of Independence. Later in the year, after riots in London, Parliament passed laws to protect those who helped stop the riots and to deal with prisoners who had been set free during the unrest.
- Infrastructure and Local Improvements: Many laws focused on improving specific towns and regions. These included acts for:
* Repairing and lighting streets (like in Worcester and Goswell Street in Middlesex). * Managing poor relief (like in Maidstone and Stepney). * Building and repairing bridges (like Whitney Bridge over the River Wye and Walton-Shepperton Bridge). * Improving harbours (like Aberystwyth Harbour). * Repairing and widening roads across many counties, including Bedford, Buckingham, Warwick, Oxford, Gloucester, Lincoln, Nottinghamshire, Derby, Wiltshire, Sussex, and Devon. These "turnpike acts" often allowed tolls to be collected to pay for road maintenance.
- Other Important Laws:
* The National Debt Act helped the government raise money through annuities and a lottery. * The Parliamentary Elections Act aimed to make county elections fairer for voters. * The Audit of Public Accounts Act set up commissioners to check how public money was being spent. * Laws related to the East India Company dealt with its trade and territories. * The Finding of the Longitude at Sea Act continued to encourage discoveries that would help sailors find their position at sea more accurately.
Private Laws
Private laws were passed for specific individuals, families, or small groups, rather than affecting the whole country. Many of these laws dealt with land and property.
Here are some examples of private laws from 1780:
- Inclosure Acts: A common type of private law was the "Inclosure Act." These laws allowed common lands (areas shared by many people for farming or grazing) to be divided up and fenced off into private plots. This happened in many places, including Scarrington, Aslacton, Stonesby, Leckford Abbots, Barham, Staveley, Heacham, Tottenhill, Legburn, Kighley, Matlock, Charlton, Heaton, Salperton, Swinford, East Farndon, Grendon, Thornton, Tiffield, Salthouse, Kelling, Northill, Sandy, Northwood Common, Teirtriff, Hopton, Ickenham, Findern, Warminster, Corsley, Oldswinford, Hilton, Foulden, Pontefract Park, Moss, Moseley, Kirk Bramwith, Thrapston, Brixworth, Grewelthorp, and Little Catworth.
- Estate Acts: These laws helped manage or sell parts of large family estates, often to pay off debts or to make exchanges of land. Examples include laws for the estates of Mary Ruck, John Norris, Robert Duke of Ancaster, Thomas and Arabella Onslow, Horatio Lord Walpole, Charles Viscount Irwin, Roger Gee, Thomas More Molyneux, and Thomas Humberston.
- Name Changes: Some private acts allowed individuals to legally change their surname, often to inherit property from a relative. Examples include Richard Bourne, James Godin (who became James Bigot), John Ingilby (who became John Wright), and Richard Gee (who became Richard Carew).
- Naturalization Acts: These laws granted British citizenship to foreign individuals, such as John Salomon Balthasar Sontag, Charles Henry Cazenove, David Duval, Bartholomew Huber, Anthony Henry Haldimand, and Lewis Lochée.
- Charity and Other Specific Acts: There were also laws for specific purposes, like incorporating the trustees of Henry Raine's Charities to better manage them, or for selling the Archbishop of Canterbury's palace at Croydon.
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