Popery Act 1698

{{Short description|Act of the Parliament of England}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}} {{Use British English|date=April 2025}} {{Infobox UK legislation | short_title = Popery Act 1698 | type = Act | parliament = Parliament of England | long_title = An Act for the further preventing the Growth of Popery. | year = 1698 | citation = {{ubli|[[11 Will. 3]]. c. 4{{efn|name=StatutesOfTheRealm|This is the citation in ''[[The Statutes of the Realm]]''.}}|[[11 & 12 Will. 3]]. c. 4{{efn|name=StatutesAtLarge|This is the citation in ''[[The Statutes at Large]]''.}}}} | territorial_extent = [[England and Wales]] | royal_assent = 11 April 1700 | commencement = 26 March 1700{{efn|Section 1.}} | repeal_date = 18 August 1846 | amends = | replaces = | amendments = [[Papists Act 1778]] | repealing_legislation = [[Religious Disabilities Act 1846]] | related_legislation = | status = Repealed | original_text = https://www.british-history.ac.uk/statutes-realm/vol7/pp586-587 }}

The '''Popery Act 1698''' ([[11 Will. 3]]. c. 4){{efn|name=StatutesOfTheRealm}} was an [[Act of Parliament (United Kingdom)|act]] of the [[Parliament of England]] enacted in 1700. The [[long title]] of the Act was "An Act for the further preventing the Growth of Popery".<ref name=bho>'William III, 1698-9: An Act for the further preventing the Growth of Popery. [Chapter IV. Rot. Parl. 11 Gul. III. p. 2. n. 2.]', Statutes of the Realm: volume 7: 1695-1701 (1820), pp. 586-87. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=46963. Date accessed: 16 February 2007.</ref>

Section I of the act was intended to address an alleged recent growth of Roman Catholicism by ensuring the existing anti-Catholic laws were more strongly applied. To that end, the section provided that any person who apprehended a "Popish Bishop, Priest or Jesuite" who was then prosecuted for "saying Mass or exerciseing any other Part of the Office or Function of a Popish Bishop or Priest within these Realmes" would receive £100 from the [[Sheriff]] of that county within four months of the priest's conviction. In effect, it placed a [[bounty (reward)|bounty]] on [[Roman Catholic]] [[priests]].

Section II of the act provided for the Treasury to reimburse Sheriffs for money expended on such payments.<ref name=bho/>

Section III of the act, expanding on the existing legislation, enacted that if a Catholic priest celebrated Mass, etc., as above, or if any Catholic clergyman or layperson ran a school or "take upon themselves the Education or Government or Boarding of Youth"; he was on conviction liable to "perpetuall Imprisonment" at the discretion of the King. Despite its severity, that was to some extent a mitigation of the provisions of the [[Jesuits, etc. Act 1584]] ([[27 Eliz. 1]]. c. 2), which prescribed the death penalty for any priest who failed to leave England within 40 days of being so ordered.

Another provision disallowed Catholic schooling, inheritance and purchase of land.<ref>[https://www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/transformingsociety/private-lives/religion/key-dates1/1689-to-1829/ "Religion and belief: Key dates 1689 to 1829", Parliament UK]</ref>

== Subsequent developments == The [[Papists Act 1778]] ([[18 Geo. 3]]. c. 60) exempted those taking the oath under that act from some of the provisions of the Popery Act 1698. The section as to taking and prosecuting priests was repealed, as was the penalty of perpetual imprisonment for keeping a school. The whole act was repealed by section 1 of the [[Religious Disabilities Act 1846]] ([[9 & 10 Vict.]] c. 59).

== Notes == {{Notelist}}

== References == {{Reflist}}

*''The Law & Working of the Constitution: Documents 1660-1914'', ed. W. C. Costin & J. Steven Watson. A&C Black, 1952. Vol. I (1660–1783), p. 90-1.

[[Category:Acts of the Parliament of England 1698]] [[Category:Acts of the Parliament of England (pre-1707) concerning religion]] [[Category:Repealed English legislation]] [[Category:Anti-Catholicism in the United Kingdom]] [[Category:Law about religion in the United Kingdom]] [[Category:Christianity and law in the 17th century]] [[Category:1700 in Christianity]]