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Treason Act 1351





CONTENT

The Act distinguishes two varieties of treason: to the Crown ; in the case of a petty treason property escheated only to the traitor's immediate Lord . However in both cases the penalty was death.

Petty treason was the murder of one's lawful superior: that is if a servant kills his master, a wife her husband or anyone their Prelate . It was abolished in 1828 .

A person was guilty of high treason under the Act if they:

  • "compassed or imagined" (i.e. planned) the death of the King, his wife or his eldest son and heir;

  • violated the King's companion, the King's eldest daughter if she was unmarried or the wife of the King's eldest son and heir;

  • levied war against the King in his Realm, or adhered to the King's enemies in his Realm, giving them aid and comfort;

  • counterfeited the Great Seal , the Privy Seal or any of the King's money (reduced to Felony in 1861 );

  • imported counterfeit English money (also reduced to Felony in 1861 );

  • killed the Chancellor , Treasurer (this office is now in Commission ), one of the King's Justices (either of the King's Bench or the Common Pleas ), a Justice In Eyre or an Assize judge, while they are performing their offices.


The Act originally contained a curious feature (now repealed), in that it envisaged that further forms of treason would arise that would not be covered by the act, so it legislated for this possibility:


And because that many other like Cases of Treason may happen in Time to come, which a Man cannot think nor declare at this present Time; it is accorded, That if any other Case, supposed Treason, which is not above specified, doth happen before any Justices, the Justices shall tarry without any going to Judgement of the Treason till the Cause be shewed and declared before the King and his Parliament, whether it ought to be judged Treason or other Felony.



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