Government Response

Question 1

What is hebeas corpus and when was it suspended?

Answer 1

-Supended in 1794
-Hebeas corpus was a legal provision which prevented arrests without a trial.
-Suspending this meant that the government could round up potential threats due to fears about popular protest.

Question 2

What was the Treason Act and when was it?

Answer 2

-1795
-Confirmed that assaults against the King were high treason
-Extended treason to include ideas that were written or spoken, even with no action
-Outlawed the works of Thomas Paine and restricted publications publications of pamphlets.
-Anyone who committed treason could be transported for 7 years.

Question 3

What was the Seditious Meetings Act and when was it?

Answer 3

-1795
-Supported the Treason Act
-Banned public meetings of over 50 people, and made it illegal to rent a hall without a magistrates license.
-Gave Justices of Peace the authority to disperse any crowd.

Question 4

What happened at the trail of the London Corresponding Society (LCS) and when was it?

Answer 4

-1794
-30 radical reformers in trial and 13 members of the society were tried of treason.
-All were acquitted.

Question 5

What was the impact of the LCS trial?

Answer 5

-Under the 1795 Acts, booksellers were fined or imprisoned and meetings were banned by 1797 and the LCS lost a lot of its influence by 1799.

Question 6

What was the Combination Act?

Answer 6

Banned the existence of any trade union or political society which promoted political reform. This made the LCS illegal.

Question 7

What was and when was Stamp Tax?

Answer 7

-1797
-A tax on printed media which was increased to make newspapers harder to afford and prevent the less well-off from buying them.

Question 8

What was the Newspaper Regulation Act and when was it?

Answer 8

-1798
-Force newspapers to register with the aim of limiting their ability to publish critical articles.

Question 9

When were the Gagging Acts?

Answer 9

1817

Question 10

What were the Gagging Acts?

Answer 10

-As a result of Spa Fields and Pentridge, the 1795 acts were made permanently into law.
-The Gagging Acts were the same but with a few more restrictions.
-There were extra limitations on meetings held within a mile of parliament and public meeting were entirely banned during a parliamentary session.
-Included suspending hebeas corpus, like in 1794.

Question 11

Why were the Six Acts introduced and when?

Answer 11

-1819
-Following Peterloo, a set of six acts were passed to prevent any more reformist actions.

Question 12

What were the Six Acts?

Answer 12

-Training Prevention Act
-Seizure of Arms Act
-Seditious Meetings Act
-Blasphemous and Seditious Libels Act
-Misdemeanors Act
-Newspaper and Stamp Duties Act

Question 13

Training Prevention Act

Answer 13

To stop civilians learning how to use weapons

Question 14

Seizure of Arms Act

Answer 14

Allowed magistrates the right to seize weapons

Question 15

Seditious Meetings Act

Answer 15

Extended the 1817 Act to require notice to be given to the magistrates for any public meetings

Question 16

Blasphemous and Seditious Libels Act

Answer 16

Set penalties for libel at 17 years transportation

Question 17

Misdemeanors Act

Answer 17

Sped up the process of charging people and getting a trial

Question 18

The Newspaper and Stamp Duties Act

Answer 18

Raised the stamp duty to 4d. (shillings) on any publication which was at least monthly and cost less than 6d.

Question 19

What were agent provocateurs?

Answer 19

The government sent individuals undercover within reformist groups to gather evidence of illegal activity and push protesters into crossing the boundaries.
-Both the Spa Fields and Pentridge trials were almost exclusively based around evidence from these agents.
-The public generally considered this to disreputable which contributed to the Spa Fields trial resulting in an acquittal.