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TEST ACTS

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Originally appearing in Volume V26, Page 666 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.

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TEST ACTS . The principle that none but persons professing the established See also:

religion were eligible for public employment was adopted by the legislatures of both See also:

England and See also:

Scotland soon after the See also:

Reformation. In England the Acts of Supremacy and Uniformity and the severe penalties denounced against recusants, whether See also:

ROMAN

Roman See also:

CATHOLIC (Gr. KcaBoXuK6s, general, universal)

Catholic or See also:

NONCONFORMIST

Nonconformist, were affirmations of this principle. The See also:

ACT (Lat. actus, actum)

Act of 7 Jac. I. c. 2 provided that all such as were naturalized or restored in See also:

BLOOD

blood should receive the See also:

SACRAMENT

sacrament of the See also:

Lord's Supper. It was not, how-ever, until the reign of See also:

Charles II. that actual receiving of the communion of the See also:

Church of England was made a See also:

CONDITION (Lat. condicio, from condicere, to agree upon, arrange; not connected with conditio, from condere, conditum, to put together)

condition precedent to the holding of public offices. The earliest See also:

IMPOSITION (from Lat. imponere, to place or lay upon)

imposition of this test was by the See also:

CORPORATION (from Lat. corporare, to form into a body, corpus, corporis)

Corporation Act of 1661 (13 See also:

CAR (Late Lat. carra)

Car. II. st. 2, c. 1), enacting that, besides taking the See also:

OATH (0. Eng. ddh)

oath of See also:

ALLEGIANCE (Mid. Eng. ligeaunce; med. Lat. ligeantia, &c.; the al- was probably added through confusion with another legal term, allegeance, an allegation; the Fr. allegeance comes from the English; the word is formed from " liege," of which the derivatio

allegiance and supremacy and subscribing a See also:

DECLARATION (from Lat. declarare, to make fully clear, clams)

declaration against the See also:

SOLEMN (Lat. sollemnis, sollemnis, less correctly solennis, yearly, annual; from sollus = totus, whole, entire, Gr. Mos., and annus, year)

Solemn See also:

LEAGUE

League and See also:

Covenant, all members of corporations were within one See also:

YEAR

year after See also:

election to receive the sacrament of the Lord's Supper according to the See also:

RITES

rites of the Church of England. This act was followed by the Test Act of 1672 (25 Car.

II. c. 2). The immediate cause of the Test Act (the full See also:

TITLE (0. Fr. title, mod. titre, from Lat. titulus)

title of which is " An act for preventing dangers which may happenfrom popish recusants ") was the See also:

king's declaration of See also:

INDULGENCE (Lat. indulgentia, indulgere, to grant, concede)

indulgence, dispensing with See also:

LAWS

laws inflicting disabilities on Nonconformists. This act enforced upon all persons filling any See also:

OFFICE (from Lat. officium, " duty," " service," a shortened form of opifacium, from facere, " to do," and either the stem of opes, " wealth," " aid," or opus, " work ")

office, See also:

CIVIL

civil or military, the See also:

OBLIGATION

obligation of taking the oaths of supremacy and allegiance and subscribing a declaration against See also:

TRANSUBSTANTIATION

transubstantiation, and also of receiving the sacrament within three months after admittance to office. The act did not extend to peers; but in 1678 30 Car. II. st. 2 enacted that all peers and members of the See also:

House of See also:

COMMONS

Commons should make a declaration against transubstantiation, invocation of See also:

SAINTS, BATTLE OF THE

saints, and the See also:

SACRIFICE (from Lat. sacrificium; sacer, holy, and facere, to make)

sacrifice of the See also:

mass—a See also:

SPECIAL

special exception being made in favour of the See also:

DUKE (corresponding to Fr. duc, Ital. duca, Ger. Herzog)

duke of See also:

York. The provisions of the Test Act were violated by both Charles II. and See also:

James II. on the ground of the dispensing See also:

POWER [WILLIAM GRATTAN] TYRONE (1797-1841)

power claimed by the See also:

Stuart See also:

KINGS, FIRST AND SECOND BOOKS OF

kings. In the well-known See also:

case of Godden v. See also:

Hales (II See also:

State Trials, 1166), an See also:

ACTION

action for penalties under the Test Act brought against an officer in the See also:

army, the See also:

JUDGES, THE BOOK OF

judges decided in favour of the dispensing power—a power finally abolished by the See also:

BILL

Bill of Rights. After a considerable number of amendments and partial repeals by the legislature of the acts of 1661, 1672 and 1678, and of acts of See also:

INDEMNITY (through Fr. indemnite, Lat. indemnis, free from damage or loss; in-, negative, and damnum, loss)

indemnity to protect persons under certain circumstances from penalties incurred under the Test Act, the See also:

NECESSITY (Lat. necessitas)

necessity of receiving the sacrament as a qualification for office was abolished by 9 Geo. IV. c.

17, and all acts requiring the taking of oaths and declarations against transubstantiation, &c., were repealed by the Roman Catholic See also:

RELIEF

Relief Act of 1829 (10 Geo. IV. c. 7). This See also:

general See also:

REPEAL (O.F. rapel, modern rappel, from rapeler, rappeler, revoke, re and appeler, appeal)

repeal has been followed by the special repeal of the Corporation Act by the Promissory Oaths Act 1871, of the Test Act by the See also:

STATUTE

Statute See also:

Law Revision Act 1863, and of the act of 1678 by an act of 1866 (29 & 30 Vict. C. 19). Religious tests remained in the See also:

ENGLISH

English See also:

UNIVERSITIES

universities until 1871, in See also:

DUBLIN

Dublin University until 1873, and the Scottish universities until 1889. To be a member of the Church of England was a necessary condition precedent for holding most university or See also:

COLLEGE (Collegium)

college offices by the Act of Uniformity of 1662, and such offices were not affected by the See also:

TOLERATION (from Lat. tolerare, to endure)

Toleration Act of 1688 and the Roman Catholic Relief Act of 1829. In 1871 the University Tests Act abolished subscriptions to the articles of the Church of England, all declarations and oaths respecting religious belief, and all compulsory attendance at public See also:

WORSHIP (i.e. " worth-ship," O. Eng. weor8scipe)

worship in the universities of See also:

Oxford, See also:

Cambridge and See also:

Durham. There is an exception confining to persons in See also:

HOLY

holy orders of the Church of England degrees in divinity and positions restricted to persons in holy orders, such as the divinity and See also:

HEBREW

Hebrew professorships. Scotland.—A religious test was imposed immediately after the Reformation. By 1567, c.

9, no one was to be appointed to a public office or to be a See also:

NOTARY, or NOTARY PUBLIC

notary who did not profess the Reformed religion. The Scottish Test Act was 1681, c. 6, rescinded by 1690, c. q. Renunciation of popery was to be made by persons employed in See also:

EDUCATION

education (1700, c. 3). A See also:

motion to add, after the 18th See also:

ARTICLE (from Lat. articulus, a joint)

article of See also:

union, an exemption of Scotsmen from the sacramental test in the See also:

UNITED

United See also:

KINGDOM

Kingdom was negatived by the Scottish See also:

PARLIAMENT (Anglo-Lat. parliamentum, Fr. parlement, from parler, to speak)

parliament. A similar See also:

FATE

fate awaited a proposal that while a sacramental test was in force in England all persons in public office in Scotland should subscribe their See also:

ADHESION (from Lat. adhaerere, to adhere)

adhesion to the Presbyterian Church See also:

government. By 1707, c. 6, all professors;, principals, regents, masters or others bearing office in any university, college or school in Scotland were to profess and subscribe to the See also:

CONFESSION (Lat. confessio, from confiteor, acknowledge, confess)

Confession of Faith. All persons were to be See also:

FREE

free of any oath or test contrary to or inconsistent with the See also:

PROTESTANT

Protestant religion and Presbyterian Church government. The reception of the communion was never a See also:

PART

part of the test in Scotland as in England and See also:

Ireland. The necessity for subscription to the Confession of Faith by persons holding a university office (other than that of See also:

PRINCIPAL

principal or See also:

PROFESSOR (the Latin noun formed from the verb profiteri, to declare publicly, to acknowledge, profess)

professor of See also:

THEOLOGY

theology) was removed by 16 & 17 Vict. c.

89. The act provided that in See also:

PLACE (through Fr. from Lat. platea, street; Gr. IrAar6s, wide)

place of subscription every See also:

PERSON, OFFENCES AGAINST THE

person appointed to a university office was to subscribe a declaration according to the See also:

FORM (Lat. forma)

form in the act, promising not to See also:

TEACH [THATCH OR THACH], EDWARD (d. 1718)

teach any opinions opposed to the divine authority of Scripture or to the Confession of Faith, and to do nothing to the See also:

PREJUDICE (Lat. praejudicium)

prejudice of the Church of Scotland or its doctrines and privileges. All tests were finally abolished by an act of 1889 (52 & 53 Vict. C. 55). Ireland.—An oath of allegiance was required by the Irish Act of Supremacy (2 Eliz. c. I). The English Act of 3 Will. & M. c. 2 substituted other oaths and enforced in addition from peers, members of the House of Commons, bishops, barristers, attorneys and others a declaration against transubstantiation, invocation of the Virgin See also:

Mary and the saints, and the sacrifice of the mass. By the Irish Act of 2 See also:

Anne, c. 6, every person admitted to any office; civil or military, was to take and subscribe the oaths of allegiance, supremacy, and See also:

ABJURATION (from Lat. abjurare, to forswear)

abjuration, to subscribe the declaration against transubstantiation, &c., and to receive the Lord's Supper according to the usage of the Church of Ireland.

English legislation on the subject of oaths and declarations was adopted in Ireland by Yelverton's Act, 21 & 22 Geo. III. c. 48, § 3 (Ir.). These provisions were all repealed by the Promissory Oaths Act 1871. The Roman Catholic Relief Act of 1793 (33 Geo. III. c. 21, Ir.) excepted Trinity College, Dublin, from its provisions, and tests existed in Dublin university until 1873. They were abolished as far as regarded certain scientific professorships in 1867 by 30 Vict. C. 9, and were finally abolished for the whole university by the University of Dublin Tests Act 1873, except as to professors of and lecturers in divinity. United States.—By See also:

art. 6 of the constitution, " no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public See also:

TRUST

trust under the United States." A similar See also:

PROVISION (Lat. provisio)

provision is generally included in the state constitutions.

End of Article: TEST ACTS

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