Black Act
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| Long title | An Act for the more effectual punishing wicked and evil disposed Persons going armed in Disguise and doing Injuries and Violence to the Persons and Properties of His Majesty's Subject, and for the more speedy bringing the Offenders to Justice |
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| Citation | 9 Geo. 1 c. 22 |
| Dates | |
| Commencement | 27 May 1723 |
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Status: Amended
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The Black Act (9 Geo. 1 c. 22) was an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain passed in 1723 in response to a series of raids by two groups of poachers, known as the Blacks. Arising in the aftermath of the South Sea Bubble's collapse and the ensuing economic downturn, the Blacks gained their name from their habit of blacking their faces when undertaking poaching raids. They quickly demonstrated both "a calculated programme of action, and a conscious social resentment", and their activities led to the introduction of the Black Act to Parliament on 26 April 1723; it came into force on 27 May. The Act introduced the death penalty for over 50 criminal offences, including being found in a forest while disguised, and "no other single statute passed during the eighteenth century equalled [the Black Act] in severity, and none appointed the punishment of death in so many cases". Following a criminal law reform campaign in the early 19th century, it was largely repealed on 8 July 1823, when a reform bill introduced by Robert Peel came into force.
Following the South Sea Bubble's collapse in 1720, Britain suffered an economic downturn that led to heightened social tensions. A small element of this was the activity of two groups of poachers, based in Hampshire and Windsor Forest respectively. The first flurry of activity came from the Hampshire group, and began in October 1721 when 16 poachers assembled in Farnham to raid the park of the Bishop of Winchester. Three deer were carried off, and two others killed; four of the poachers were later caught, with two released due to a lack of evidence and the others pilloried and sentenced to a year and a day in prison. The poachers became known as the "Blacks", due to their practise of blackening their faces to prevent identification; most famously, the Hampshire groups were the "Waltham Blacks". In response to the convictions, the poachers decided to attack the Bishop's property again, demonstrating "a calculated programme of action, and a conscious social resentment" that distinguished them from normal poachers. In the reprisal attack, 11 deer were taken and many more killed, leading to a royal proclamation offering £100 for information that led to the arrest of the gang. This was followed by a series of raids highlighting a "fairly direct class hatred", that culminated in the raid of a shipment of wine ordered for Frederick, Prince of Wales. This proved to be the final straw, with Sir Francis Page, a "notorious hanging judge", sent to the Winchester Assizes to preside over any prosecutions, forcing the Hampshire Blacks underground.
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