Welsh Church Act 1914
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| Long title | An Act to terminate the establishment of the Church of England in Wales and Monmouthshire... |
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| Citation | 1914 c. 91 |
| Territorial extent |
Wales and Monmouthshire (de facto) United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (de jure) |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 18 September 1914 |
| Commencement | 31 March 1920 (see Suspensory Act 1914) |
| Other legislation | |
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Status: Amended
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| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Text of the Welsh Church Act 1914 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk | |
The Welsh Church Act 1914 is an Act under which the Church of England was separated and disestablished in Wales and Monmouthshire, leading to the creation of the Church in Wales. The act had long been demanded by the Nonconformist element in Wales, which comprised the majority of the population and which resented paying taxes to the Anglican Church of England. It was sponsored by the Liberal party (the stronghold of the Nonconformists) and opposed by the Conservative party (the stronghold of the Anglicans).
The Act, which took effect in 1920, was a controversial measure and was passed by the House of Commons under the provisions of the Parliament Act 1911, which minimized the ability of the House of Lords to block it. The main financial terms were that the Church no longer receive tithe money (a land tax), but kept all its churches, properties and glebes.
The Bill was politically and historically significant as one of the first pieces of legislation to apply solely to Wales (and Monmouthshire) as opposed to the wider legal entity of England and Wales.
In Wales the passing of the Bill was the culmination of a long campaign which had begun in the mid-nineteenth century, led largely by Welsh Nonconformists such as Calvinistic Methodists, Baptist, Unitarians, and other Protestants which objected to paying tithes to the Church of England. The campaign was later strongly supported by the patriotic Cymru Fydd movement.
English Catholic author G. K. Chesterton ridiculed the passion that was generated by the Bill in his poem , repeatedly addressing F. E. Smith, one of the chief opponents of the act.
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