English Bill of
Rights 1689
An Act Declaring the Rights and Liberties
of the Subject and Settling the Succession of the Crown
(from http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/england.htm,
spelling modernized)
Whereas
the Lords Spiritual and Temporal and Commons assembled at Westminster,
lawfully, fully and freely representing all the estates of the people of this
realm, did upon the thirteenth day of February in the year of our Lord one
thousand six hundred eighty-eight [old style date] present unto their
Majesties, then called and known by the names and style of William and Mary,
prince and princess of Orange, being present in their proper persons, a certain
declaration in writing made by the said Lords and Commons in the words
following, viz.:
Whereas the late King James the Second, by the assistance of
divers evil counselors, judges and ministers employed by him, did endeavor to
subvert and extirpate the Protestant religion and the laws and liberties of this
kingdom;
By assuming and exercising a power of dispensing with and
suspending of laws and the execution of laws without consent of Parliament;
By committing and prosecuting divers worthy prelates for
humbly petitioning to be excused from concurring to the said assumed power;
By issuing and causing to be executed a commission under the
great seal for erecting a court called the Court of Commissioners for
Ecclesiastical Causes;
By levying money for and to the use of the Crown by pretence
of prerogative for other time and in other manner than the same was granted by
Parliament;
By raising and keeping a standing army within this kingdom in
time of peace without consent of Parliament, and quartering soldiers contrary
to law;
By causing several good subjects being Protestants to be
disarmed at the same time when papists were both armed and employed contrary to
law;
By violating the freedom of election of members to serve in
Parliament;
By prosecutions in the Court of King's Bench for matters and
causes cognizable only in Parliament, and by divers other arbitrary and illegal
courses;
And whereas of late years partial corrupt and unqualified
persons have been returned and served on juries in trials, and particularly
divers jurors in trials for high treason which were not freeholders;
And excessive bail hath been required of persons committed in
criminal cases to elude the benefit of the laws made for the liberty of the
subjects;
And excessive fines have been imposed;
And illegal and cruel punishments inflicted;
And several grants and promises made of fines and forfeitures
before any conviction or judgment against the persons upon whom the same were
to be levied;
All which are utterly and directly contrary to the known laws
and statutes and freedom of this realm;
And whereas the said late King James the Second having
abdicated the government and the throne being thereby vacant, his Highness the
prince of Orange (whom it hath pleased Almighty God to make the glorious
instrument of delivering this kingdom from popery and arbitrary power) did (by
the advice of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal and divers principal persons of
the Commons) cause letters to be written to the Lords Spiritual and Temporal
being Protestants, and other letters to the several counties, cities,
universities, boroughs and cinque ports, for the choosing of such persons to
represent them as were of right to be sent to Parliament, to meet and sit at
Westminster upon the two and twentieth day of January in this year one thousand
six hundred eighty and eight [old style date], in order to such an
establishment as that their religion, laws and liberties might not again be in
danger of being subverted, upon which letters elections having been accordingly
made;
And thereupon the said Lords Spiritual and Temporal and
Commons, pursuant to their respective letters and elections, being now
assembled in a full and free representative of this nation, taking into their
most serious consideration the best means for attaining the ends aforesaid, do
in the first place (as their ancestors in like case have usually done) for the
vindicating and asserting their ancient rights and liberties declare
That the pretended power of suspending the laws or the
execution of laws by regal authority without consent of Parliament is illegal;
That the pretended power of dispensing with laws or the
execution of laws by regal authority, as it hath been assumed and exercised of
late, is illegal;
That the commission for erecting the late Court of
Commissioners for Ecclesiastical Causes, and all other commissions and courts
of like nature, are illegal and pernicious;
That levying money for or to the use of the Crown by pretence
of prerogative, without grant of Parliament, for longer time, or in other
manner than the same is or shall be granted, is illegal;
That it is the right of the subjects to petition the king,
and all commitments and prosecutions for such petitioning are illegal;
That the raising or keeping a standing army within the
kingdom in time of peace, unless it be with consent of Parliament, is against
law;
That the subjects which are Protestants may have arms for
their defense suitable to their conditions and as allowed by law;
That election of members of Parliament ought to be free;
That the freedom of speech and debates or proceedings in
Parliament ought not to be impeached or questioned in any court or place out of
Parliament;
That excessive bail ought not to be required, nor excessive
fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted;
That jurors ought to be duly impaneled and returned, and
jurors which pass upon men in trials for high treason ought to be freeholders;
That all grants and promises of fines and forfeitures of
particular persons before conviction are illegal and void;
And that for redress of all grievances, and for the amending,
strengthening and preserving of the laws, Parliaments ought to be held
frequently.
And they do claim, demand and insist upon all and singular
the premises as their undoubted rights and liberties, and that no declarations,
judgments, doings or proceedings to the prejudice of the people in any of the
said premises ought in any wise to be drawn hereafter into consequence or
example; to which demand of their rights they are particularly encouraged by
the declaration of his Highness the prince of Orange as being the only means
for obtaining a full redress and remedy therein. Having therefore an entire
confidence that his said Highness the prince of Orange will perfect the
deliverance so far advanced by him, and will still preserve them from the
violation of their rights which they have here asserted, and from all other
attempts upon their religion, rights and liberties, the said Lords Spiritual
and Temporal and Commons assembled at Westminster do resolve that William and Mary,
prince and princess of Orange, be and be declared king and queen of England,
France and Ireland and the dominions thereunto belonging, to hold the crown and
royal dignity of the said kingdoms and dominions to them, the said prince and
princess, during their lives and the life of the survivor to them, and that the
sole and full exercise of the regal power be only in and executed by the said
prince of Orange in the names of the said prince and princess during their joint
lives, and after their deceases the said crown and royal dignity of the same
kingdoms and dominions to be to the heirs of the body of the said princess, and
for default of such issue to the Princess Anne of Denmark and the heirs of her
body, and for default of such issue to the heirs of the body of the said prince
of Orange. And the Lords Spiritual and Temporal and Commons do pray the said
prince and princess to accept the same accordingly.
And that the oaths hereafter mentioned be taken by all
persons of whom the oaths have allegiance and supremacy might be required by
law, instead of them; and that the said oaths of allegiance and supremacy be
abrogated.
I, A.B., do sincerely promise and swear that I will be
faithful and bear true allegiance to their Majesties King William and Queen Mary.
So help me God.
I, A.B., do swear that I do from my heart abhor, detest and
abjure as impious and heretical this damnable doctrine and position, that
princes excommunicated or deprived by the Pope or any authority of the see of
Rome may be deposed or murdered by their subjects or any other whatsoever. And
I do declare that no foreign prince, person, prelate, state or potentate hath
or ought to have any jurisdiction, power, superiority, pre-eminence or
authority, ecclesiastical or spiritual, within this realm. So help me God.
Upon which their said Majesties did accept the crown and
royal dignity of the kingdoms of
II. And be it further declared and enacted by the authority
aforesaid, that from and after this present session of Parliament no
dispensation by non obstante of or to
any statute or any part thereof shall be allowed, but that the same shall be
held void and of no effect, except a dispensation be allowed of in such
statute, and except in such cases as shall be specially provided for by one or
more bill or bills to be passed during this present session of Parliament.
III. Provided that no charter or grant or pardon
granted before the three and twentieth day of October in the year of our Lord
one thousand six hundred eighty-nine shall be any ways impeached or invalidated
by this Act, but that the same shall be and remain of the same force and effect
in law and no other than as if this Act had never been made.