Commonwealth (Adultery) Act (1650)

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The Commonwealth (Adultery) Act of May 1650 was an act of the English Rump Parliament. It imposed the death penalty for incest and adultery, and three months' imprisonment for fornication.[1] Like all legislation passed by the Commonwealth of England, the act was repealed following the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660.[2]: 225  In the history of adultery in English law, the Act represents the only time since the twelfth century when adultery has been outlawed in secular statute law.[2]

References[]

  1. ^ J.P. Kenyon, 'The Interregnum, 1649–1660', in J. P. Kenyon, The Stuart Constitution (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1969), p. 330.
  2. ^ a b Jeremy D. Weinstein, 'Adultery, Law, and the State: A History', Hastings Law Journal, 38.1 (1986), 195-238.

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