Although this blog is officially on hiatus, my work for my book on the criminalization of witchcraft and fortune-telling continues apace. In case others might find it useful, here is my partial chronology of English statutes and cases on fortune-telling:
Chronology
of English Statutes & Cases on Fortune-Telling
1530: [Egyptians
Act] An act concerning Egyptians 22 Hen. 8 c. 10 (“many outlandish people,
calling themselves Egyptians, using no craft nor feat of merchandise, have come
into this realm, and gone from shire to shire, and place to place, in great company;
and used great subtle and crafty means to deceive the people--bearing them in
hand that they, by palmistry, could tell men's and women's fortunes; and so, many times, by craft
and subtlety, have deceived the people of their money; and also have committed
many heinous felonies and robberies, to the great hurt and deceit of the people
that they have come among . . . no
such persons be suffered to come within this the King’s Realm, and if they do
than they and every one of them so doing shall forfeit to the King our
Sovereign Lord all their goods and chattels and then to be commanded to avoid
the realm within 15 days next after the commandment upon pain of imprisonment .
. . The Egyptians now being in the Realm
have monition to depart within 16[?] days after proclamation”) (unverified: repealed in 1840 by 19-20 Vict. c. 64
or by Repeal of Obsolete Statutes Act
1856?) (modernised spelling)
1530-1531: [Vagrancy
Act] An act concerning punishment of Beggars and Vagabonds, 22 Hen. 8 c.
12 (“Where in all places through this realm of England, vagabonds and beggars
have of long time increased and daily do increase in great and excessive
numbers by the occasion of idleness, mother and rote of all vices . . .”
[requires beggars to be licensed, and sets punishment of stocks or whipping for
begging without a license or outside of licensed area] “all other idle persons going about in any
countries or abiding in any city, borough, or town, some of them using diverse
and subtle craft and unlawful games and plays and some of them feigning
themselves to have knowledge in Physic, Physiognomy, Palmistry, or other crafty
science whereby they bear the people on hand, that they can tell their
destinies, deceases, and fortunes and such other like fantastical imaginations
to the great deceit of the King’s Subjects, shall . . . be punished by whipping
at two days together [second offence is whipping, pillory, and having an ear
cut off; third offence is whipping, pillory, and having other ear cut off]” (verified repealed by 1597 Vagrancy Act) (modernised spelling)
1542: [Witchcraft
Act] The bill against conjuration and witchcrafts and sorcery and
enchantments 33 Hen. 8, c.8 (“if any person or persons . . . use, devise, practise, or exercise, or
cause to be used, devised, practised, exercised, any Invocations or
conjurations of Sprites, witchcrafts, enchantments, or sorceries, to the intent
to get or find money or treasure, or to waste, consume, or destroy any person
in his body members or goods, or to provoke any person to unlawful love, or for
any other unlawful intent or purpose, or by occasion or [?] of such things or
any of them, or for despite of Christ, or for lucre of money, dig up or pull
down any Cross or Crosses, or by such Invocations or conjurations of Sprites,
witchcrafts, enchantments, or sorcery or any of them take upon them to tell or
declare where goods stolen or lost shall become, that then all and every such
offence and offences . . .shall be deemed, accepted, and adjudged Felony.”)
(unverified: repealed by statute of 1 Edward 6 c. 12 or 9 Geo. 2 c. 5 s. 4?)
(modernised spelling)
1554:
[Egyptians Act] An act
for the punishment of certain persons calling themselves Egyptians 1&2
Phil. & Mar. c. 4 (recites purpose
of 1530 Act, says gypsies did not fear old penalties and have “enterprised to
come over again into this Realm using their old accustomed devilish and naughty
practices and devises”. Says all present
Egyptians must leave within 20 days or forfeit goods, and if they have not left
within 40 days, become felons) (unverified: repealed by Repeal of Obsolete Statutes Act 1856?) (modernised spelling)
1563:
[Witchcraft Act] An Act Against Conjurations, Enchantments, and
Witchcrafts 5 Eliz. 1, c. 16 (says that after 1542 Witchcraft Act was repealed in the first year of the reign of Kind
Edward, “since the repeal whereof many fantastical and devilish persons have
devised and practiced invocations and conjurations of evil and wicked Sprites,
and have used and practices Witchcrafts, enchantments, charms, and sorceries,
to the destruction of the persons and goods of their neighbours and other
subjects of this realm, and for other lewd intents and purposes contrary to the
laws of Almighty God, to the peril of their own souls, and to the great infamy
and disquietness of this Realm”) Sets
three categories of crimes:
1.
“if any person or persons shall . . . take upon him or them, by witchcrafts,
enchantment, charm, or sorcery, to tell or declare in what place any treasure
of gold or silver should or might be found or had in the earth or other secret
places, or where goods or things lost or stolen should be found or become, or
shall use or practise any sorcery, enchantment, charm or witchcraft, to the
intent to provoke any person to unlawful love, or to hurt or destroy any person
in his or her body, member or goods” (Penalty:
1 year’s imprisonment and pillory; second offence: life imprisonment)
2.
“if
any person or persons. . . shall use,
practise or exercise any witchcraft, enchantment, charm, or sorcery, whereby
any person shall happen to be wasted, consumed, or lamed in his or her body or
member, or whereby any goods or chattels of any person shall be destroyed, wasted,
or impaired” (Penalty: 1 Year’s imprisonment and pillory; Second Offence: Death)
3.
–as
# 2 above, but where “whereby any person shall happen to be killed or
destroyed” (Penalty: Death)
(modernised
spelling)
(verified repeal by
1604 Witchcraft Act)
1563:
[Egyptians Act] An act for the punishment of vagabonds calling themselves Egyptians
5 Eliz. c. 20 (says question about
whether 1554 Egyptians Act applies to
gypsies born in England; confirms operation of that statute, but adds that “all
and every person or persons which . . . shall be seen or found within Realm of
England or Wales in any company or fellowship of vagabonds commonly called or
calling themselves Egyptians, or counterfeiting, transforming or disguising
themselves by their apparel, speech, or other behaviour like unto such
vagabonds commonly called or calling themselves Egyptians, and so shall or do
continue and remain in the same, either at one time or at several times by the
space of one month” shall be declared a Felon)
(unverified: repealed by Statute Law Revision Act 1871) (modernised
spelling)
1597: [Vagrancy
Act] An act for punishment of rogues, vagabonds, and sturdy beggars 39
Eliz. c. 4 s. 2 (repeals all previous vagrancy acts; establishes several
categories of persons to be deemed Rogues, Vagabonds, and Sturdy Beggars,
including those representing themselves as Egyptians and “all idle persons
going about in any country either begging or using any subtle craft or unlawful
games and plays, or feigning themselves to have knowledge in Physiognomy,
Palmistry, or other like crafty science, or pretending that they can tell
destinies, fortunes, or such other like fantastical imaginations” Punishment: whipping, returned to home area,
forced labour) (modernised spelling)
1604: An Act
against conjuration, witchcraft, and dealing with evil and wicked spirits 2
Ja. 1 c. 12 (repeals 1563 Witchcraft Act)
Sets up two categories of offences:
1.
“if any person or persons shall . . . take upon him or them by witchcraft,
enchantment, charm, or sorcery to tell or declare in what place any treasure
of gold or silver should or might be found or had in the earth or other secret
places, or where goods or things lost or stolen should be found or become; or
to the intent to provoke any person to unlawful love, or whereby any chattels
or goods of any person shall be destroyed, wasted, or impaired, or to hurt or
destroy any person in his or her body, although the same be not effected and
done” (Penalty: 1 Year’s Imprisonment
& Pillory; Second Offence: Death as a Felon)
2.
“if
any person or persons . . . shall use, practise, or exercise any invocation or
conjuration of any evil and wicked spirit, or shall consult, covenant with,
entertain, employ, feed, or reward any evil and wicked spirit to or for any
intent or purpose; or take up any dead man, woman, or child out of his, her, or
their grave, or any other place where the dead body rests, or the skin, bone,
or any other part of any dead person, to be employed or used in any manner of
witchcraft, sorcery, charm, or enchantment; or shall use, practise, or exercise
any witchcraft, enchantment, charm, or sorcery, whereby any person shall be
killed, destroyed, wasted, consumed, pined [?], or lamed in his or her body, or
any part thereof;” (Penalty: Death as a
Felon)
(verified repeal by
1736 Witchcraft Act) (modernised
spelling)
1714: [Vagrancy
Act] An act for reducing the laws
relating to rogues, vagabonds, sturdy beggars, and vagrants, into one act of
parliament; and for the more effectual punishing such rogues, sturdy beggars
and vagrants, and sending them whether [sic] they ought to be sent 12 Anne
2 c. 23 (version I have appears to be a summary only) (various provisions
regarding vagrants, basically whipping them and ordering them back to their
homes or a house of correction; nothing in summary about fortune-telling, but
it’s hard to know)
1736: [Witchcraft
Act] An act to repeal the statute
made in the first year of the reign of King James the First, entitled, An
Act against conjuration, witchcraft, and dealing with evil and wicked spirits, except so much thereof as repeals an act
of the fifth year of the reign of Queen Elizabeth, Against conjurations,
enchantments, and witchcrafts, and to
repeal an act passed in the parliament of Scotland in the ninth parliament of
Queen Mary, entitled Anentis witchcrafts,
and for punishing such persons as pretend to exercise or use any kind of
witchcraft, sorcery, enchantment, or conjuration 9 Geo. 2 ch. 5 s. 4 (repeals 1604 Witchcraft Act) (says in
Section 3 that “no prosecution, suit, or proceeding, shall be commenced or
carried on against any person or persons for witchcraft, sorcery, enchantment,
or conjuration, or for charging another with any such offence, in any court
whatsoever in Great Britain” but in Section 4 says “And for the more effectual
preventing and punishing any pretences to such arts or powers as are
before-mentioned, whereby ignorant persons are frequently deluded and
defrauded; be it further enacted. . . . that if any person shall . . . pretend
to exercise or use any kind of witchcraft, sorcery, enchantment, or
conjuration, or undertake to tell fortunes, or pretend from his or her skill or
knowledge in any occult or crafty science to discover where or in what manner
any goods or chattels, supposed to have been stolen or lost, may be found;
every person so offending, being thereof lawfully convicted . . . shall for
every such offence suffer imprisonment, by the space of one whole year without
bail . . . and once in every quarter of the said year . . . stand openly on the
pillory by the space of one hour” (verified
repealed by 1951 Fraudulent Mediums Act)
(spelling modernised)
1744:
[Vagrancy Act] An act to amend and make more effectual the laws relating to rogues,
vagabonds, and other idle and disorderly persons, and to houses of
correction. 17 Geo. 2, c. 5, s. 2
(“all persons pretending to be gypsies, or wandering in the habit or form of
Egyptians, or pretending to have skill in physiognomy, palmistry, or like
crafty science, or pretending to tell fortunes, or using any subtle craft to
deceive and impose on any of His Majesty’s subjects” shall be deemed rogues and
vagabonds) (spelling modernised)
?1762: Egyptians
Act (unverified: repealed by Statute
Law Revision Act 1871?) (have not
obtained)
1807: Trial of Joseph Powell (vagrancy) (Perkins article)
?1822: 3 Geo. 4 c. 40, s. 3 (“all persons pretending
to be gypsies; all persons pretending to tell fortunes, or using any subtle
craft, means or device, by palmistry or otherwise, to deceive and impose on any
of His Majesty’s subjects” are to be deemed rogues and vagabonds) (repealed all
previous vagrancy legislation) (have not obtained)
1824: [Vagrancy
Act] An Act for the Punishment of
idle and disorderly Persons, and Rogues and Vagabonds, in that Part of Great Britain
called England, 5 Geo. 4, c. 83, s. 4 (verified: repealed all previous
vagrancy legislation) (“Every person pretending or professing to tell fortunes,
or using any subtle craft, means or device, by palmistry or otherwise, to
deceive and impose on any of His Majesty’s subjects . . . shall be deemed a
rogue and a vagabond.” Penalty: hard
labor for three months) [verified repeal by Fraudulent Mediums Act, 1951]
1868: Lyon v. Home (common law undue influence on gifts)
1876: Henry Slade (Vagrancy Act 1824) (unreported,
in Hayward)
1877: Monck
v. Hilton (Vagrancy Act 1824)
1887: Penny
v. Hanson (Vagrancy Act 1824)
1895: Lee or
Smith v. Neilson (Vagrancy Act 1824)
1899: Regina v. Entwistle (Vagrancy Act 1824)
1904: R v. Stephenson (Witchcraft Act 1735)
1918: Davis v Curry (Vagrancy Act 1824)
1921: Stonehouse
v. Masson (Vagrancy Act 1824)
1939: Bessy Birch (Witchcraft Act
1735) (unreported, in Hayward)
1944: Rex v.
Duncan (Witchcraft Act 1735)
1948: Farmer
v. Mill (Vagrancy Act 1824)
1950: Charles Botham (Witchcraft Act 1735)
(unreported, in Hayward)
1951: Fraudulent
Mediums Act 1951 “any person who (a)
with intent to deceive purports to act as a spiritualistic medium or to
exercise any powers of telepathy, clairvoyance or other similar powers, or (b)
in purporting to act as a spiritualistic medium or to exercise such powers as
aforesaid, uses any fraudulent device, shall be guilty of an offence. (2) A
person shall not be convicted of an offence under the foregoing subsection
unless it is proved that he acted for reward; and for the purposes of this
section a person shall be deemed to act for reward if any money is paid, or
other valuable thing given, in respect of what he does, whether to him or to
any other person.” (Penalty: summary conviction: fine up to fifty pounds
and/or imprisonment upon to four months; conviction on indictment: fine up to
500 pounds and/or imprisonment up to two years)
(verified repealed by Consumer
Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008)
1981: R. v. Martin (Vagrancy Act, 1824)
2008:
Consumer
Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 (general consumer protection statute against
fraudulent or misleading behaviour)
