| Act of Parliament | |
 | |
| Long title | An Act for the better Security of the Crown and Government of the United Kingdom. |
|---|---|
| Citation | 11 & 12 Vict. c. 12 |
| Territorial extent | United Kingdom |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 22 April 1848 |
| Other legislation | |
| Amended by | Statute Law Revision Act 1875 |
Status: Amended | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Text of the Treason Felony Act 1848 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk. | |
The Treason Felony Act 1848 (11 & 12 Vict. c. 12) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Parts of the Act are still in force. It is a law which protects the King and the Crown.
The offences in the Act were originally high treason under the Sedition Act 1661 (later the Treason Act 1795), and consequently the penalty was death. However it was found that juries were often reluctant to convict people of capital crimes, and it was thought that the conviction rate might increase if the sentence was reduced to exile to the penal colonies in Australia (the penalty is now life imprisonment). Consequently, in 1848 three categories of treason (all derived from the 1795 Act) were reduced to felonies. (This occurred during a period when the death penalty in the United Kingdom was being abolished for a great many offences.) The Act does not prevent prosecutors from charging somebody with treason instead of treason felony if the same conduct amounts to both offences.[2]
It is treason felony to "compass, imagine, invent, devise, or intend":
- to deprive the Sovereign of his crown,
- to levy war against the Sovereign, or
- to "move or stir" any foreigner to invade the United Kingdom or any other country belonging to the Sovereign.
- ^ This short title was conferred by the Short Titles Act 1896, section 1 and the first schedule.
- ^ Section 6.