May, 1647
[21 May, 1647.]
Persons who have acted by authority of Parliament, or for the service thereof, ought not to be sued.
The Lords and Commons taking notice, That divers well-affected
persons have been sued, indicted, prosecuted, or molested, and
others are likely to be sued, indicted, prosecuted, or molested for
such acts and things which they have acted and done by authority of this present Parliament, or for the services and benefit
thereof during these late Wars and Troubles, do hereby Ordain
and Declare, and be it by authority of Parl. Ordained and
Declared, that no person or persons whatsoever, who have since
the beginning of this present Parl. acted or done, or commanded
to be acted or done any act or thing whatsoever by authority of
this present Parl. or for the service or benefit thereof, by Sea or
by Land, ought to be sued, indicted, prosecuted or molested for
the same; and that every such person or persons whatsoever, are
and shall be hereby fully acquitted and discharged of all Actions
Suits, Indictments, Informations, Prosecutions, Judgements,
Executions, and Molestations whatsoever, for or concerning the
same; And all Judges, Justices, Sheriffs, Mayors, Bayliffs, Jurors,
Officers, and Ministers of Justice whatsoever, are hereby required
to take notice thereof, and duly to observe the same.
General issue.; Treble costs.
And for the ease of all such persons who are or shall be sued
indicted, prosecuted, or molested for any such Act or thing as is
aforesaid, it is hereby Declared and Ordained, That in every
Action, Suit, Indictment, Information, or Prosecution whatsoever,
wherein or whereby they shall be so sued, indicted, prosecuted, or
molested as is aforesaid, contrary to this Ordinance, It shall be
lawfull to and for all persons aforesaid, their Heirs, Executors,
Administrators and Assignes, to plead the general issue, that they
are not guilty, or any other general issue, as the case shall require,
and shall and may give in evidence to the Jury that shall try the
same, that the matter in question was an act or thing acted or
done, or commanded to be acted or done by authority of this
present Parliament, or for the service and benefit thereof; which
evidence being proved, shall be admitted and allowed by the
respective Judges, Judge, or Justice, or Justices, and Jury before
whom it shall be tried, as sufficient to maintain the said general
issue: And if the verdict shall pass with the Defendant or
Defendants in any Action, Bill, Plaint, or Suit, as is aforesaid, or
the Plaintiff or Plaintiffs shall be non-suit therein, or suffer any
discontinuance thereof, the respective Judges or Justices shall
award unto the said Defendant or Defendants treble costs, for
which the said Defendant or Defendants shall have the like
remedy, as in the like cases they ought to have by the Lawes of
this Realm: And what any Judges, Justices, Sheriffs, Mayors,
Bayliffs, Jurors, Officers and Ministers of Justice shall do according to this Ordinance, or in pursuance thereof, they shall be
justified and saved harmless by authority of Parliament for and
concerning the same.
And because such persons who have acted or commanded to
be acted or done any such act or thing, as is aforesaid, may be
poor, and not able to defend a Suit at common Law, or may finde
themselves aggrieved in the proceedings thereof: Now for a
further and certain relief of all such persons, it is hereby Ordained
and Declared by the authority aforesaid, That any such persons
so sued, indicted, prosecuted, or molested, as is aforesaid, may at
any time hereafter, when and as often as they shall be sued,
indicted, prosecuted or molested for any such Act or thing, as is
aforesaid, either before or after a tryal at the common Law, make
their complaint to
Committee to receive complaints from persons sued.
Algernon Earl of Northumberland, Henry Earl of Kent, John
Earl of Rutland, Philip Earl of Pembroke and Montgomery,
Theophilus Earl of Lincoln, Charles Earl of Nottingham, James
Earl of Suffolk, William Earl of Salisbury, Robert Earl of
Warwick, Bazil Earl of Denbigh, James Earl of Middlesex, Edward
Earl of Manchester, Edmund Earl of Mulgrave, Henry Earl of
Stamford, Walter Lord Viscount Hereford, William Lord Viscount
Say and Seal, Charls Lord de-la-War, George Lord Berkley, Philip
Lord Wharton, Francis Lord Willoughby, Dudley Lord North,
John Lord Hunsdon, William Lord Grey of Wark, John Lord
Robartes, Edward Lord Howard of Escrig, Thomas Lord Bruce,
Members of the House of Peers;
Mr. Holles, Colonel Birch, Mr. Swynfen, Mr. Maynard, Mr. Bois,
Colonel Purefoy, Colonel Harvey, Mr. Recorder, Mr. Solicitor, Sir
Philip Stapleton, Colonel Morley, Sir William Allenson, Colonel
Massey, Mr. Whitlock, Sir Gilbert Gerrard, Sir William Waller.
Mr. Edwards, Mr. Challener, Lieutenant General Cromwel, Mr.
Tate, Sir William Massam, Sir Samuel Luke, Mr. Lisle, Field
Marshal Skippon, Mr. Francis Allen, Colonel Walton, Mr. Rigby,
Sir John Maynard, Mr. Selden, Mr. Got, Sir William Brereton,
Mr. Grimston, Mr. Darley, Mr. Dove, Sir John Bampfield, Lord
Monson, Sir Michael Livesey, Sir Thomas Widdrington, Sir
Arthur Hasilrig, Mr. Bainton, Mr. Nicholas, Mr. Weaver, Mr.
Nathaniel Fiennes, Colonel Rainsborough, Major Harrison, Mr.
Walter Long, Mr. Hallowes, Mr. Miles Corbet, Colonel Tompson,
Mr. Drake, Sir Thomas Middleton, Mr. William Peirpoint,
Members of the House of Commons, or any five of them, who are
hereby constituted a Committee of Parliament, for the relief of
all such persons, in such cases as is aforesaid.
Powers.; Their Order shall be obeyed.
And the said Committee, or any five of them, are hereby
authorized and required to receive, hear, and determine such
aforesaid Complaints; and to that end to examine witnesses
upon Oath; and to commit to safe custody, (if they shall see
cause) all such person or persons, who shall so sue, indict, prosecute, or molest any person or persons whatsoever, for acting, or
doing any such act or thing, as is aforesaid; And also to order
and award to every such person or persons so sued, indicted, prosecuted, or molested, treble so much as they shall make appear
to the said Committee, that they have been damnified by any
such suit, indictment, prosecution, or molestation, as is aforesaid,
if they have not before recovered the same by the proceedings at
Common Law according to this Ordinance. And that when the
said Committee, or any five of them, shall have made any order
or award, in such aforesaid cases respectively, that the said person
or persons ought not to be sued, indicted, prosecuted, or molested,
for such act or thing respectively, then upon shewing the said
order or award to the Solicitors, Atturnies, or Counsellors of the
party or parties so suing, indicting, prosecuting, molesting, as is
aforesaid, the said Solicitors, Atturnies, and Counsellors, shall
presently forbear to prosecute, or assist, counsel, or advise the
said party or parties to sue, indict, or prosecute any further, for
such act or thing respectively: And that if thereupon, they shall
not forbear, so to do, the said Committee, or any five of them, are
hereby authorized and required to commit to safe custody any
such Solicitors, Atturnies, or Counsellors, so offending, as is
aforesaid, if they shall see cause.
This shall not discharge any person from making his accompts.
Provided alwaies that this Ordinance, nor any thing herein
contained, shall not extend to discharge any such person or
persons aforesaid, who have acted, or done, or commanded to be
acted or done, any act or thing by authority of this present Parliament, or for the service or benefit thereof, from making their
true and just Accompts to any Commissioners or Committee of
Parliament, appointed or to be appointed for that purpose, of what
they have taken, received, or had, for the service and benefit of
the Parliament, as is aforesaid.