An Act concerning Monopolies and Dispensations with Penal Laws, and the Forfeitures thereof.

(1623) 21 Jac. 1. c. 3.

[Note: This edition is from the Compendium of Mercantile Law, 4th ed. (1848) by JW Smith, available from the Internet Archive. The language appears to have been edited and modernized from the original 1623/1624 edition, which included archaic spellings and characters from that period. That version of the text was reproduced in the authoritative The Statutes of the Realm (vol. 4, part 2), available from HathiTrust.]

[Note 2: The Statute of Monopolies is frequently cited both as (1623) and (1624), owing to the fact that the Statute was passed in the 1623-1624 session of Parliament. Until the official adoption of the Julian Calendar in around 1752, British calendars mostly celebrated the New Year in March.]

FORASMUCH as your most excellent Majesty, in your royal judgment, and of your blessed disposition to the weal and quiet of your subjects, did in the year of our Lord God one thousand six hundred and ten, publish in print to the whole realm, and to all posterity, That all grants and monopolies, and of the benefit of any penal laws, or of power to dispense with the law, or to compound for the forfeiture, are contrary to your Majesty’s laws, which your Majesty’s declaration is truly consonant and agreeable to the acient and fundamental laws of this your realm: And whereas your Majesty was further graciously pleased, expressly to command, that no suitor should presume to move your Majesty for matters of that nature; yet nevertheless upon misinformations, and untrue pretences of public good, many such grants have been unduly obtained, and unlawfully put in execution, to the great grievance and inconvenience of your Majesty’s subjects, contrary to the laws of this your realm, and contrary to your Majesty’s most royal and blessed intention so published as aforesaid : For avoiding whereof, and preventing of the like in time to come, may it please your excellent Majesty at the humble suit of the lords spiritual and temporal, and the commons, in this present parliament assembled. That it may be declared and enacted ; and be it declared and enacted by authority of this present parliament, That all monopolies, and all commissions, grants, licenses, charters, and letters patents heretobefore made or granted, or hereafter to be made or granted, to any person or persons, bodies politic or corporate whatsoever, of or for the sole buying, selling, making, working, or using of any thing within this realm, or the dominion of Wales, or of any other monopolies, or of power, liberty or faculty, to dispense with any others, or to give license or toleration to do, use or exercise any thing against the tenor or purport of any law or statute ; or to give or make any warrant for any such dispensation, license or toleration to be had or made ; or to agree or compound with any others for any penalty or forfeitures limited by any statute ; or of any grant or promise of the benefit, profit or commodity of any forfeiture, penalty or sum of money, that is or shall be due by any statute, before judgment thereupon had ; and all proclamations, inhibitions, restraints, warrants of assistance, and all other matters and things whatsoever, any way tending to the instituting, erecting, strengthening, furthering or countenancing of the same or any of them ; are altogether contrary to the laws of this realm, and so are and shall be utterly void and of none effect, and in no wise to be put in ure or execution.

II. And be it further declared and enacted by the authority aforesaid. That all monopolies, and all such commissions, grants, licenses, charters, letters patents, proclamations, inhibitions, restraints, warrants of assistance, and all other matters and things tending as aforesaid, and the force and validity of them and of every of them, ought to be and shall be for ever hereafter examined, heard, tried and determined by and according to the common laws of this realm, and not otherwise.

III. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That all person and persons, bodies politic and corporate whatsoever, which now are or hereafter shall be, shall stand and be disabled and uncapable to have, use, exercise, or put in ure any monopoly, or any such commission, grant, license, charter, letters patents, proclamation, inhibition, restraint, warrant of assistance, or other matter or thing tending as aforesaid, or any liberty, power or faculty, grounded or pretended to be grounded upon them or any of them.

IV. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That if any person or persons at any time after the end of forty days next after the end of this present session of parliament, shall be hindered, grieved, disturbed or disquieted, or his or their goods or chattels any way seized, attached, distrained, taken, carried away or detained, by occasion or pretext of any monopoly, or of any such commission, grant, license, power, liberty, faculty, letters patents, proclamation, inhibition, restraint, warrant of assistance, or other matter or thing tending as aforesaid, and will sue to be relieved in or for any of the premises ; that then and in every such case, the same person and persons shall and may have his and their remedy for the same at the common law, by any action or actions to be grounded upon this statute ; the same action and actions to be heard and determined in the courts of king’s bench, common pleas, and exchequer, or in any of them, against him or them by whom he or they shall be so hindered, grieved, disturbed or disquieted, or against him or them by whom his or their goods or chattels shall be so seized, attached, distrained, taken, carried away or detained ; wherein all and every such person and persons which shall be so hindered, grieved, disturbed or disquieted, or whose goods or chattels shall be so seized, attached, distrained, taken, carried away or detained, shall recover three times so much as the damages which he or they sustained by means or occasion of being so hindered, grieved, disturbed or disquieted, or by means of having his or their goods or chattels seized, attached, distrained, taken, carried away or detained, and double costs ; and in such suits, or for the staying or delaying thereof, no essoin, protection, wager of law, aid prayer, privilege, injunction or order of restraint, shall be in any wise prayed, granted, admitted or allowed, nor any more than one imparlance : And if any person or persons shall, after notice given, that the action depending is grounded upon this statute, cause or procure any action at the common law, grounded upon this statute, to be stayed or delayed before judgment, by colour or means of any order, warrant, power or authority, save only of the court wherein such action as aforesaid shall be brought and depending, or after judgment had upon such action shall cause or procure the execution of or upon any such judgment to be stayed or delayed by colour or means of any order, warrant, power or authority, save only by writ of error or attaint ; that then the said person and persons so offending shall incur and sustain the pains, penalties, and forfeitures, ordained and provided by the statute of provision and praemunire made in the sixteenth year of the reign of king Richard the Second.

V. Provided nevertheless, and be it declared and enacted, That any declaration before mentioned shall not extend to any letters patents and grants of privilege for the term of one and twenty years or under, heretofore made, of the sole working or making of any manner of new manufacture within this realm, to the first and true inventor or inventors of such manufactures, which others at the time of the making of such letters patents and grants did not use, so they be not contrary to the law, nor mischievous to the state, by raising of the prices of commodities at home, or hurt of trade, or generally inconvenient, but that the same shall be of such force as they were or should be, if this act had not been made, and of none other; And if the same were made for more than one and twenty years, That then the same for the term of one and twenty years only, to be accounted from the date of the first letters patents and grants thereof made, shall be of such force as they were or should have been, if the same had been made but for term of one and twenty years only, and as if this act had never been had or made, and of none other.

VI. Provided also, and be it declared and enacted. That any declaration before mentioned shall not extend to any letters patents and grants of privilege for the term of fourteen years or under, hereafter to be made, of the sole working or making of any manner of new manufactures within this realm, to the true and first inventor or inventors of such manufactures, which others at the time of making such letters patents and grants shall not use, so as also they be not contrary to the law, nor mischievous to the state, by raising prices of commodities at home, or hurt of trade, or generally inconvenient : The said fourteen years to be accounted from the date of the first letters patents, or grant of such privilege hereafter to be made, but that the same shall be of such force as they should be, if this act had never been made, and of none other.

VII. Provided also, and it is hereby further intended, declared and enacted by authority aforesaid. That this act or any thing therein contained shall not in any wise extend, or be prejudicial to any grant or privilege, power or authority whatsoever heretofore made, granted, allowed or confirmed by any act of parliament now in force, so long as the same shall so continue in force.

VIII. Provided also. That this act slialj not extend to any warrant or privy seal, made or directed or to be made or directed by his Majesty, his heirs or successors, to the justices of the courts of the king’s bench or common pleas, and barons of the exchequer, justices of assize, justices of oyer and terminer and gaol
delivery, justices of the peace, and other justices for the time being, having power to hear and determine offences done against any penal statute, to compound for the forfeitures of any penal statute, depending in suit and question before them or any of them respectively, after plea pleaded by the party defendant.

IX. Provided also, and it is hereby further intended, declared and enacted, That this act or anything therein contained shall not in any wise extend or be prejudicial unto the city of London, or to any city, borough or town corporate within this realm, for or concerning any grants, charters or letters patents, to them or any of them made or granted, or for or concerning any custom or customs, used by or within them or any of them : or unto any corporations, companies or fellowships of any art, trade, occupation or mystery, or to any companies or societies of merchants within this realm, erected for the maintenance, enlargement, or ordering of any trade of merchandise ; but that the same charters, customs, corporations, companies, fellowships and societies and their liberties, privileges, powers and immunities, shall be and continue of such force and effect as they were before the making of this act, and of none other ; any thing before in this act contained to the contrary in any wise notwithstanding.

X. Provided also, and be it enacted, That this act, or any declaration, provision, disablement, penalty, forfeiture, or other thing before mentioned, shall not extend to any letters patents or grants of privilege heretofore made, or hereafter to be made, of, for or concerning printing, nor to any commission, grant or letters patents heretofore made, or hereafter to be made, of, for or concerning the digging, making or compounding of saltpetre or gunpowder, or the casting or making of ordnance, or shot for ordnance, nor to any grant or letters patents heretofore made, or hereafter to be made, of any office or offices heretofore erected, made or ordained, and now in being, and put in execution, other than such offices as have been decried by any of his Majesty’s proclamation or proclamations : But that all and every the same grants, commissions and letters patents, and all other matters and things tending to the maintaining, strengthening and furtherance of the same, or any of them, shall be and remain of the like force and effect, and no other, and as free from the declarations, provisions, penalties and forfeitures contained in this act, as if this act had never been had nor made, and not otherwise.

XI. Provided also, and be it enacted. That this act, or any declaration, provision, disablement, penalty, forfeiture, or other thing before mentioned, shall not extend to any commission, grant, letters patents or privilege heretofore made or hereafter to be made, of, for or concerning the digging, compounding or making of alum or alum mines, but that all and every the same commissions, grants, letters patents and privileges shall be and remain of the like force and effect, and no other, and as free from the declarations, provisions, penalties, and forfeitures contained in this act, as if this act had never been had nor made, and not otherwise.

XII. Provided also, and be it enacted. That this act, or any declaration, provision, penalty, forfeiture, or other thing before mentioned, shall not extend or be prejudicial to any use, custom, prescription, franchise, freedom, jurisdiction, immunity, liberty, or privilege, heretofore claimed, used or enjoyed by the governors and stewards, and brethren of the fellowship of the hoast-men of the town of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, or by the ancient fellowship, guild or fraternity, commonly called hoast-men, for or concerning the selling, carrying, lading, disposing, shipping, venting or trading of or for any sea-coals, stone-coals or pit-coals, forth or out of the haven and river of Tyne ; or to any grant made by the said governor and stewards, and brethren of the fellowship of the said hoast-men, to the late Queen Elizabeth, of any duty or sum of money to be paid for or in respect of any such coals as aforesaid : nor to any grants, letters patents or commission, heretofore granted, or hereafter to be granted, of, for or concerning the licensing of the keeping of any tavern or taverns, or selling, uttering, or retailing of wines to be drunk or spent in the mansion house or houses, or other place in the tenure or occupation of the party or parties so selling or uttering the same or for or concerning the making of any compositions for such licenses, so as the benefit of such compositions be reserved and applied to and for the use of his Majesty, his heirs or successors, and not to the private use of any other person or persons.

XIII. Provided also, and be it enacted, That this act, or any declaration, provision, penalty, forfeiture, or other thing before mentioned shall not extend or be prejudicial to a grant or privilege for or concerning the making of glass, by his Majesty’s letters patents under the great seal of England, bearing date the two and twentieth day of May, in the one and twentieth year of his Majesty’s reign of England, made and granted to Sir Robert Mansel, knight, vice-admiral of England : nor to a grant of letters patents bearing date the twelfth day of June in the thirteenth year of his Majesty’s reign of England, made to James Maxwell, esquire, concerning the transportation of calf skins : But that the said several letters patents last mentioned shall be and remain of the like force and effect, and as free from the declarations, provisions, penalties and forfeitures before-mentioned, as if this act had never been had nor made, and not otherwise.

XIV. Provided also, and be it declared and enacted. That this act, or any declaration, provision, penalty, forfeiture, or other thing before mentioned, shall not extend or be prejudicial to a grant or privilege for or concerning the making of smalt, by his Majesty’s letters patents under the great seal of England, bearing date the sixteenth day of February in the sixteenth year of his Majesty’s reign of England, made or granted to Abraham Baker : Nor to a grant or privilege, for or concerning the melting of iron ewer, and of making the same into cast-works or bars with sea-coals or pit-coals, by his Majesty’s letters patents under the great seal of England, bearing date the twentieth day of February, in the nineteenth year of his Majesty’s reign of England, made or granted to Edward Lord Dudley; but that the same several letters patents and grants shall be and remain of the like force and effect, and as free from the declarations, provisions, penalties, and forfeitures before mentioned, as if this act had never been had nor made, and not otherwise.