Foreign Enlistment Act 1870
- Foreign Enlistment Act 1870
The Foreign Enlistment Act 1870 (33 & 34 Vict. c.90) is an Act of Parliament of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that seeks to regulate mercenary activities of British citizens.
It received the royal assent on 9 August, 1870.
Background
Numerous former members of the UK armed forces had fought in the South American wars of independence against Spain. Trained officers of what was then regarded as the strongest military in the world were organising insurgents against Spain- and causing a major headache to the Spanish expeditionary forces. The act made it a crime for any citizen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland to enlist themselves in a foreign military.
Failure
The bill has achieved a degree of fame in the United Kingdom for being impossible to enforce. Although some were tried for breaching its provisions, the last such trial was in 1896. A privy council report claimed that no successful prosecutions came from the act.
Problems with evidence prevented the British government from convicting enlistees to the French Foreign Legion or those thousands who joined the fight against Francisco Franco in Spain. [http://tcbh.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/10/1/52]
The Privy council has claimed the act to be an "antiquated piece of legislation...passed on the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian war" [http://www.oup.co.uk/pdf/1-84-174183-3.pdf] .
ee also
*Foreign Enlistment Act 1819
*Neutrality Acts
External links
*
* [http://tcbh.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/10/1/52 "The Foreign Enlistment Act and the Spanish Civil War, 1936–1939"] , "Twentieth Century British History", 1999, 10(1):52-66.
Wikimedia Foundation.
2010.
Look at other dictionaries:
Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006 — For the 2007 act, see Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2007. The Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act (CIRA, S. 2611) was a United States Senate bill introduced in the 109th Congress (2005–2006) by Sen. Arlen Specter [PA] on April 7, 2006 … Wikipedia
List of Acts of Parliament of the United Kingdom Parliament, 1860-1879 — This is an incomplete list of Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for the years 1860 1879. For acts passed prior to 1707 see List of Acts of Parliament of the English Parliament and List of Acts of Parliament of the Scottish… … Wikipedia
Military history of Australia — History of Australia … Wikipedia
Mercenary — For other uses, see Mercenary (disambiguation). Leonardo da Vinci s Il Condottieri, 1480. Condottieri being the Late Middle Age Through Renaissance term for Mercenary soldier leader(s) in Italian. A Mercenary, also known as a professional soldier … Wikipedia
Historia militar de Australia — Esta página o sección está siendo traducida del idioma inglés a partir del artículo Military history of Australia, razón por la cual puede haber lagunas de contenidos, errores sintácticos o escritos sin traducir. Puedes colaborar con… … Wikipedia Español
French Foreign Legion — Infobox Military Unit unit name=French Foreign Legion caption=The Legion emblem. dates=10 March 1831 present country=FRA branch=French Army type= role= size= c. 7,700 men in nine regiments and one sub unit current commander= Brigade General Louis … Wikipedia
English criminal law — The Old Bailey, a Crown Court centre, is situated on the site of the former bailey of the London wall English criminal law refers to the body of law in the jurisdiction of England and Wales which deals with crimes and their consequences. Criminal … Wikipedia
Northern Ireland law — refers to the legal system of statute and common law operating in Northern Ireland since Northern Ireland was established as a separate jurisdiction within the United Kingdom in 1921. Contents 1 Background 2 Criminal law 2.1 Criminal offences … Wikipedia
Proclamation — A proclamation (Lat. proclamare , to make public by announcement) is an official declaration.British royal proclamationsIn English law, a proclamation is a formal announcement ( Royal Proclamation ), made under the great seal, of some matter… … Wikipedia
South African Wars (1879-1915) — Ethnic, political and social tensions among European colonial powers, indigenous Africa, and English and Dutch settlers led to open conflict in a series of wars and revolts between 1879 and 1915 that would have lasting repercussions on the entire … Wikipedia
