Isle of Man Purchase Act 1765
Encyclopedia
The Isle of Man Purchase Act 1765 (c. 26), also known as the Act of Revestment purchased the feudal rights of the Dukes of Atholl as Lords of Man
over the Isle of Man
, and revested them into the British Crown.
The Act gave effect to an earlier contract between Charlotte Murray, Duchess of Atholl
, and the Government of the Kingdom of Great Britain
, represented by HM Treasury
, to sell the Atholls' feudal rights over the Island to Great Britain for a sum of £70,000. The authority to conclude a contract for the purchase was given under a Private Act of Parliament in 1726, but as an Act of Parliament of 1609 had conferred the feudal rights over the island upon the Atholls, primary legislation was required to terminate those rights.
The Act came into force upon the granting of Royal Assent
on 10 May 1765. The payment to the Duchess of Atholl was to be made no later than 1 June 1765.
The Act did not go as far as had been proposed: for a period there had been plans to merge the Isle of Man into the English county of Cumberland
. This had met with fierce resistance from the inhabitants, led by the then Speaker of the House of Keys
, Sir George Moore
.
The long title
of the Act was "An Act for carrying into Execution a Contract, made pursuant to the Act of Parliament of the 12th of his late Majesty King George 1st, between the Commissioners of his Majesty’s Treasury and the Duke and Duchess of Atholl, the proprietors of the Isle of Man, and their Trustees, for the purchase of the said Island and its dependencies, under certain exceptions therein particularly mentioned."
Having taken effect and therefore being effectively 'spent', the Act was finally repealed by the Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1976.
ial rights, the patronage of the bishopric
, and certain other perquisites.
These were sold in 1828 for the sum of £417,144. This was accomplished by two Private Acts of Parliament:
Lord of Mann
The title Lord of Mann is used on the Isle of Man to refer to Queen Elizabeth II, who is the island's Lord Proprietor and head of state.-Relationship with the Crown:The title is not correctly used on its own...
over the Isle of Man
Isle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...
, and revested them into the British Crown.
The Act gave effect to an earlier contract between Charlotte Murray, Duchess of Atholl
Charlotte Murray, Duchess of Atholl
Charlotte Murray, Duchess of Atholl and 8th Baroness Strange was a Scottish peeress.Born Lady Charlotte Murray, she was the daughter of the 2nd Duke of Atholl. On 23 October 1753, she married her first cousin, John Murray at Dunkeld, Scotland...
, and the Government of the Kingdom of Great Britain
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
, represented by HM Treasury
HM Treasury
HM Treasury, in full Her Majesty's Treasury, informally The Treasury, is the United Kingdom government department responsible for developing and executing the British government's public finance policy and economic policy...
, to sell the Atholls' feudal rights over the Island to Great Britain for a sum of £70,000. The authority to conclude a contract for the purchase was given under a Private Act of Parliament in 1726, but as an Act of Parliament of 1609 had conferred the feudal rights over the island upon the Atholls, primary legislation was required to terminate those rights.
The Act came into force upon the granting of Royal Assent
Royal Assent
The granting of royal assent refers to the method by which any constitutional monarch formally approves and promulgates an act of his or her nation's parliament, thus making it a law...
on 10 May 1765. The payment to the Duchess of Atholl was to be made no later than 1 June 1765.
The Act did not go as far as had been proposed: for a period there had been plans to merge the Isle of Man into the English county of Cumberland
Cumberland
Cumberland is a historic county of North West England, on the border with Scotland, from the 12th century until 1974. It formed an administrative county from 1889 to 1974 and now forms part of Cumbria....
. This had met with fierce resistance from the inhabitants, led by the then Speaker of the House of Keys
Speaker of the House of Keys
The Speaker of the House of Keys is the principal officer of the House of Keys, the lower house of the Isle of Man legislature. The Speaker is elected from the membership of the house at its first sitting after an election. He is responsible for controlling the procedure of the House and for...
, Sir George Moore
George Moore (SHK)
Sir George Moore was the Speaker of the House of Keys and their leader in the efforts to obtain better terms for Manx commerce after the Act of Revestment. It was largely due to his efforts that the Island was not annexed to Cumberland as previously planned...
.
The long title
Long title
The long title is the formal title appearing at the head of a statute or other legislative instrument...
of the Act was "An Act for carrying into Execution a Contract, made pursuant to the Act of Parliament of the 12th of his late Majesty King George 1st, between the Commissioners of his Majesty’s Treasury and the Duke and Duchess of Atholl, the proprietors of the Isle of Man, and their Trustees, for the purchase of the said Island and its dependencies, under certain exceptions therein particularly mentioned."
Having taken effect and therefore being effectively 'spent', the Act was finally repealed by the Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1976.
Subsequent rights sold
Under the Isle of Man Purchase Act, the Atholls still retained their manorManorialism
Manorialism, an essential element of feudal society, was the organizing principle of rural economy that originated in the villa system of the Late Roman Empire, was widely practiced in medieval western and parts of central Europe, and was slowly replaced by the advent of a money-based market...
ial rights, the patronage of the bishopric
Bishop of Sodor and Man
The Bishop of Sodor and Man is the Ordinary of the Diocese of Sodor and Man in the Province of York in the Church of England. The diocese covers the Isle of Man. The see is in the town of Peel where the bishop's seat is located at the Cathedral Church of St German, elevated to cathedral status on 1...
, and certain other perquisites.
These were sold in 1828 for the sum of £417,144. This was accomplished by two Private Acts of Parliament:
- "An Act empowering the Lords of the Treasury to Purchase all the Manorial Rights of the Duke of Atholl in the Isle of Man" [c. 34] 10 June 1824
- "An Act to empower the Commissioners of His Majesty’s Treasury to purchase a certain Annuity in respect of Duties and Customs levied in the Isle of Man, and any reserved sovereign rights in the said Island belonging to John Duke of Atholl" [c. 34] 10 June 1825