The Education Act 1646 was an Act of the

Parliament of Scotland The Parliament of Scotland ( sco, Pairlament o Scotland; gd, Pàrlamaid na h-Alba) was the legislature of the Kingdom of Scotland from the 13th century until 1707. The parliament evolved during the early 13th century from the king's council o ...

(1646 c.46) that ordered locally funded, Church-supervised schools to be established in every

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

. It was passed by the Parliament at

St. Andrews St Andrews ( la, S. Andrea(s); sco, Saunt Aundraes; gd, Cill Rìmhinn) is a town on the east coast of Fife in Scotland, southeast of Dundee and northeast of Edinburgh. St Andrews had a recorded population of 16,800 , making it Fife's four ...

on 2 February 1646 in the reign of

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

, titled "Act for founding of schools in every parish." The act stated that for every

without a school and paid schoolmaster: * a school will be founded and a schoolmaster appointed with the advice of the presbytery. * to this end, the

heritor A heritor was a privileged person in a parish in Scots law. In its original acceptation, it signified the proprietor of a heritable subject, but, in the law relating to parish government, the term was confined to such proprietors of lands or house ...

s of every congregation will meet and provide: ** a suitable house for the school. ** an annual stipend for the schoolmaster, between 100-200 merks. ** a new tax on land and outdoor property to pay for these. * if the heritors do not do this, a panel of 12 men will be appointed by the presbytery, and the panel is empowered to do it and assess the new tax. * if the new tax is not paid, the debt is doubled,

letters of horning Letters of horning ''(Scots law)'': a document (i.e., letters) issued by civil authorities that publicly denounce a person as an outlaw. The document was issued against persons who had not paid their debts. Historically, the documents would be an ...

are issued, and further actions will be taken; and if the tax is still not paid, the debt is repeatedly redoubled until it has been paid. * life-renters owe the new tax on their rented land, just as if they were heritors. * it is lawful for any person to petition the

Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mo ...

for redress of any perceived inequality, if done within a year and a day. The act reflected the current status of the ongoing

Episcopalian Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of the ...

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their n ...

power struggle by specifying school supervision by presbyteries (the Presbyterian view; the Episcopalian view was supervision by

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...

s). This act had the same purpose as the

Education Act 1633 The Education Act 1633 was an Act of the Parliament of Scotland (1633 c. 5) that ordered a locally funded, Church-supervised school to be established in every parish in Scotland, and included the means to realise that order. The act was passed by ...

, which had been only partially successful because it had required the consent of those paying the tax, or of members of the congregation. That consent was not always given, but this act allowed the presbytery to ensure that it was done, and placed stiff penalties on those who did not comply. However, this act (of 1646) was passed amidst the tumult of the

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polici ...

s, and was rescinded in 1661 when the political winds shifted with the Restoration, so it never had the opportunity to become effective. It would be passed again 50 years later ( Education Act of 1696), with little changed but the use of more modern (i.e. 50 years later) wording.

References

{{UK legislation 1646 in law Acts of the Parliament of Scotland 1646 in Scotland School Establishment Acts History of education in Scotland 17th century in education

See also

References