The Highways Act 1562 (5 Eliz. I c. 13), sometimes the Second Statute of Highways, was an Act of the

Parliament of England The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England from the 13th century until 1707 when it was replaced by the Parliament of Great Britain. Parliament evolved from the great council of bishops and peers that advised ...

, that was passed in 1563, which extended the provisions of the

Highways Act 1555 The Highways Act 1555 (2 & 3 Ph. & Mary, c. 8), sometimes the First Statute of Highways, was an Act of the Parliament of England, which placed the burden of upkeep of the highways on individual parishes and that was passed in 1555. The Act wa ...

Background

The

was an Act, passed in 1555 during the reign of

Queen Mary I Mary I (18 February 1516 – 17 November 1558), also known as Mary Tudor, and as "Bloody Mary" by her Protestant opponents, was Queen of England and Ireland from July 1553 and Queen of Spain from January 1556 until her death in 1558. Sh ...

, which mandated that every householder of a

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 o ...

had to provide four days labour in a year on the

highways A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It is used for major roads, but also includes other public roads and public tracks. In some areas of the United States, it is used as an equivalent term to controlled-access ...

The Act

The Act amended the original Act by extending the provisions for a further twenty years, and made the requirement six days labour rather than four. Supervisors of highway work were empowered to take debris from quarries and dig for gravel without permission of the landowners. The Act also empowered

Justices of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

Quarter Sessions The courts of quarter sessions or quarter sessions were local courts traditionally held at four set times each year in the Kingdom of England from 1388 (extending also to Wales following the Laws in Wales Act 1535). They were also established in ...

to investigate and punish supervisors in cases where they were in dereliction of their duties, imposing fines as thought to be necessary.

Repeal

It was repealed by section 57 of the

Highways Act 1766 Highway Act (with its variations) is a stock short title used in India, the United Kingdom and the United States for legislation relating to highways. India *The National Highways Act, 1956 United Kingdom *The Highways Act 1555 *The Highways Act ...

(7 Geo. III c. 42).

References

Bibliography

* {{UK legislation 1563 in law 1563 in England Acts of the Parliament of England (1485–1603) Roads in England Transport policy in the United Kingdom Transport legislation History of transport in England