The Treason Act 1777 (17 Geo.3 c.9) was an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain passed during the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revoluti ...

. It required that anyone who was charged with or suspected of

high treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

piracy Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...

in America or on the high seas be held in custody without bail or trial until 1 January 1778. Bail could only be granted by an order of the Privy Council, signed by six members of the council. The Act was due to expire on 1 January 1778, but this was extended annually to 1 January of each successive year until 1 January 1783, when it was finally allowed to expire.''Statutes at Large'', vol. X (Index), London: Eyre, Straham, Woodfall (1786), "Plantations" para. 115.

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