Legge 26 luglio 1869

Irish Church Act 1869

An Act to put an end to the Establishment of the Church of Ireland, and to make provision in respect of the Temporalities thereof, and in respect of the Royal College of Maynooth.

26th July 1869

WHEREAS it is expedient that the union created by Act of Parliament between the Churches of England and Ireland, as by law established, should be dissolved, and that the Church of Ireland, as so separated, should cease to be established by law, and that after satisfying, so far as possible, upon principles of equality as between the several religious denominations in Ireland, all just and equitable claims, the property of the said Church of Ireland, or the proceeds thereof, should be applied in such manner as Parliament shall hereafter direct:
And whereas Her Majesty has been gracious lypleased to signify that she has placed at the disposal of Parliament her interest in the several archbishoprics, bishoprics, benefices, cathedral preferments, and other ecclesiastical dignities and offices in Ireland:

SECT 1

1. This Act may be cited for all purposes as “The Irish Church Act, 1869.”

SECT 2

Dissolution of legislative union between Churches of England and Ireland.

2. On and after the first day of January one thousand eight hundred and seventy-one the said union created by Act of Parliament between the Churches of England and Ireland shall be dis solved, and the said Church of Ireland, herein-after referred to as “the said Church,” shall cease to be established by law.

S s .3 -18 rep. by S LR 1893 (No.2); S LR (NI) 1954; S LR 1980
Repeal of laws prohibiting holding of synods, &c.

SECT 19
19…. nothing in any Act, law, or custom shall prevent the bishops, the clergy, and laity of the said Church, by such representatives, lay and clerical, and to be elected as they the said bishops, clergy, and laity shall appoint, from meeting in general synod or convention, and in such synod or convention framing cons titutions and regulations for the general management and good government of the said Church and property and affairs thereof, and the future representation of the members thereof in diocesan synods, general convention, or otherwise.

SECT 20

Existing law to subsist by contract.

20. The present ecclesiastical law of Ireland, and the present articles, doctrines, rites, rules, discipline, and ordinances of the said Church, with and subject to such (if any) modification or alteration as may be duly made therein according to the constitution of the said Church for the time being, shall be deemed to be binding on the members for the time being thereof in the same manner as if such members had mutually contracted and agreed to abide by and observe the same, and shall be capable of being enforced in the temporal courts in relation to any property which under and by virtue of this Act is reserved or given to or taken and enjoyed by the said Church or any members thereof, in the same manner and to the same extent as if such property had been expressly given, granted, or conveyed upon trust to be held, occupied, and enjoyed by persons who should observe and keep and be in all respects bound by the said eccles ias tical law, and the said articles, doctrines, rites, rules, discipline, and ordinances of the said Church, subject as aforesaid; but nothing herein contained shall be cons trued to confer on any archbishop, bishop, or other eccles ias tical person any coercive jurisdiction whatsoever:…..

S .21 rep. by S LR 1893 (No.2)

SECT 22

Incorporation of Church body.

22. If at any time it be shown to the satisfaction of Her Majesty that the bishops, clergy, and laity of the said Church in Ireland, or the persons who, for the time being, may succeed to the exercise and discharge of the episcopal functions of such bishops, and the clergy and laity in communion with such persons, have appointed any persons or body to represent the said Church and to hold property for any of the uses or purposes thereof, it shall be lawful for Her
Majes ty by charter to incorporate such body, with power, …, to hold lands to such extent as is in this Act provided, but not further or otherwise.

S s .23 -29 rep. by S LR 1893 (No.2); S LR (NI) 1954; S LR 1980

SECT 30

Property belonging to see or church.

30…. where any property is vested in any ecclesias tical or cathedral corporation in Ireland in trust for the poor or any other charitable purpose, the dis solution of such corporation shall not affect the continuance of the trust, but such property shall immediately upon such dissolution vest in the representative body of the said Church,… but subject always to the trus ts affecting the same, and under the same supervis ion, local or otherwise, as theretofore, or as near thereto as the circums tances of the case will admit; and in all cases where eccles ias tical persons are at present in right of their dignities or offices entitled to be members of any lay corporations constituted for the management of any private endowment, or are trustees for the management of property belonging to ins titutions of private foundation for purposes not eccles ias tical, then the persons (if any) who shall hereafter at any time discharge duties s imilar or analogous to those now discharged by such eccles ias tical persons shall be entitled
to succeed in their room, and be members of such lay corporations, and to act as such trustees.

S s .31, 32 rep. by S LR 1893 (No.2)

SECT 33

Commissioners may purchase surrender or assignment of lease.

33. The Commissioners may, in order to the commutation of tithe rentcharge, purchase the surrender or assignment of any subs is ting lease of tithe rentcharge made by an eccles ias tical person or corporation.

SECT 34

Power to Commissioners to sell property vested in them by this Act.

34. The Commis s ioners may at any time sell by public auction or private contract, or otherwise convert into money, any real or personal property vested in them by this Act, subject to the other provis ions of this Act, and to the following conditions:
(1) They shall not sell to the public any perpetual yearly rent issuing out of any land, … where the fee s imple of the land s ubject to such rent… is vested in some person other than the Commissioners, until they have given notice to the owner of such land that they are willing to sell the same to him at the price herein-after mentioned, and the owner has declined to accept their offer:
(2) [Perpetuity rents may be sold to the owner of the land out of which they is sue for such cons ideration as is determined by the Minis try of F inance under section two of the Tithe Rentcharge and Variable Rents Act (Northern Ireland), 1930, as amended by section one of the Finance (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act (Northern Ireland), 1949.]
Para. (3) rep. by S LR 1980; para.(4) rep. by S LR (NI) 1954; para.(5)
rep. by S LR 1980
(6) Notice shall be given to the owner, where such owner is known to the Commissioners, by sending by post a letter containing the terms of the offer addres sed to him at his last known place of abode; where he is not known, notice may be given by advertis ing the terms in the [Belfast Gazette], and in one or more local newspapers as the Commissioners may determine:
(7)An owner shall be deemed to have declined to accept the offer of the Commissioners if he do not accept the same in writing, and pay or secure the purchase money to the Commissioners within three months after the giving of such notice as aforesaid:
(8)”Owner of land” for the purpose of this section shall include a “limited owner” as defined by the Landed Property (Ireland) Improvement Act, 1860; and any limited owner may raise the money required for any purchase under this section, or any part thereof, by mortgage (at a rate of interest not exceeding five pounds per centum per annum) of the land of which he is such limited owner as aforesaid. Any person purchas ing from the Commis s ioners shall hold the lands , tenements, and hereditaments purchased by him subject to all tenants rights of renewal to which the same
were subject in the hands of the Commis s ioners at the time of such sale.

S s .35-42 rep. by S LR 1893 (No.2); S LR (NI) 1954; S LR 1980
S s .43-47 rep. by S LR 1893 (No.2)
S s .48-51 rep. by S LR (NI) 1954; S LR 1980

Power of Commissioners to accept mortgages as security for a portion of purchase money.

SECT 52

52. Where the Commiss ioners sell any … interest in land in pursuance of this Act, the Commissioners may credit the purchaser with such part of the purchase money, not exceeding three-fourth parts, as they think proper, on having payment of the same, with interest at the rate of four per centum per annum, secured to the satis faction of the Commissioners; and any such purchase money may be made payable by half-yearly ins talments not exceeding s ixty-four in number.

S s .53-67 rep. by S LR 1893 (No.2); S LR (NI) 1954; S LR 1980

Ultimate trust of surplus.

SECT 68

68. And whereas it is further expedient that the proceeds of the said property should be appropriated mainly to the relief of unavoidable calamity and suffering, yet not so as to cancel or impair the obligations now attached to property under the Acts for the relief of the poor: the said proceeds shall be so applied accordingly in the manner Parliament shall hereafter direct.
Provision as to Acts relating to United Church of England and Ireland.

SECT 69

69. In all enactments, deeds, and other documents in which mention is made of the United Church of England and Ireland, the enactments and provis ions relating thereto shall be read dis tributively in respect of the Church of England and the Church of Ireland, but, as to the las t-mentioned Church, subject to the provis ions of this Act.

SECT 70

Saving rights as to proprietary chapels and chapels of ease.

70. Nothing in this Act contained shall affect the patronage or right of presentation to any proprietary or district parochial church or endowed chapel of ease which has been endowed out of private funds, or affect the property in any such church or chapel, or the property held for the purposes of or appropriated to the use of the same, or affect the continuance of the trust relating thereto as originally constituted.

SECT 71

Saving for 1800 c.67 and 1800 c.38 (I).

71. Nothing herein contained shall affect the Union with Ireland Act, 1800, or the Act of Union (Ireland), 1800, or anything done thereby, except in so far as relates to the union of the Churches of England and Ireland, and except as expressly herein-before provided.
Interpretation of terms.

SECT 72

72. In the cons truction and for the purposes of this Act the following words and expressions shall have the meanings hereby as s igned to them respectively, unless there be something in the subject or context repugnant thereto; (that is to say,) Definition rep. by S LR 1893 (No.2)
“Lease” shall include an agreement for a lease, or other contract of tenancy, and the es tate or interest created or agreed to be created thereby:
“Eccles ias tical person” shall mean and include any archbishop or bishop, or person holding any benefice or cathedral preferment as herein-after defined:
“Church” shall include a public chapel or chapel of ease, also a cathedral or collegiate church:
“Benefice” shall mean and include every parish, rectory, vicarage, perpetual curacy, donative, chantry, endowed public chapel, parochial chapelry, and chapelry or dis trict annexed, or reputed to be annexed, to any church or chapel, and whether the same be or be not within any exempt or peculiar jurisdiction:
“Glebe house” shall mean a house of res idence belonging to any benefice as herein-before defined:
“Cathedral preferment” shall mean and include every deanery, archdeaconry, prebend,canonry, chaplaincy, office of minor canon, chantry, office of priest vicar, vicar choral or choirman, having any prebend or endowment belonging thereto, or belonging to any body corporate cons is ting of persons holding any such office, and also every precentorship, treasurership, sub-deanery, chancellorship of the church, and other dignity and office in any cathedral or collegiate church:
“Cathedral corporation” shall mean any dean and chapter or chapter, and also any corporation of minor canons, or vicars and choirmen, or vicars choral, or any other subordinate corporation of or belonging to or connected with any cathedral or collegiate church in Ireland:
“Curate” shall include res identiary preacher or reader:
“Property” shall include things in action and rights of action:
“Jurisdiction” shall mean legal and coercive power, and shall not extend to or include any power or authority which may be exercised in a voluntary religious association, upon the footing of mutual contract or agreement.