Gregorian Calendar Act 1753c i e
AT 1 of 1753

GREGORIAN CALENDAR ACT 1753

Gregorian Calendar Act 1753 Index


c AT 1 of 1753 Page 3

c i e
GREGORIAN CALENDAR ACT 1753

Index Section Page

1 New Style to commence from last Day of December, 1751 ...................................... 6
2 [1752 and 1753 reckoned from 1st January, and so on] ............................................. 6
3 [All acts, deeds etc. after publication to be dated in the new style] ........................ 6
4 and 5 [Repealed] ............................................................................................................. 7
6 Bissextile or Leap Years ................................................................................................. 7
7 Moveable Feasts .............................................................................................................. 7
8 [English Table of Moveable Feasts etc to be used] ..................................................... 7
9 Holy days to be kept as directed by new Calendar ................................................... 8
10 Markets and Fairs in like manner ................................................................................. 8
11 Coroners to be sworn at usual time. - Hiring and yarding of Servants .................. 8
12 Letting and taking Possession of Lands. - Houses, etc to remain according
to old Style ....................................................................................................................... 9
13 Lord’s Rent or payment of other Money, Boons, etc not to be accelerated
by alteration of Style. - Attaining to Age of legal Maturity not to be
accelerated by alteration .............................................................................................. 10
ENDNOTES 13

TABLE OF LEGISLATION HISTORY 13
TABLE OF RENUMBERED PROVISIONS 13
TABLE OF ENDNOTE REFERENCES 13

Gregorian Calendar Act 1753 Section 1


c AT 1 of 1753 Page 5

c i e
GREGORIAN CALENDAR ACT 1753

Received Royal Assent: 31 March 1753
Passed: 31 March 1753
Effective from: 5 July 1753
AN ACT
for regulating the Commencement of the Year, and for establishing
the new Calendar now used in England.
Alteration of Calendar

Whereas an Act of Parliament hath lately passed in England, importing that the legal
Supputation of the Year of our Lord, according to which the Year beginneth on the
twenty-fifth Day of March, hath been found by Experience to be attended with divers
Inconveniences, not only as it differs from the Usage of neighbouring Nations, and
even from other Parts of Brittain itself, but also that frequent Mistakes and Disputes are
thereby occasioned in the Dates of Deeds and other Writings, and that the Calendar
then in use, commonly called the Julian Calendar, being discovered to be erroneous,
the Spring Equinox, which at the Time of the General Council of Nice in the Year of our
Lord three hundred and twenty-five happened on or about the twenty-first Day of
March, now happens on the ninth or tenth of the said Month, and the said Error still
encreasing, and if not remedied would in Process of Time occasion the several
Equinoxes and Solstices to fall at very different Times in the civil Year from what they
formerly did, which might mislead Persons ignorant of the said Alteration, and that a
Method of correcting the Calender, in such Manner as that the Equinoxes and Solstices
might for the future fall nearly upon the same nominal Days on which the same
happened at the Time of the said General Council, having been received and
established by almost all other Nations in Europe, it would be of general Convenience
to Merchants and others corresponding with other Nations, and prevent Mistakes and
Disputes in or concerning Dates of Letters and Accounts if received and established
there; and whereas it is the Province and Benefit of the People of this Isle to conform in
this Behalf to the said new Method of Supputation established in England, and the
same having been already observed here during the Year now last past, that is to say,
from and since the last Day of December one thousand seven hundred and fifty-one,
the first Day of January then next following, having been accordingly taken and
accounted to be the first Day of the Year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-two,
and from that Day the several Days of each Month and the Feast of Easter, and other
moveable Feasts thereon depending, having gone on according to that Method to the
Section 1 Gregorian Calendar Act 1753


Page 6 AT 1 of 1753 c

second Day of September following, the eleven intermediate nominal Days of the
common Calender being then omitted, the Day next after accounted to be the
fourteenth Day of the said Month, and so from thence the several natural Days
reckoned and numbered forwards according to the Order and Succession of Days used
in the new Calender; yet nevertheless it being found necessary to establish the same by
a Statute Law in this Island,
1 New Style to commence from last Day of December, 1751

That all Acts, Deeds, Proceedings, Bills, Bonds, Notes, Letters, Accounts, and
other Writings, and all other Matters and Things whatsoever, had, made,
transacted, or done for and during the said Year one thousand seven hundred
and fifty-two, from the last Day of December one thousand seven hundred and
fifty-one, and so on to the Commencement and promulgation of this Act, and
which were, are, or shall be dated in that Time according to the New Stile, shall
at all Times be held, deemed, as esteemed to be as good and effectual both at
Law and in Equity as if they had actually been made and dated, or did bear
Date according to the old Method of accounting by the Julian Calender, and that
no Plea of that Kind shall be admitted against them, or any of them, in any
Court of Law or Equity within this Isle whatsoever.
2 [1752 and 1753 reckoned from 1st January, and so on]

And be it further enacted by the Authority aforesaid, That the said Supputation,
according to which the Year of our Lord begun on the twenty-fifth Day of
March, shall not be made use of in this Isle from and after the last day of
December one thousand seven hundred and fifty-two, and that the first Day of
this Instant January shall be reckoned, taken, deemed, and accounted to be the
first Day of the Year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-three, and so on
from Time to Time the first Day of January in every Year which shall happen in
Time to come shall be reckoned, taken, deemed, and accounted to be the first
Day of the Year, and that each new Year shall accordingly comence and begin to
be reckoned from the first Day of January next preceding the twenty-fifth Day
of March on which such Year would, according to the Julian Calender or
Method of accounting, have begun or comenced; and that from the said first
Day of January Instant the several Days of each Month shall go on and be
reckoned and numbered according to the new Calender now established in
England as aforesaid;
3 [All acts, deeds etc. after publication to be dated in the new style]

And that all Acts, Deeds, Notes, and other Instruments of what Nature or Kind
soever, whether Ecclesiastical or Civil, Publick or Private, which shall be made,
executed, signed, or perfected upon or after the Day of the Publication of this
Act, shall bear Date according to the said new Method of Supputation;
Gregorian Calendar Act 1753 Section 6


c AT 1 of 1753 Page 7

4 and 5 [Repealed]
1

6 Bissextile or Leap Years

And continuing and for preserving the Calendar or Method of reckoning and
computing the Days of the Year in the same regular Course as near as may be in
all Times coming, be it further enacted by the Authority aforesaid, That the
several Years of our Lord one thousand eight hundred, one thousand nine
hundred, two thousand one hundred, two thousand two hundred, two
thousand three hundred, or any other hundredth Years of our Lord which shall
happen in Time to come, except only every four hundredth Year of our Lord,
whereof the Year of our Lord two thousand shall be the first, shall not be
esteemed or taken to be Bissextile or Leap Years, but shall be taken to be
common Years, consisting of three hundred and sixty-five Days, and no more,
and that the Years of our Lord two thousand four hundred, two thousand eight
hundred, and every other four hundredth Year of our Lord from the said Year
of our Lord two thousand inclusive, and also all other Years of our Lord which
by the present Supputation are esteemed to be Bissextile or Leap Years, shall for
the future, and in all Times to come, be esteemed and taken to be Bissextile or
Leap Years, consisting of three hundred and sixty-six Days in the same Sort and
Manner as was before used with respect to every fourth Year of our Lord:
7 Moveable Feasts

And whereas, according to the Rule prefixed to the Book of Common Prayer of
the Church of England, Easter-Day is always the first Sunday after the first full
Moon which happens next after the twenty-first Day of March; and if the full
Moon happens upon a Sunday, Easter-Day is the Sunday after: And whereas the
Method of computing the full Moons heretofore used in the Church of England,
and according to which the Table to find Easter for ever prefixed to the said
Book of Common Prayer is formed, is by Process of Time become considerably
erroneous: And whereas the new Calender, and also certain Tables and Rules
for the fixing the true Time of the Celebration of the said Feast of Easter, and the
finding the Times of the full Moons on which the same dependeth, have been
prepared and are now established in England, be it therefore enacted by the
Authority aforesaid, That the said Feast of Easter, or any of the Moveable Feasts
thereon depending, shall be no longer kept or observed in this Isle according to
the said Method of Supputation formerly used, or the said Table prefixed to the
said Book of Common Prayer;
8 [English Table of Moveable Feasts etc to be used]

And that the said Table, and also the Column of Golden Numbers as they are
prefixed to the respective Days of the Month in the said Calender, shall be
disused, and that the said new Calender Tables and Rules established in
England as aforesaid shall be preferred and used in the Room and Stead thereof:
Section 9 Gregorian Calendar Act 1753


Page 8 AT 1 of 1753 c

9 Holy days to be kept as directed by new Calendar

And that from and after the Day of the Publication of this Act all and every the
fixed Feast Days, Holy Days, and Fast Days, which were formerly kept and
observed by the Church in this Island, and also the several solemn Days of
Thanksgiving and of Fasting, and Humiliation, which are from Time to Time to
be kept and observed, shall be kept and observed on the respective Days
marked for the Celebration of the same in the said new Calender; that is to say,
on the same respective nominal Days on which the same were then kept and
observed, but which, according to the Alteration by this Act intended to be
made as aforesaid, will happen eleven Days sooner than the same by the Old
Stile did;
10 Markets and Fairs in like manner

And that the said Feast of Easter, and all other Moveable Feasts thereon
depending, shall from Time to Time be observed and celebrated according to
the said new Calender Tables and Rules within this Isle; and all Markets, Fairs,
and Marts, which by any Law, Custom, or Usage are appointed or accustomed
to be holden or kept at any moveable Time or Times depending upon the Time
of Easter, or any other such Moveable Feast as aforesaid, shall from Time to
Time, from and after the Day of Commencement of this Act, be holden and kept
on such Days and Times whereon the same shall respectively happen or fall,
according to the happening or falling of the said Feast of Easter, or such other
Moveable Feasts as aforesaid, to be computed according to the said new
Calender Tables and Rules settled in England as aforesaid.
11 Coroners to be sworn at usual time. - Hiring and yarding of Servants

And be it further enacted by the Authority aforesaid, That the holding and
keeping of all other Markets, Fairs, and Marts, whether for the Sale of Goods or
Cattle, or for the Hiring of Servants, or for any other Purpose, which are either
fixed to certain nominal Days of the Month, or depending upon the Beginning
or any certain Day of any Month, and the Midsummer Tynwald Court usually
holden or kept with the Fair or Mart on the Feast Day of Saint John Baptist, at
which the several Coroners of this Isle heretofore were and hereafter are
intended by this Act to be sworn and admitted into their respective Offices and
to enter upon the Execution of the same, and afterwards to appoint their Sub-
Coroners or Lockmen, to be likewise sworn in as usual; and the Time or Times
of hiring, yarding, publishing, giving warning, obtaining by Juries Freedom
from yarding and discharging of Servants from their Servitude, and of entering
Choice Children, shall not, from and after the Promulgation of this Act, be
continued upon or according to the nominal Days of the Month, or the Time of
the Beginning of any Year or Month to be computed according to the said new
Calender; but that from and after the said Promulgation the said Markets, Fairs,
and Marts, and the said Midsummer Tynwald Court shall be holden and kept,
and the said hiring, yarding, publishing, warning, obtaining by Juries Freedom
Gregorian Calendar Act 1753 Section 12


c AT 1 of 1753 Page 9

from yarding and discharging from Servitude, and of entering Choice Children,
shall be done, given, received, had, transacted, and taken upon or according to
the same natural Days upon or according to which the same should have been
so kept or holden, done, given, received, had, transacted, or taken, in case this
Act had never been made; that is to say, eleven Days later than the same would
have happened according to the nominal Days of the said new Supputation of
Time by which the Commencing of the each Year or Month, and the nominal
Days thereof, are anticipated or brought forward by the Space of eleven Days,
any Thing in this Act contained to the contrary notwithstanding.
12 Letting and taking Possession of Lands. - Houses, etc to remain

according to old Style

And whereas according to divers Customs, Prescriptions, and Usages within
this Isle, the entering upon the Possession and Occupation of Lands and
Houses, either by Recoveries of Titles or by setting and letting or opening of
Grounds for Pasture and other Purposes, are often on particular nominal Days
and Times in the Year; and on the other Hand the Owners of such Lands,
Houses, and Grounds have, on the Determination of such Settings, and of the
letting of Pastures, a Right to re-enter upon, enclose, and shut up the Premisses
for their own private Use; and there is in many other Instances a temporary and
distinct Property and Right vested in different Persons in and to such Lands,
Houses, and Grounds, according to certain nominal Days and Times in the Year:
And whereas the anticipating and bringing forward the said nominal Days and
Times by the Space of eleven Days, according to the said new Method of
Supputation, might be attended with many Inconveniences, be it therefore
further declared, provided, and enacted, by the Authority aforesaid, That
nothing in this Act contained shall extend, or be construed to extend to
accelerate or anticipate the Days or Times for entering by Recoveries, for
settings or lettings, for the opening, inclosing, or shutting up any such Lands,
Houses, or Grounds, as aforesaid, or the Days or Times on which any such
temporary or distinct Property or Right in or to any such Lands, Houses, or
Grounds as aforesaid is to commence; but that all such Lands, Houses, and
Grounds as aforesaid, shall, from and after the Publication of this Act, be from
Time to Time respectively entered upon, opened, enclosed, or shut up, and such
temporary and distinct Property and Right in and to such Lands, Houses, and
Grounds as aforesaid shall commence, begin, and determine upon the same
natural Days and Times on which the same should have so respectively
commenced, begun, and determine, or would have been entered upon, opened,
enclosed, or shut up in case this Act had not been made; that is to say, eleven
Days later than the same would have happened according to the said Account
and new Supputation of Time so to begin as aforesaid.
Section 13 Gregorian Calendar Act 1753


Page 10 AT 1 of 1753 c

13 Lord’s Rent or payment of other Money, Boons, etc not to be

accelerated by alteration of Style. - Attaining to Age of legal Maturity

not to be accelerated by alteration

Provided also, and it is hereby further declared and enacted, That nothing in
this present Act contained shall extend, or be construed to extend, to accelerate
or anticipate the Times of Payment of the Lords annual Chief Rents, Boons,
Customs, Fines, Duties, Suits, Services, and other Rights, Dues, or Demands
whatsoever, nor any other Rent or Rents, Annuity or Annuities, Sum or Sums of
Money whatsoever, which shall become payable by virtue or in consequence of
any Law, Statute, Custom, Usage, Lease, Deed, Writing, Bond, Note, Contract,
or other Agreement whatsoever now subsisting, or which shall be made, signed,
sealed, or entered into at any Time before the Publication hereof, or which shall
become payable by virtue of any Law or Statute now in force or which shall be
made before the said Publication, or the Time of doing any Matter or Thing
directed or required by any such Law or Statute to be done in relation thereto,
or to accelerate the Payment or Performance of, or increase the Interest of any
such Sum of Money which shall become payable as aforesaid, or to accelerate
the Time of Delivery of any Goods, Chattels, Wares, Merchandize, or other
Things whatsoever, or the Time of the Commencement, Expiration, or
Determination of any Lease, Deed, or Demise of any Lands, Houses, Tenements,
or Hereditaments, or of any other Contract or Agreement whatsoever, or of the
accepting, surrendering, or delivering up the Possession of any such Lands,
Houses, Tenements, or Hereditaments, or the Commencement, Expiration, or
Determination of any Annuity or Rent, or of any Grant for any Term of Years of
what Nature or Kind soever, by virtue or in consequence of any such Deed,
Writing, Contract, or Agreement, or the Time of the attaining the respective
Ages of fourteen and twenty-one Years, or any other Age requisite by any Law,
Custom, or Usage, Deed, Will, or Writing whatsoever for the doing any Act, or
for any other Purpose whatsoever by any Person or Persons now born, or who
shall be born before the Publication hereof, or the Time of the Expiration or
Determination of any Apprenticeship, or other Service by virtue of any
Indenture, or of any Articles under Seal or otherwise, or by reason of any simple
Contract or hiring whatsoever; but that all and every such Rent and Rents,
Boons, Customs, Duties, Fines, Suits, Services, and other Dues and Demands,
Annuity and Annuities, Sum and Sums of Money, and the Interest thereof, shall
remain and continue to be due and payable, and the Delivery of such Goods
and Chattels, Wares and Merchandize, shall be made, and the said Leases,
Deeds, and Demises of all such Lands, Houses, Tenements and Hereditaments,
and the said Contracts and Agreements shall be deemed to commence, expire,
and determine; and the said Lands, Houses, Tenements, and Hereditaments,
shall be accepted, surrendered, and delivered up, and the said Rents, Boons,
Customs, Duties, Fines, Suits and Services, Dues and Demands, Annuities and
Grants, for any Term of Years, shall commence, cease, and determine at and
upon the same respective natural Days and Times as the same should and ought
to have been payable or made, or would have happened in case this Act had not
been made; and that no further or other Sum shall be paid or payable for the
Gregorian Calendar Act 1753 Section 13


c AT 1 of 1753 Page 11

Interest of any Sum of Money whatsoever than such Interest shall amount unto
for the true number of natural Days for which the principal Sum bearing such
Interest shall continue due and unpaid; and that no Person or Persons
whatsoever shall be deemed or taken to have attained to the said respective
Ages of fourteen or twenty-one Years, or any other such Age as aforesaid, or to
have compleated the Time of any such Service as aforesaid, until the full
Number of Years and Days shall be elapsed on which such Person or Persons
respectively would have attained to such Ages, or would have compleated the
Time of such Service as aforesaid in case this Act had not been made, any Thing
hereinbefore contained to the contrary thereof in anywise notwithstanding.
Gregorian Calendar Act 1753 Endnotes


c AT 1 of 1753 Page 13

ENDNOTES

Table of Legislation History

Legislation Year and No Commencement






Table of Renumbered Provisions

Original Current






Table of Endnote References

1
Ss 4 and 5 repealed by High Court Act 1991 Sch 5.