Clarendon Code

Clarendon Code – Between 1661 and 1665, the English Parliament enacted the Clarendon Code (further expanded in 1672 and 1678), which penalized nonconformists by excluding them from certain professions and public offices and from obtaining degrees at Oxford or Cambridge unless they “conformed” or “subscribed” to the doctrines and practice of the Anglican church. After 1747, several Acts of Indemnity by the government effectually absolved nonconformists of these penalties, though the restrictions entailed by the Corporation Acts remained in place. Nevertheless, the fact that these acts were technically the law of the land remained a source of contention for nonconformists throughout the eighteenth century; several attempts were made at repealing them, most notably between 1787 and 1790. The Test and Corporation Acts were officially repealed by Parliament in 1828. See Bernard Lord Manning, The Protestant Dissenting Deputies (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1952), 217.