Ancient Monuments Protection Act 1882
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | 1882 c. 73 |
| Year | 1882 |
Ancient Monuments Protection Act, 1882
(45 & 46 Vict.) CHAPTER 73.
An Act for the better protection of Ancient Monuments.
[18th August 1882]
Be it enacted by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
1 Short title of Act.
1. This Act may be cited for all purposes as theAncient Monuments Protection Act, 1882.
2 Power to appoint Commissioners of Works guardians of ancient monuments.
2. The owner of any ancient monument to which this Act applies may, by deed under his hand, constitute the Commissioners of Works in this Act mentioned the guardians of such monument.
Where the Commissioners of Works have been constituted guardians of a monument, they shall thenceforth, until they shall receive notice in writing to the contrary from any succeeding owner not bound by such deed as aforesaid, maintain such monument, and shall, for the purpose of such maintenance, at all reasonable times by themselves and their workmen have access to such monument, for the purpose of inspecting it, and of bringing such materials and doing such acts and things as may be required for the maintenance thereof.
The owner of an ancient monument of which the Commissioners of Works are guardians shall, save as in this Act expressly provided, have the same estate, right, title, and interest, in and to such monument, in all respects, as if the Commissioners had not been constituted guardians thereof.
The expressions ‘maintain’ and ‘maintenance’ include the fencing, repairing, cleansing, covering in, or doing any other act or thing which may be required for the purpose of repairing any monument or protecting the same from decay or injury. The cost of maintenance shall, subject to the approval of Her Majesty's Treasury, be defrayed from moneys to be provided by Parliament.
3 Power of Commissioners to purchase ancient monuments.
3. The Commissioners of Works, with the consent of the Treasury, may purchase out of any moneys which may for that purpose be from time to time provided by Parliament any ancient monument to which this Act applies, and with a view to such purchase the Lands Clauses Consolidation Acts shall be incorporated with this Act, with the exception of the provisions which relate to the purchase and taking of lands otherwise than by agreement. In construing the said Lands Clauses Consolidation Acts for the purposes of this Act, this Act shall be deemed to be the special Act, and the Commissioners of Works shall be deemed to be the promoters of the undertaking.
4 Power to give, devise, or bequeath ancient monuments to Commissioners.
4. Any person may by deed or will give, devise, or bequeath to the Commissioners of Works all such estate and interest in any ancient monument to which this Act applies as he may be seised or possessed of, and it shall be lawful for the Commissioners of Works to accept such gift, devise, or bequest if they think it expedient so to do.
5 Inspectors of ancient monuments.
5. The Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury shall appoint one or more inspectors of ancient monuments, whose duty it shall be to report to the Commissioners of Works on the condition of such monuments, and on the best mode of preserving the same, and there may be awarded to the inspectors so appointed such remuneration and allowance for expenses, out of moneys provided by Parliament, as may be determined by the Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury.
6 Penalty for injury to ancient monuments.
6. If any person injures or defaces any ancient monument to which this Act applies, such person shall, on summary conviction, be liable, at the discretion of the court by which he is tried, to one of the following penalties; (that is to say,)
(1) (1.) To forfeit any sum not exceeding five pounds, and in addition thereto to pay such sum as the court may think just for the purpose of repairing any damage which has been caused by the offender; or,
(2) (2.) To be imprisoned with or without hard labour for any term not exceeding one month.
The owner of an ancient monument shall not be punishable under this section in respect of any act which he may do to such monument, except in cases where the Commissioners of Works have been constituted guardians of such monument, in which case the owner shall be deemed to have relinquished his rights of ownership so far as relates to any injury or defacement of such monument, and may be dealt with as if he were not the owner.
7 Recovery of penalties.
7. Offences and penalties under this Act shall be prosecuted and recovered in manner provided by the Summary Jurisdiction Acts.
The expression ‘Summary Jurisdiction Acts’—
(1) (1.) As regards England, has the same meaning as in the Summary Jurisdiction Act, 1879 ; and
(2) (2.) As regards Scotland, means the Summary Jurisdiction (Scotland) Acts, 1864 and 1881 ; and
(3) (3.) As regards Ireland, means, within the police district of Dublin metropolis, the Acts regulating the powers and duties of justices of the peace for such district or of the police of such district; and elsewhere in Ireland, the Petty Sessions (Ireland) Act, 1851 , and any Act amending the same.
In England any person aggrieved by any decision of the court acting under the Summary Jurisdiction Acts may appeal to a court of general or quarter sessions.
8 Description of Commissioners of Works, and law as to disposition in their favour.
8. The expression ‘The Commissioners of Works’ means as respects Great Britain the Commissioners of Her Majesty's Works and Public Buildings, and as respects Ireland the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland.
Each of the said bodies, that is to say, the Commissioners of Her Majesty's Works and Public Buildings as respects Great Britain and the Commissioners of Public Works as respects Ireland, shall be incorporated by their said names respectively, and shall have perpetual succession and a common seal, and may purchase or acquire by gift, will, or otherwise, and hold without licence in mortmain, any land or estate or interest in land for the purposes of this Act; and any conveyance, appointment, devise, or bequest of land, or any estate or interest in land under this Act to either of the said bodies, shall not be deemed to be a conveyance, appointment, devise, or bequest to a charitable use within the meaning of the Acts relating to charitable uses. In the case of an ancient monument in Scotland, a duplicate of any report made by any inspector under this Act to the Commissioners of Works shall be forwarded to the Board of Trustees for Manufactures in Scotland, and it shall be the duty of the Commissioners of Works, in relation to any such monument, to take into consideration any representations which may be made to them by the said Board of Trustees for Manufactures.
9 Description of owners for purposes of Act.
9. The following persons shall be deemed to be ‘owners’ of ancient monuments for the purposes of this Act; that is to say,
(1) (1.) Any person entitled for his own benefit, at law or in equity, for an estate in fee, to the possession or receipt of the rents and profits of any freehold or copyhold land, being the site of an ancient monument, whether such land is or not subject to incumbrances:
(2) (2.) Any person absolutely entitled in possession, at law or in equity, for his own benefit, to a beneficial lease of land, being the site of an ancient monument, of which not less than forty-five years are unexpired, whether such land is or not subject to incumbrances; but no lease shall be deemed to be a beneficial lease, within the meaning of this Act, if the rent reserved thereon exceeds one third part of the full annual value of the land demised by such lease:
(3) (3.) Any person entitled under any existing or future settlement, at law or in equity, for his own benefit, and for the term of his own life, or the life of any other person, to the possession or receipt of the rents and profits of land of any tenure, being the site of an ancient monument, whether subject or not to incumbrances in which the estate for the time being subject to the trusts of the settlement is an estate for lives or years renewable for ever, or is an estate renewable for a term of not less than sixty years, or is an estate for a term of years of which not less than sixty are...
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