Profane Oaths Act 1745

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Profane Oaths Act 1745^[1]

Act of Parliament
Parliament of Great Britain
Long title	An Act more effectually to prevent profane Cursing and Swearing.
Citation	19 Geo. 2. c. 21
Dates
Royal assent	4 June 1746
Other legislation
Repeals/revokes	Profane Swearing Act 1623 Profane Swearing Act 1694
Repealed by	Criminal Law Act 1967
Status: Repealed

The Profane Oaths Act 1745^[1] (19 Geo. 2. c. 21) was an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain passed in 1746, in effect from 1 June 1746, and formally repealed in 1967. It established a system of fines payable for "profane cursing and swearing".

The preamble described the ubiquity of the "horrid, impious, and execrable vices of profane cursing and swearing" in the country, saying that this "may justly provoke the divine vengeance to increase the many calamities these nations now labour under", and that the existing laws designed to prevent this were ineffective. Many of the provisions in this Act were essentially the same as those in the 1694 Act which it replaced.