{"id":117,"date":"2015-08-21T15:22:36","date_gmt":"2015-08-21T15:22:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/?p=117"},"modified":"2015-08-24T11:30:06","modified_gmt":"2015-08-24T11:30:06","slug":"the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history\/","title":{"rendered":"The Five Most Ludicrous Laws in History"},"content":{"rendered":"

Whether it\u2019s a pregnant woman\u2019s right to pee in a policeman\u2019s hat or being allowed to kill\u00a0a Scotsman in York on a Sunday, most people have heard of at least one crazy law that is still claimed to exist from the depths of history. However,\u00a0while most of these are the stuff of urban legend – including the policeman\u2019s hat one, unfortunately – history is full of real weird and wonderful laws that seemed like a good idea at the time.<\/span><\/p>\n

So here at\u00a0History Learning<\/a><\/em> we\u2019ve hunted through the statute books to find the five most ludicrous laws in history.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Screen<\/p>\n

1. A welshman found in Chester after midnight can be decapitated <\/b><\/b><\/em><\/p>\n

There are countless supposed laws\u00a0involving an englishman,\u00a0his neighbours in Scotland and Wales… and\u00a0a bow and arrow. However, many of them have been debunked, including the one that says it\u2019s legal to shoot a welshman with a <\/span>bow and arrow<\/a> inside the city walls of Chester. <\/span><\/p>\n

Still, there is some truth to the tales. On 4 September 1403, Henry Prince of Wales (the future Henry V) did order that any Welsh people and Welsh sympathisers who entered Chester before sunrise and after sunset should be decapitated. <\/span><\/p>\n

Even considering the gory standards of <\/span>medieval law and order<\/a>, this law seems a little bit extreme. But luckily for any Welshman who finds himself on Cheshire soil after dark, it was repealed shortly after the rebellion.<\/span><\/p>\n

2. Whales are the property of the monarch <\/b><\/em><\/p>\n

It might be widely known\u00a0that swans are the property of the Queen, but what about whales? And sturgeons for that matter? These \u2018royal fish\u2019 were considered to be of such great quality that they were uniquely suited for the monarch\u2019s use.<\/span><\/p>\n

As a result, Edward II enacted a statute in 1322 demanding that any whales or sturgeons caught off the coast of England should be brought to the monarch immediately. After all, magnificent animals such peacocks, swans, seals and whales were <\/span>commonly eaten during banquets in the Middle Ages<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Amazingly, this law has never been repealed – something worth bearing in mind when you land your next whale.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"800px-18th_century_arctic_whaling\"<\/p>\n

3. Whistling for a London taxi is illegal <\/b><\/em><\/p>\n

Many of history\u2019s weirdest laws emerge during wartime as governments rush to drill patriotism and common sense into those left on the home front. When World War One<\/a> erupted on 4 August 1914, the British government passed <\/span>The Defence of the Realm Act (DORA) to help with the war effort. One of the stranger rules passed was a ban on whistling for London taxis, in case they were mistaken for an air raid siren.<\/span><\/p>\n

4. All hackney carriages must carry a bale of hay <\/b><\/em><\/p>\n

Until 1976, all London hackney carriages (i.e. black cabs) were required to carry \u201ca bale of hay and a sack of oats for the horse\u201d, even though the traditional horse-pulled carriages were long gone. Councils even had to supply a \u2018water trough at all hackney taxi ranks\u2019. When carriages were replaced by cars, the stricture to have \u201csufficient foodstuffs for the horse\u201d was interpreted as having enough diesel and petrol.<\/p>\n

\"Screen<\/p>\n

5. It is illegal to wear armour to Parliament<\/b><\/em><\/p>\n

Any politician thinking of donning a suit of armour during their next trip to Parliament may well be in for a rude awakening (yes, we’re looking at you Boris Johnson).<\/span><\/p>\n

In 1313, Edward II enacted the Coming Armed to Parliament Act – a statute that forbid anybody from wearing armour in Parliament in a bid to make politics more peaceful. <\/span><\/p>\n

The law was no doubt also motivated by the fact that anybody who dies in Parliament, which is officially a Royal palace, is entitled to an expensive state funeral.<\/span><\/p>\n

Also read:
\nThe Three Most Important Archaeological Finds of 2015<\/a>
\nWeird Cures For The Black Death<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Whether it\u2019s a pregnant woman\u2019s right to pee in a policeman\u2019s hat or being allowed to kill\u00a0a Scotsman in York on a Sunday, most people have heard of at least one crazy law that is still claimed to exist from the depths of history. However,\u00a0while most of these are the stuff of urban legend –… Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_sitemap_exclude":false,"_sitemap_priority":"","_sitemap_frequency":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-117","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Five Most Ludicrous Laws in History - Vox Historia - History Learning Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Five Most Ludicrous Laws in History - Vox Historia - History Learning Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Whether it\u2019s a pregnant woman\u2019s right to pee in a policeman\u2019s hat or being allowed to kill\u00a0a Scotsman in York on a Sunday, most people have heard of at least one crazy law that is still claimed to exist from the depths of history. However,\u00a0while most of these are the stuff of urban legend –… Continue reading →\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Vox Historia - History Learning Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2015-08-21T15:22:36+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2015-08-24T11:30:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/Screen-shot-2015-08-21-at-16.11.57-300x224.png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Chris St Cartmail\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Chris St Cartmail\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history\/\",\"name\":\"The Five Most Ludicrous Laws in History - Vox Historia - History Learning Blog\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/Screen-shot-2015-08-21-at-16.11.57-300x224.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2015-08-21T15:22:36+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2015-08-24T11:30:06+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/c96f478b0702952abe99914a58688d0e\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/Screen-shot-2015-08-21-at-16.11.57-300x224.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"http:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/Screen-shot-2015-08-21-at-16.11.57-300x224.png\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The Five Most Ludicrous Laws in History\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Vox Historia - History Learning Blog\",\"description\":\"Welcome to the History Learning Blog where we will be exploring the intriguing connections between the past and the modern world around us.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/c96f478b0702952abe99914a58688d0e\",\"name\":\"Chris St Cartmail\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0be956cea743c90a7732c4b3ef2a4e06?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0be956cea743c90a7732c4b3ef2a4e06?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Chris St Cartmail\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/author\/chris\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Five Most Ludicrous Laws in History - Vox Historia - History Learning Blog","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The Five Most Ludicrous Laws in History - Vox Historia - History Learning Blog","og_description":"Whether it\u2019s a pregnant woman\u2019s right to pee in a policeman\u2019s hat or being allowed to kill\u00a0a Scotsman in York on a Sunday, most people have heard of at least one crazy law that is still claimed to exist from the depths of history. However,\u00a0while most of these are the stuff of urban legend –… Continue reading →","og_url":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history\/","og_site_name":"Vox Historia - History Learning Blog","article_published_time":"2015-08-21T15:22:36+00:00","article_modified_time":"2015-08-24T11:30:06+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"http:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/Screen-shot-2015-08-21-at-16.11.57-300x224.png","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"author":"Chris St Cartmail","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Chris St Cartmail","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history\/","url":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history\/","name":"The Five Most Ludicrous Laws in History - Vox Historia - History Learning Blog","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/Screen-shot-2015-08-21-at-16.11.57-300x224.png","datePublished":"2015-08-21T15:22:36+00:00","dateModified":"2015-08-24T11:30:06+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/c96f478b0702952abe99914a58688d0e"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history\/#primaryimage","url":"http:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/Screen-shot-2015-08-21-at-16.11.57-300x224.png","contentUrl":"http:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/Screen-shot-2015-08-21-at-16.11.57-300x224.png"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/the-five-most-ludicrous-laws-in-history\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The Five Most Ludicrous Laws in History"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/","name":"Vox Historia - History Learning Blog","description":"Welcome to the History Learning Blog where we will be exploring the intriguing connections between the past and the modern world around us.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/c96f478b0702952abe99914a58688d0e","name":"Chris St Cartmail","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0be956cea743c90a7732c4b3ef2a4e06?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0be956cea743c90a7732c4b3ef2a4e06?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Chris St Cartmail"},"url":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/author\/chris\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/117","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=117"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/117\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":125,"href":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/117\/revisions\/125"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=117"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=117"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/historylearning.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=117"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}