Statute of Anne becomes effective
- When
- 1710
- Where
- Parliament of Great Britain
- Episodes
- 1
The Statute of Anne, Britain's first government-regulated copyright law, received royal assent on 5 April 1710. It established fixed copyright terms and shifted control from private licensing to public law, with 10 April 1710 serving as the threshold for term calculation.
Episodes
Background and detail
Legislative Context. Prior to 1710, copying restrictions were governed by the Licensing of the Press Act 1662. The Statute of Anne replaced this private-party control with a public law grant regulated by the government and courts, marking a watershed in Anglo-American copyright history.
Enactment Process. Following petitions from the Stationers and public advocacy, Edward Wortley introduced the bill in January 1710. After substantial amendments, the bill was granted royal assent on 5 April 1710, becoming known as the Statute of Anne due to its passage during Queen Anne's reign.
Legal Impact. The statute provided the first legislation to protect copyrights, granting authors and publishers rights for a fixed period. It distinguished itself from previous acts by not providing for censorship, focusing instead on securing property in books and encouraging learning.
People involved
- Edward Wortley · MP who introduced the bill
- Spencer Compton · MP on drafting committee
- Craven Peyton · MP on drafting committee
- Queen Anne · Reigning monarch during passage
Sources
- Statute of Anne Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-24
- Copyright Wikipedia, revision of 2026-08-22
Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.