The first self-denying ordinance was a bill moved on 9 December 1644 to deprive members of the Parliament of England from holding command in the army or the navy during the English Civil War. It failed to pass the House of Lords. A second self-denying ordinance was agreed to on 3 April 1645, whereby all the persons concerned were to resign, but without prejudice to their reappointment. This ordinance was part of reforms aimed at Parliament forces, which resulted in Oliver Cromwell's more unified and efficient New Model Army.
During the French Revolution the Constituent Assembly, elected in 1789, passed a self-denying ordinance barring any member from sitting in its successor, the Legislative Assembly convened in 1791.
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Famous quotes containing the words self-denying and/or ordinance:
“What instances must pass before them of ardent, disinterested, self-denying attachment, of heroism, fortitude, patience, resignation—of all the conflicts and the sacrifices that enno ble us most. A sick room may often furnish the worth of volumes.”
—Jane Austen (1775–1817)
“Overly persuasive a woman’s ordinance spreads far, traveling fast; but fast dying a rumor voiced by a woman perishes.”
—Aeschylus (525–456 B.C.)