Test Act - 1678 Act

1678 Act

Initially, the Act did not extend to peers; but in 1678 the Act was extended by a further Act (30 Car. II. st. 2) which required that all peers and members of the House of Commons should make a declaration against transubstantiation, invocation of saints, and the sacrament of Mass. The effect of this was to exclude Catholics from both houses, and in particular the "Five Popish Lords" from the House of Lords, a change motivated largely by the alleged Popish Plot. The Lords deeply resented this interference with their membership; they delayed passage of the Act as long as possible, and managed to greatly weaken it by including an exemption for the future James II, effective head of the Catholic nobiliy, at whom it was largely aimed.