Denization
Denizationis an obsolete or defunct process inEnglandandIrelandand the laterKingdom of Great Britain,theUnited Kingdom,and theBritish Empire,dating back to the 13th century, by which analien(foreigner), throughletters patent,became adenizen,thereby obtaining certain rights otherwise normally enjoyed only by theKing's (or Queen's) subjects,including the right tohold land.The denizen was neither a subject (withcitizenshipornationality) nor an alien, but had a status akin topermanent residencytoday. While one could become a subject vianaturalisation,this required aprivate actof Parliament (or latterly of acolonial legislature); in contrast, denization was cheaper, quicker, and simpler. Denization fell into obsolescence when theBritish Nationality and Status of Aliens Act 1914(4 & 5 Geo. 5.c. 17) simplified the naturalisation process.
Denization occurred by a grant of letters patent,[1]an exercise of theroyal prerogative.Denizens paid a fee and took anoath of allegianceto the crown. For example, when Venetian mariner Gabriel Corbet was granted letters of denization in 1431 for service upon the seas toHenry VandHenry VI,he was required to pay 40 shillings into thehanaperfor the privilege.[2]
The status of denizen allowed a foreigner to purchase property, although a denizen could not inherit property.Sir William Blackstonewrote "A denizen is a kind of middle state, between an alien and a natural-born subject, and partakes of both."[3]The denizen had limited political rights: he could vote, but could not be a member of parliament or hold any civil or military office of trust.[1]Denizenship has also been compared to the Romancivitas sine suffragio,although the rights of denizens were restricted by theAct of Settlement 1701,not bycommonorimmemoriallaw.[4]
Denization was expressly preserved by theNaturalization Act 1870(33 & 34 Vict.c. 14)[5]and by s25 of theBritish Nationality and Status of Aliens Act 1914(4 & 5 Geo. 5.c. 17).[a]According to the British Home Office, the last denization was granted to the Dutch painterLawrence Alma-Tademain 1873;[6]the Home Office considered it obsolete when thePrince of Plessapplied for it in 1933, and instructed him to apply for naturalisation instead.[7]TheBritish Nationality Act 1948,a major reform of citizenship law in Britain, made no mention of denization and neither abolished nor preserved the practice.
Denization, as an exercise of royal power, was applicable throughout the British dominion to all British subjects. That is, it was exercisable in the colonies. For example, denization occurred in the colony ofNew South Wales.As in Britain, the practice became obsolete to naturalisation, with the last known denization in 1848.[8]
The termdenizenmay also refer to anynationalof a country, whether citizen or non-citizen, with a right to remain in and return to the country. In the United States, unassimilatedNative Americans,although born on U.S. soil, were not deemed to be citizens of the United States or any state, but of adomestic dependent nationcontained within the United States. However, in 1924 theIndian Citizenship Act,made all Native Americans born in the United States and its territories American citizens.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^abOne or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain:Chisholm, Hugh,ed. (1911). "Denizen".Encyclopædia Britannica.Vol. 8 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 22.
- ^Susan Rose, "Corbet, Gabriel (fl. 1427–1454)",Oxford Dictionary of National Biography,Oxford University Press, 2004
- ^Blackstone: Commentaries, Book 1, Chapter X, p374
- ^Berry, p.491; the restrictions originally applied to naturalised citizens also.
- ^Chisholm 1911.
- ^"Nationality instructions: volume 2 - Publications - GOV.UK".ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk.
- ^Berry, p.490
- ^Anthea.Brown (16 December 2015)."Naturalization / Citizenship Guide".www.records.nsw.gov.au.
- Edmund G. Berry, "Cives Sine Suffragioin England";The Classical Journal,Vol. 39, No. 8. (May, 1944), pp. 490–492, (JSTORlink. Citing, for Pless, theTimesof London, December 18, 1943.
- Australian article on historical denization
- Blackstone Commentaries- Sir William Blackstone, Commentaries (1769), Book 1 Chapter X: ‘’Of People Whether Aliens, Denizens Or Natives’’
- On use of ‘denizen’ in the US– see quote from Hugh S. Legare (Attorney General of US)
- Foreigners Voting Rights in the Kingdom of Hawaii