Edict of Toleration
Encyclopedia
An edict of toleration is a declaration made by a government or ruler and states that members of a given religion
will not be persecuted for engaging in their religious practices and traditions. The edict implies tacit acceptance of the religion rather than its endorsement by the ruling power.
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
will not be persecuted for engaging in their religious practices and traditions. The edict implies tacit acceptance of the religion rather than its endorsement by the ruling power.
Edicts of toleration in history
- 311 – The Edict of Toleration by Galerius was issued in 311 by the Roman Tetrarchy of Galerius, Constantine and Licinius, officially ending the Diocletian persecution of Christianity.
- 313 – Roman Emperors Constantine IConstantine IConstantine the Great , also known as Constantine I or Saint Constantine, was Roman Emperor from 306 to 337. Well known for being the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity, Constantine and co-Emperor Licinius issued the Edict of Milan in 313, which proclaimed religious tolerance of all...
and LiciniusLiciniusLicinius I , was Roman Emperor from 308 to 324. Co-author of the Edict of Milan that granted official toleration to Christians in the Roman Empire, for the majority of his reign he was the rival of Constantine I...
issued the Edict of MilanEdict of MilanThe Edict of Milan was a letter signed by emperors Constantine I and Licinius that proclaimed religious toleration in the Roman Empire...
that legalized Christianity across the whole Empire.
- 1562 – The Edict of Saint-GermainEdict of Saint-GermainThe Edict of Saint-Germain, also known as the Edict of January, was a decree of tolerance promulgated by the regent, Catherine de' Medici, in January 1562. It provided limited tolerance of Protestantism in her Roman Catholic realms, especially in relation to the French Huguenots.It was among...
was an edict of limited toleration issued by Catherine de' MediciCatherine de' MediciCatherine de' Medici was an Italian noblewoman who was Queen consort of France from 1547 until 1559, as the wife of King Henry II of France....
(the regentRegentA regent, from the Latin regens "one who reigns", is a person selected to act as head of state because the ruler is a minor, not present, or debilitated. Currently there are only two ruling Regencies in the world, sovereign Liechtenstein and the Malaysian constitutive state of Terengganu...
for the young Charles IX of FranceCharles IX of FranceCharles IX was King of France, ruling from 1560 until his death. His reign was dominated by the Wars of Religion. He is best known as king at the time of the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre.-Childhood:...
) that ended insistent persecution of non-Catholics (mostly Huguenots). The persecution was a result of the Concordat of BolognaConcordat of BolognaThe Concordat of Bologna , marking a stage in the evolution of the Gallican Church, was an agreement between King Francis I of France and Pope Leo X that Francis negotiated in the wake of his victory at Marignano in September 1515...
(1516). A massacre of Huguenots a few weeks later began open hostilities in the French Wars of ReligionFrench Wars of ReligionThe French Wars of Religion is the name given to a period of civil infighting and military operations, primarily fought between French Catholics and Protestants . The conflict involved the factional disputes between the aristocratic houses of France, such as the House of Bourbon and House of Guise...
.
- 1568 – The Edict of TordaEdict of TurdaThe Edict of Torda in 1568, also known as the Patent of Toleration, was an early attempt to guarantee religious freedom in Christian Europe, that was born due the special political, social and religious situation in the Kingdom of Hungary in the 16 Century.- The original edict :King John II...
(or Turda), also known as the Patent of Toleration (Act of Religious Tolerance and Freedom of Conscience), was an attempt by King John II SigismundJohn II Sigismund ZápolyaJohn II Sigismund Zápolya was King of Hungary from 1540 to 1570 and Prince of Transylvania from 1570–1571.-Family:The son of King John I and Isabella Jagiełło, he succeeded his father as an infant...
of HungaryHungaryHungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
to guarantee religious freedom in his realm. Specifically, it broadened previous grants (to Roman Catholics, Lutherans, and Calvinists) to include the Unitarian ChurchUnitarian Church of TransylvaniaThe Unitarian Church of Transylvania is a church of the Unitarian denomination, based in the city of Cluj in the Principality of Transylvania, present day in Romania...
, and allowed toleration (not legal guarantees) for other faiths.
- 1573 – Warsaw ConfederationWarsaw ConfederationThe Warsaw Confederation , an important development in the history of Poland and Lithuania that extended religious tolerance to nobility and free persons within the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. , is considered the formal beginning of religious freedom in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and...
made all Christian confessions equal in the Polish-Lithuanian CommonwealthPolish-Lithuanian CommonwealthThe Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century...
- 1598 – The Edict of NantesEdict of NantesThe Edict of Nantes, issued on 13 April 1598, by Henry IV of France, granted the Calvinist Protestants of France substantial rights in a nation still considered essentially Catholic. In the Edict, Henry aimed primarily to promote civil unity...
, issued by the King of France, Henry IVHenry IV of FranceHenry IV , Henri-Quatre, was King of France from 1589 to 1610 and King of Navarre from 1572 to 1610. He was the first monarch of the Bourbon branch of the Capetian dynasty in France....
, was the formal religious settlement which ended the first era of the French wars of religion. The Edict of NantesEdict of NantesThe Edict of Nantes, issued on 13 April 1598, by Henry IV of France, granted the Calvinist Protestants of France substantial rights in a nation still considered essentially Catholic. In the Edict, Henry aimed primarily to promote civil unity...
granted to French Huguenots legal recognition as well as limited religious freedoms, including: freedom of public worship, the right of assembly, rights of admission to public offices and universities, and permission to maintain fortified towns. The Edict of NantesEdict of NantesThe Edict of Nantes, issued on 13 April 1598, by Henry IV of France, granted the Calvinist Protestants of France substantial rights in a nation still considered essentially Catholic. In the Edict, Henry aimed primarily to promote civil unity...
, however, would be revoked in 1685 by Henry IV's grandson, Louis XIV, who once again proclaimed Protestantism to be illegal in France through the Edict of FontainebleauEdict of FontainebleauThe Edict of Fontainebleau was an edict issued by Louis XIV of France, also known as the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes. The Edict of Nantes of 1598, had granted the Huguenots the right to practice their religion without persecution from the state...
.
- 21 April 1649 – Maryland Toleration ActMaryland Toleration ActThe Maryland Toleration Act, also known as the Act Concerning Religion, was a law mandating religious tolerance for trinitarian Christians. Passed on April 21, 1649 by the assembly of the Maryland colony, it was the second law requiring religious tolerance in the British North American colonies and...
in the early American colony Province of MarylandProvince of MarylandThe Province of Maryland was an English and later British colony in North America that existed from 1632 until 1776, when it joined the other twelve of the Thirteen Colonies in rebellion against Great Britain and became the U.S...
, also known as the Act Concerning Religion, was passed by Maryland's colonial assembly mandating religious tolerance for Catholicism. It was the second law requiring religious tolerance in the British North American colonies and created the first legal limitations on hate speechHate speechHate speech is, outside the law, any communication that disparages a person or a group on the basis of some characteristic such as race, color, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, nationality, religion, or other characteristic....
in the world. The Calvert family, who founded Maryland partly as a refuge for English Catholics, sought enactment of the law to protect Catholic settlers and those of other religions that did not conform to the dominant AnglicanismAnglicanismAnglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
of Britain and her colonies. The Act was revoked in 1654, before being reinstated again, and finally, repealed permanently in 1692 following the Glorious RevolutionWilliam and MaryThe phrase William and Mary usually refers to the coregency over the Kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland, of King William III & II and Queen Mary II...
. The Maryland Toleration Act influenced related laws in other colonies and was an important predecessor to the First Amendment to the United States ConstitutionFirst Amendment to the United States ConstitutionThe First Amendment to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights. The amendment prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering...
, which enshrined religious freedom in American law over a century later.
- 16 September 1664 – Edict of Toleration in the Electorate of Brandenburg (Germany), tolerance of the Protestant denominations with each other.
- 29 October 1685 – Edict of PotsdamEdict of PotsdamThe Edict of Potsdam was a proclamation issued by Frederick William, Elector of Brandenburg and Duke of Prussia, in Potsdam on October 29, 1685, as a response to the revocation of the Edict of Nantes by the Edict of Fontainebleau.- Background :...
– For reform of Hugenots in Lutheran Prussia.
- 1689 – ParliamentParliamentA parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
in EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
passes the Act of TolerationAct of Toleration 1689The Act of Toleration was an act of the English Parliament , the long title of which is "An Act for Exempting their Majestyes Protestant Subjects dissenting from the Church of England from the Penalties of certaine Lawes".The Act allowed freedom of worship to Nonconformists who had pledged to the...
protecting Protestants with Roman Catholics intentionally excluded.
- 1692 – The Kangxi EmperorKangxi EmperorThe Kangxi Emperor ; Manchu: elhe taifin hūwangdi ; Mongolian: Энх-Амгалан хаан, 4 May 1654 –20 December 1722) was the fourth emperor of the Qing Dynasty, the first to be born on Chinese soil south of the Pass and the second Qing emperor to rule over China proper, from 1661 to 1722.Kangxi's...
of the Qing DynastyQing DynastyThe Qing Dynasty was the last dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912 with a brief, abortive restoration in 1917. It was preceded by the Ming Dynasty and followed by the Republic of China....
issued the Chinese Edict of Toleration on March 22, recognizing the Roman Catholic ChurchRoman Catholic ChurchThe Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
, barring attacks on their churches and missions, and legalizing the practice of Christianity by Chinese people.
- 29 March 1712 – Tolerance Act of Ernst CasimirErnst CasimirErnst Casimir I of Nassau-Dietz was count of Nassau-Dietz and Stadtholder of Friesland, Groningen and Drenthe.-Biography:...
in Büdingen. It guaranteed "vollkommene Gewissensfreiheit" (complete freedom of conscience) and demanded in return, the civil authorities and subjects both in their homes to behave as honorable, decent and Christian. The real aim was to counteract the war and plague which had caused the population decline.
- 17 June 1773 – Tolerance Edict of Katharina II of Russia, in response to domestic political disputes with the Muslim Tatars. In the tolerance edict, she promised the toleration of all religious denominations in the Russian empire, except for the large number of Jews who had been the first partition of Poland in their subjects.
- 13 October 1781 – In BohemiaBohemiaBohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
, in AustriaAustriaAustria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
.
- 1782 – An Edict of Toleration, also known as the Patent of TolerationPatent of tolerationThe Patent of Toleration was an edict issued in 1781 by the Holy Roman Emperor, Joseph II of Austria. The Patent extended religious freedom to non-Catholic Christians living in Habsburg lands, including Lutherans, Calvinists, and the Greek Orthodox. Specifically, these members of minority faiths...
, issued by the Holy Roman EmperorHoly Roman EmperorThe Holy Roman Emperor is a term used by historians to denote a medieval ruler who, as German King, had also received the title of "Emperor of the Romans" from the Pope...
, Joseph IIJoseph II, Holy Roman EmperorJoseph II was Holy Roman Emperor from 1765 to 1790 and ruler of the Habsburg lands from 1780 to 1790. He was the eldest son of Empress Maria Theresa and her husband, Francis I...
, extended religious freedom to non-Catholic Christians living in HabsburgHabsburgThe House of Habsburg , also found as Hapsburg, and also known as House of Austria is one of the most important royal houses of Europe and is best known for being an origin of all of the formally elected Holy Roman Emperors between 1438 and 1740, as well as rulers of the Austrian Empire and...
lands, including: Lutherans, Calvinists, and the Greek Orthodox. However, in the end, Joseph's Catholic conscience got the best of him, as he rescinded his own toleration patent while on his deathbed.
- 1784 – Tolerance Edict of Elector Clemens Wenceslaus of Saxony - toleration of Protestants in the Electorate of Trier.
- 29 November 1787 – The Edict of Versailles, issued by Louis XVI of France, ended persecution of non-Catholics - including Huguenots.
- 11 March 1812 – Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia, extended by the Prussian Jews Edict, the rights of Jews already in the old Prussian parts of the country eingebürgeten Jews.
- 1839 – Edict of Toleration (Hawaii)Edict of Toleration (Hawaii)An Edict of Toleration was issued by King Kamehameha III of Hawaii on June 17, 1839, which allowed for the establishment of the Hawaii Catholic Church. The Roman Catholic Church was suppressed in the Kingdom of Hawaii during the reigns of Kamehameha and Kamehameha II.During their administrations,...
, which is issued by Kamehameha IIIKamehameha IIIKamehameha III was the King of Hawaii from 1825 to 1854. His full Hawaiian name was Keaweaweula Kiwalao Kauikeaouli Kaleiopapa and then lengthened to Keaweaweula Kiwalao Kauikeaouli Kaleiopapa Kalani Waiakua Kalanikau Iokikilo Kiwalao i ke kapu Kamehameha when he ascended the throne.Under his...
to allow Catholic missionaries in addition to Protestants.
- 23 March 1844 — Edict of TolerationEdict of Toleration 1844This Edict was largely a result of pressure from British government on the Sublime Porte, urging to stop the persecutions of the Jews. An Irish scholar and author, George Townshend writes,...
, allowing JewsJewsThe Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
to settle in the Holy LandHoly LandThe Holy Land is a term which in Judaism refers to the Kingdom of Israel as defined in the Tanakh. For Jews, the Land's identifiction of being Holy is defined in Judaism by its differentiation from other lands by virtue of the practice of Judaism often possible only in the Land of Israel...
. The original documents are available from the Public Record OfficePublic Record OfficeThe Public Record Office of the United Kingdom is one of the three organisations that make up the National Archives...
in LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, which states in one of its letters: "A translation of the edict, an acknowledgment from Stratford Canning to the Sublime Porte, and an accompanying letter from Canning, dated 23 March 1844, is in Foreign Office, TurkeyTurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, FO78/555/No.49. There are several other letters from Canning in the same volume on the question of the religious intolerance of the Turks. The draft of a letter from the Foreign Office, dated 16 January 1844, which made plain the attitude of the British Government and which provided the direct impetus for the negotiations leading eventually to the issue of the edict, is in FO78/552/No.4."
- 30 March 1847 – Tolerance Edict of King Frederick William IV of Prussia- among other things, religious disaffiliationReligious disaffiliationReligious disaffiliation means leaving a faith, or a religious group or community. It is in many respects the reverse of religious conversion...
is allowed.
- 13 February 1942 – Racial-Ideology Tolerance Edict of the Nazi chief ideologist Alfred RosenbergAlfred Rosenberg' was an early and intellectually influential member of the Nazi Party. Rosenberg was first introduced to Adolf Hitler by Dietrich Eckart; he later held several important posts in the Nazi government...
- 3 Clause rights +31 obligations for the Reichskommissariat OstlandReichskommissariat OstlandReichskommissariat Ostland, literally "Reich Commissariat Eastland", was the civilian occupation regime established by Nazi Germany in the Baltic states and much of Belarus during World War II. It was also known as Reichskommissariat Baltenland initially...
.