
, treason is the crime
that covers some of the more extreme acts against one's sovereign
or nation
. Historically, treason also covered the murder of specific social superiors, such as the murder of a husband by his wife. Treason against the king was known as high treason
and treason against a lesser superior was petty treason
. A person who commits treason is known in law as a traitor.
Oran's Dictionary of the Law (1983) defines treason as "...[a]...citizen
's actions to help a foreign government
overthrow, make war
against, or seriously injure the [parent nation]." In many nations, it is also often considered treason to attempt or conspire to overthrow the government, even if no foreign country is aided or involved by such an endeavour.
Outside legal spheres, the word "traitor" may also be used to describe a person who betrays
(or is accused of betraying) their own political party
, nation
, family
, friends, ethnic group
, team
, religion
, social class
, or other group to which they may belong.
1478 George, Duke of Clarence, convicted of treason against his older brother Edward IV of England, is executed in private at the Tower of London.
1521 Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, is executed for treason.
1535 Sir Thomas More is executed for treason against King Henry VIII of England.
1536 Anne Boleyn, the second wife of Henry VIII of England, is beheaded for adultery, treason, and incest.
1540 Thomas Cromwell is executed at the order of Henry VIII of England on charges of treason. Henry marries his fifth wife, Catherine Howard, on the same day.
1567 At a dinner, the Duke of Alba arrests the Count of Egmont and the Count of Hoorn for treason.
1603 English explorer, writer and courtier Sir Walter Raleigh goes on trial for treason.
1619 Dutch statesman Johan van Oldenbarnevelt is executed in The Hague after being convicted of treason.
1792 French Revolution: King Louis XVI of France is put on trial for treason by the National Convention.
1793 After being found guilty of treason by the French Convention, Louis XVI of France is executed by guillotine.
The last temptation is the greatest treason: to do the right deed for the wrong reason.
If I had to choose between betraying my country and betraying my friend, I hope I should have the guts to betray my country.
All men should have a drop of treason in their veins, if the nations are not to go soft like so many sleepy pears.
, treason is the crime
that covers some of the more extreme acts against one's sovereign
or nation
. Historically, treason also covered the murder of specific social superiors, such as the murder of a husband by his wife. Treason against the king was known as high treason
and treason against a lesser superior was petty treason
. A person who commits treason is known in law as a traitor.
Oran's Dictionary of the Law (1983) defines treason as "...[a]...citizen
's actions to help a foreign government
overthrow, make war
against, or seriously injure the [parent nation]." In many nations, it is also often considered treason to attempt or conspire to overthrow the government, even if no foreign country is aided or involved by such an endeavour.
Outside legal spheres, the word "traitor" may also be used to describe a person who betrays
(or is accused of betraying) their own political party
, nation
, family
, friends, ethnic group
, team
, religion
, social class
, or other group to which they may belong. Often, such accusations are controversial and disputed, as the person may not identify with the group of which they are a member, or may otherwise disagree with the group leaders making the charge. See, for example, race traitor
.
At times, the term "traitor" has been levelled as a political epithet
, regardless of any verifiable treasonable action. In a civil war
or insurrection, the winners may deem the losers to be traitors. Likewise the term "traitor" is used in heated political discussion typically as a slur against political dissidents
, or against officials in power who are perceived as failing to act in the best interest of their constituents. In certain cases, as with the German
Dolchstoßlegende, the accusation of treason towards a large group of people can be a unifying political message.
In English law
, high treason
was punishable by being hanged, drawn and quartered
(men) or burnt at the stake
(women), or beheading
(royalty and nobility). Treason was the only crime which attracted those penalties (until they were abolished in 1814, 1790 and 1973 respectively). The penalty was used by later monarchs against people who could reasonably be called traitors, although most modern jurists would call it excessive. Many of them would now just be considered dissident
s.
In William Shakespeare
's play King Lear
(circa 1600), when the King learns that his daughter Regan
has publicly dishonoured him, he says They could not, would not do 't; 'tis worse than murder: a conventional attitude at that time. In Dante Alighieri
's Inferno
, the ninth and lowest circle of Hell
is reserved for traitors; Judas Iscariot
, who betrayed Jesus
, suffers the worst torments of all: being constantly gnawed at by one of Lucifer's own three mouths. His treachery is considered so notorious that his name has long been synonymous with traitor, a fate he shares with Benedict Arnold
, Marcus Junius Brutus
(who too is depicted in Dante's Inferno, suffering the same fate as Judas along with Cassius Longinus
), and Vidkun Quisling
. Indeed, the etymology
of the word traitor originates with Judas' handing over of Jesus to the Roman authorities: the word is derived from the Latin traditor which means "one who delivers."
Christian theology and political thinking until after the Enlightenment
considered treason and blasphemy
as synonymous, as it challenged both the state and the will of God. Kings were considered chosen by God and to betray one's country was to do the work of Satan.
Australia
Section 80.1 of the Criminal Code, contained in the schedule of the Australian Criminal Code Act 1995, defines treason as follows:- "A person commits an offence, called treason, if the person:
- (a) causes the death of the Sovereign, the heir apparent of the Sovereign, the consort of the Sovereign, the Governor-General or the Prime Minister; or
- (b) causes harm to the Sovereign, the Governor-General or the Prime Minister resulting in the death of the Sovereign, the Governor-General or the Prime Minister; or
- (c) causes harm to the Sovereign, the Governor-General or the Prime Minister, or imprisons or restrains the Sovereign, the Governor-General or the Prime Minister; or
- (d) levies war, or does any act preparatory to levying war, against the Commonwealth; or
- (e) engages in conduct that assists by any means whatever, with intent to assist, an enemy:
- (i) at war with the Commonwealth, whether or not the existence of a state of war has been declared; and
- (ii) specified by Proclamation made for the purpose of this paragraph to be an enemy at war with the Commonwealth; or
- (f) engages in conduct that assists by any means whatever, with intent to assist:
- (i) another country; or
- (ii) an organisation;
- that is engaged in armed hostilities against the Australian Defence Force; or
- (g) instigates a person who is not an Australian citizen to make an armed invasion of the Commonwealth or a Territory of the Commonwealth; or
- (h) forms an intention to do any act referred to in a preceding paragraph and manifests that intention by an overt actOvert ActIn criminal law, an overt act , an open act, one that can be clearly proved by evidence, and from which criminal intent can be inferred, as opposed to a mere intention in the mind to commit a crime...
."
A person is not guilty of treason under paragraphs (e), (f) or (h) if their assistance or intended assistance is purely humanitarian in nature.
The maximum penalty for treason is life imprisonment
. Section 24AA of the Crimes Act 1914
creates the related offence of treachery
.
New South Wales
The Treason Act 1351, the Treason Act 1795
and the Treason Act 1817
form part of the law of New South Wales
. The Treason Act 1795
and the Treason Act 1817
have been repealed by section 11 of the Crimes Act 1900
, except in so far as they relate to the compassing, imagining, inventing, devising, or intending death or destruction, or any bodily harm tending to death or destruction, maim, or wounding, imprisonment, or restraint of the person of the heirs and successors of King George III of the United Kingdom, and the expressing, uttering, or declaring of such compassings, imaginations, inventions, devices, or intentions, or any of them.
Section 12 of the Crimes Act 1900
(NSW) creates an offence which is derived from section 3 of the Treason Felony Act 1848
:
Section 16 provides that nothing in Part 2 repeals or affects anything enacted by the Treason Act 1351
(25 Edw.3 c. 2). This section reproduces section 6 of the Treason Felony Act 1848
.
Brazil
According to Brazilian law, treason is the crime of disloyalty by a citizen to the Federal Republic of Brazil, applying to combatants of the Brazilian military forces. Treason during warfare is the only crime for which a person can be sentenced to death (see capital punishment in Brazil
).
The only military person in the history of Brazil
to be convicted of treason was Carlos Lamarca
, an army captain who deserted to become the leader of a left-wing guerrilla against the military dictatorship.
Canada
Section 46 of the Criminal Code of Canadahas two degrees of treason, called "high treason" and "treason." However, both of these belong to the historical category of high treason
, as opposed to petty treason
which does not exist in Canadian law. Section 46 reads as follows:
- "High treason Every one commits high treason who, in Canada,
- (a) kills or attempts to kill Her Majesty, or does her any bodily harm tending to death or destruction, maims or wounds her, or imprisons or restrains her;
- (b) levies war against Canada or does any act preparatory thereto; or
- (c) assists an enemy at war with Canada, or any armed forces against whom Canadian Forces are engaged in hostilities, whether or not a state of war exists between Canada and the country whose forces they are.
- Treason Every one commits treason who, in Canada,
- (a) uses force or violence for the purpose of overthrowing the government of Canada or a province;
- (b) without lawful authority, communicates or makes available to an agent of a state other than Canada, military or scientific information or any sketch, plan, model, article, note or document of a military or scientific character that he knows or ought to know may be used by that state for a purpose prejudicial to the safety or defence of Canada;
- (c) conspires with any person to commit high treason or to do anything mentioned in paragraph (a);
- (d) forms an intention to do anything that is high treason or that is mentioned in paragraph (a) and manifests that intention by an overt act; or
- (e) conspires with any person to do anything mentioned in paragraph (b) or forms an intention to do anything mentioned in paragraph (b) and manifests that intention by an overt act."
It is also illegal for a Canadian citizen to do any of the above outside Canada.
The penalty for high treason is life imprisonment. The penalty for treason is imprisonment up to a maximum of life, or up to 14 years for conduct under subsection (2)(b) or (e) in peacetime.
France
Article 411-1 of the French Penal Code defines treason as follows:- "The acts defined by articles 411-2 to 411-11 constitute treason where they are committed by a French national or a soldier in the service of France, and constitute espionage where they are committed by any other person."
Article 411-2 prohibits "handing over troops belonging to the French armed forces, or all or part of the national territory, to a foreign power, to a foreign organisation or to an organisation under foreign control, or to their agents". It is punishable by life imprisonment and a fine of €
750,000. Generally parole is not available until 18 years of a life sentence have elapsed.
Articles 411-3 to 411-10 define various other crimes of collaboration with the enemy, sabotage, and the like. These are punishable with imprisonment for between thirty and seven years. Article 411-11 make it a crime to incite any of the above crimes.
Besides treason and espionage, there are many other crimes dealing with national security, insurrection, terrorism and so on. These are all to be found in Book IV of the Code.
Hong Kong
Section 2 of the Crime Ordinance provides that levying war against the Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China, conspiring to do so, instigating a foreigner to invade Hong Kong, or assisting any public enemy at war with the Central People's Government, is treason, punishable with life imprisonment.
Germany
The German law differentiates between two types of treason: "High treason" (Hochverrat) and "treason" (Landesverrat). The high treason, defined in the Section 81 of the German criminal codeis defined as a violent attempt against the existence or the constitutional order of the Federal Republic of Germany
, carrying a penalty of life imprisonment or a fixed term of at least ten years. In less serious cases, the penalty is 1–10 years in prison. The German criminal law also criminalizes the high treason against a German state. Preparation of both types of the crime is criminal and carries a penalty of up to five years.
The other type of treason, Landesverrat is defined in Section 94. This is basically the crime of espionage
. The crime carries a penalty of one to five years in prison. However, in especially severe cases, life imprisonment or any term of at least of five years may be sentenced.
Ireland
Article 39 of the Constitution of Ireland(adopted in 1937) states:
- treason shall consist only in levying war against the State, or assisting any State or person or inciting or conspiring with any person to levy war against the State, or attempting by force of arms or other violent means to overthrow the organs of government established by the Constitution, or taking part or being concerned in or inciting or conspiring with any person to make or to take part or be concerned in any such attempt.
The Treason Act 1939
gave legislative effect to Article 39, and provided for the imposition of the death penalty for treason. The Criminal Justice Act 1990 abolished the death penalty, setting the punishment for treason at life imprisonment, with parole in not less than forty years. No person has been charged under the Treason Act. Irish republican legitimatists
who refuse to recognise the legitimacy of the Republic of Ireland
have been charged with lesser crimes under the Offences against the State Acts 1939–1998.
Italy
The Italianlaw defines various types of crimes that could be generally described as 'treason', although they are so many and so precisely defined that no one of them is simply called tradimento in the text of Codice Penale (Italian Criminal Code). The treason-type crimes are grouped as Crimes against the personhood of the State ('Crimini contro la personalità dello Stato') in the Second Book, First Title, of the Criminal Code.
Articles 241 to 274 detail crimes against the international personhood of the State such as Attempt against wholeness, independence and unity of the State (art.241), Hostilities against a foreign State bringing the Italian State in danger of war (art.244), Bribery of a citizen by a foreigner against the national interests (art.246), Political or military espionage (art.257).
Articles 276 to 292 detail crimes against the domestic personhood of the State, ranging from Attempt on the President of the Republic (art.271), Attempt with purposes of terrorism or of subversion (art.280), Attempt against the Constitution (art.283), Armed insurrection against the power of the State (art.284), Civil war (art.286).
Further articles detail other crimes, especially those of conspiracy, such as Political conspiracy through association (art.305), or Armed association: creating and participating (art.306).
The penalties for treason-type crimes, before 1948, included death as maximum penalty, and, for some crimes, as the only penalty possible. Nowadays the maximum penalty is life in jail (ergastolo).
New Zealand
New Zealandhas treason laws that are stipulated under the Crimes Act 1961
. Section 73 of the Crimes Act reads as follows:
- "Every one owing allegiance to Her Majesty the Queen in right of New ZealandMonarchy in New ZealandThe monarchy of New Zealand also referred to as The Crown in Right of New Zealand, Her Majesty in Right of New Zealand, or The Queen in Right of New Zealand is the constitutional system of government in which a hereditary monarch is the sovereign and head of state of the Realm of New Zealand,...
commits treason who, within or outside New Zealand,—- (a) Kills or wounds or does grievous bodily harm to Her Majesty the Queen, or imprisons or restrains her; or
- (b) Levies war against New Zealand; or
- (c) Assists an enemy at war with New Zealand, or any armed forces against which New Zealand forces are engaged in hostilities, whether or not a state of war exists between New Zealand and any other country; or
- (d) Incites or assists any person with force to invade New Zealand; or
- (e) Uses force for the purpose of overthrowing the Government of New Zealand; or
- (f) Conspires with any person to do anything mentioned in this section."
The penalty is life imprisonment, except that the maximum for conspiracy is 14 years. Treason was the last capital crime
in New Zealand law, with the death penalty not being revoked until 1989, years after it was abolished for murder
.
Very few people have been prosecuted for the act of treason in New Zealand and none have been prosecuted in recent years.
Russia
Article 275 of the Criminal Code of Russia. defines treason as "espionage, disclosure of state secrets, or any other assistance rendered to a foreign State, a foreign organization, or their representatives in hostile activities to the detriment of the external security of the Russian Federation, committed by a citizen of the Russian Federation." The sentence is imprisonment for 12 to 20 years. It is not a capital offence, even though murder and some aggravated forms of attempted murder are (although Russia currently has a moratorium on the death penalty). Subsequent sections provide for further offences against state security, such as armed rebellion and forcible seizure of power.Switzerland
There is no single crime of treason in Swiss law; instead, multiple criminal prohibitions apply. Article 265 of the Swiss Criminal Code
prohibits "high treason
" (Hochverrat/haute trahison) as follows:
- "Whoever commits an act with the objective of violently
- – changing the constitution of the ConfederationSwiss Federal ConstitutionThe Federal Constitution of 18 April 1999 is the third and current federal constitution of Switzerland. It establishes the Swiss Confederation as a federal republic of 26 cantons , contains a catalogue of individual and popular rights , delineates the responsibilities of the...
or of a canton, - – removing the constitutional authorities of the state from office or making them unable to exercise their authority,
- – separating Swiss territory from the Confederation or territory from a canton,
- shall be punished with imprisonment of no less than a year."
A separate crime is defined in article 267 as "diplomatic treason" (Diplomatischer Landesverrat/Trahison diplomatique):
- "1. Whoever makes known or accessible a secret, the preservation of which is required in the interest of the Confederation, to a foreign state or its agents, (...) shall be punished with imprisonment of no less than a year.
- 2. Whoever makes known or accessible a secret, the preservation of which is required in the interest of the Confederation, to the public, shall be punished with imprisonment of up to five years or a monetary penalty."
In 1950, in the context of the Cold War
, the following prohibition of "foreign enterprises against the security of Switzerland" was introduced as article 266bis:
- "1 Whoever, with the purpose of inciting or supporting foreign enterprises aimed against the security of Switzerland, enters into contact with a foreign state or with foreign parties or other foreign organizations or their agents, or makes or disseminates untrue or tendentious claims (unwahre oder entstellende Behauptungen / informations inexactes ou tendancieuses), shall be punished with imprisonment of up to five years or a monetary penalty.
- 2 In grave cases the judge may pronounce a sentence of imprisonment of no less than a month."
The criminal code also prohibits, among other acts, the suppression or falsification of legal documents or evidence relevant to the international relations of Switzerland (art. 267, imprisonment of no less than a year) and attacks against the independence of Switzerland and incitement of a war against Switzerland (art. 266, up to life imprisonment).
The Swiss military criminal code contains additional prohibitions under the general title of "treason", which also apply to civilians, or which in times of war civilians are also (or may by executive decision be made) subject to. These include espionage
or transmission of secrets to a foreign power (art. 86); sabotage
(art. 86a); "military treason", i.e., the disruption of activities of military significance (art. 87); acting as a franc-tireur (art. 88); disruption of military action by disseminating untrue information (art. 89); military service against Switzerland by Swiss nationals (art. 90); or giving aid to the enemy (art. 91). The penalties for these crimes vary, but include life imprisonment in some cases.
Turkey
Treason per se is not defined in the Turkish Penal Code. However, the law defines crimes which are traditionally included in the scope of treason, such as cooperating with the enemy during wartime. Treason is punishable by imprisonment up to life.United Kingdom
The British law of treason is entirely statutory and has been so since the Treason Act 1351(25 Edw. 3 St. 5 c. 2). The Act is written in Norman French
, but is more commonly cited in its English translation.
The Treason Act 1351 has since been amended several times, and currently provides for four categories of treasonable offences, namely:
- "when a man doth compass or imagine the death of our lord the King, or of our lady his Queen or of their eldest son and heir";
- "if a man do violate the King’s companion, or the King’s eldest daughter unmarried, or the wife of the King’s eldest son and heir";
- "if a man do levy war against our lord the King in his realm, or be adherent to the King’s enemies in his realm, giving to them aid and comfort in the realm, or elsewhere"; and
- "if a man slea the chancellor
Lord ChancellorThe Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, or Lord Chancellor, is a senior and important functionary in the government of the United Kingdom. He is the second highest ranking of the Great Officers of State, ranking only after the Lord High Steward. The Lord Chancellor is appointed by the Sovereign...
, treasurer, or the King’s justices of the one bench or the other, justices in eyre, or justices of assise, and all other justices assigned to hear and determine, being in their places, doing their offices".
Another Act, the Treason Act 1702
(1 Anne stat. 2 c. 21), provides for a fifth category of treason, namely:
- "if any person or persons ... shall endeavour to deprive or hinder any person who shall be the next in succession to the crown ... from succeeding after the decease of her Majesty (whom God long preserve) to the imperial crown of this realm and the dominions and territories thereunto belonging".
By virtue of the Treason Act 1708
, the law of treason in Scotland
is the same as the law in England, save that in Scotland the slaying of the Lords of Session
and Lords of Justiciary
and counterfeiting the Great Seal of Scotland
remain treason under sections 11 and 12 of the Treason Act 1708 respectively. Treason is a reserved matter
about which the Scottish Parliament
is prohibited from legislating. Two acts of the former Parliament of Ireland
passed in 1537
and 1542
create further treasons which apply in Northern Ireland
.
The penalty for treason
was changed from death to a maximum of imprisonment for life in 1998 under the Crime And Disorder Act. Before 1998, the death penalty was mandatory, subject to the royal prerogative of mercy
. Since the abolition of the death penalty for murder in 1965 an execution for treason was unlikely to be carried out.
Treason laws were used against Irish insurgents before Irish independence
. However, IRA
and other republican
groups were not prosecuted or executed for treason for levying war against the British government during the Troubles. They, along with loyalist
groups, were jailed for murder
, violent crimes or terrorist offences. William Joyce
was the last person to be put to death for treason, in 1946. (On the following day Theodore Schurch
was executed for treachery
, a similar crime, and was the last man to be executed for a crime other than murder in the UK.)
As to who can commit treason, it depends on the ancient notion of allegiance
. As such, all British nationals (but not other Commonwealth citizen
s) owe allegiance to the Queen in right of the United Kingdom wherever they may be, as do Commonwealth citizens and aliens present in the United Kingdom at the time of the treasonable act (except diplomats and foreign invading forces), those who hold a British passport however obtained, and aliens who – having lived in Britain and gone abroad again – have left behind family and belongings.
International influence
The Treason Act 1695enacted, among other things, a rule that treason could be proved only in a trial by the evidence of two witnesses to the same offence. Nearly one hundred years later this rule was incorporated into the U.S. Constitution, which requires two witnesses to the same overt act. It also provided for a three year time limit on bringing prosecutions for treason (except for assassinating the king), another rule which has been imitated in some common law countries. The Sedition Act 1661 made it treason to imprison, restrain or wound the king. Although this law was abolished in the United Kingdom in 1998, it still continues to apply in some Commonwealth
countries.
Federal
To avoid the abuses of the English law (including executions by Henry VIIIof those who criticized his repeated marriages), treason was specifically defined in the United States Constitution
, the only crime so defined. Article III
Section 3 delineates treason as follows:

Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying War against them, or in adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort. No Person shall be convicted of Treason unless on the Testimony of two Witnesses to the same overt Act, or on Confession in open Court.
The Congress shall have Power to declare the Punishment of Treason, but no AttainderAttainderIn English criminal law, attainder or attinctura is the metaphorical 'stain' or 'corruption of blood' which arises from being condemned for a serious capital crime . It entails losing not only one's property and hereditary titles, but typically also the right to pass them on to one's heirs...
of Treason shall work Corruption of Blood, or Forfeiture except during the Life of the Person attainted.
However, Congress
has, at times, passed statutes creating related offenses that undermine the government or the national security, such as sedition
in the 1798 Alien and Sedition Acts
, or espionage
and sedition
in the 1917 Espionage Act, which do not require the testimony of two witnesses and have a much broader definition than Article Three treason. For example, some well-known spies have been convicted of espionage rather than treason.
The Constitution does not itself create the offense; it only restricts the definition (the first paragraph), permits Congress to create the offense, and restricts any punishment for treason to only the convicted (the second paragraph). The crime is prohibited by legislation passed by Congress
. Therefore the United States Code
at states "whoever, owing allegiance to the United States, levies war against them or adheres to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort within the United States or elsewhere, is guilty of treason and shall suffer death, or shall be imprisoned not less than five years and fined under this title but not less than $10,000; and shall be incapable of holding any office under the United States." The requirement of testimony of two witnesses was inherited from the British Treason Act 1695
.
One of American history's most notorious traitors is Benedict Arnold
, whose name is considered synonymous with the definition of traitor due to his collaboration with the British during the War of Independence. However, this occurred before the Constitution was written. Since the Constitution came into effect, there have been fewer than 40 federal prosecutions for treason and even fewer convictions. Several men were convicted of treason in connection with the 1794 Whiskey Rebellion
but were pardoned by President George Washington
. The most famous treason trial, that of Aaron Burr
in 1807 (See Burr conspiracy
), resulted in acquittal. Politically motivated attempts to convict opponents of the Jeffersonian Embargo Acts
and the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850
all failed. After the American Civil War
, no person involved with the Confederate States of America
was tried for treason, though a number of leading Confederates (including Jefferson Davis
and Robert E. Lee
) were indicted. Those who had been indicted received a blanket amnesty issued by President Andrew Johnson
as he left office in 1869.
The Cold War
saw frequent associations between treason and support for (or insufficient hostility toward) Communist-backed causes. The most memorable of these came from Senator Joseph McCarthy
, who accused the Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Harry Truman administrations of "twenty years of treason." As chosen chair of the Senate Permanent Investigations Subcommittee, McCarthy also investigated various government agencies for Soviet
spy rings; however, he acted as a political fact-finder rather than a criminal prosecutor. The Cold War period saw few prosecutions for treason. On October 11, 2006, a federal grand jury issued the first indictment for treason against the United States since 1952, charging Adam Yahiye Gadahn
for videos in which he appeared as a spokesman for al-Qaeda
and threatened attacks on American soil.
State
Most states have provisions in their constitutions or statutes similar to those in the U.S. Constitution. The Extradition Clausespecifically defines treason as an extraditable offense. There have been only two documented prosecutions for treason on the state level, that of Thomas Dorr for treason against the state of Rhode Island
for his part in the Dorr Rebellion
, and that of John Brown
for treason against the state of Virginia
for his part in the raid on Harpers Ferry
. In 1859, he and a few of his sons infiltrated Harpers Ferry
—a military base in Virginia—in an attempt to steal the weapons that were kept there. His goal was to give these weapons to slaves, and lead them in an armed rebellion, but his attempt was unsuccessful. His sons were killed in the ensuing battle, and he was captured, and then tried, and convicted, for treason against the Commonwealth of Virginia. He was sentenced to death by hanging
, which was performed on December 2, 1859.
Muslim countries
Early in Islamic history, the only form of treason was seen as the attempt to overthrow a just government or waging war against the State. According to Arab tradition, the prescribed punishment ranged from imprisonment to the severing of limbs and the death penalty depending on the severity of the crime. However, even in cases of treason the repentance of a person would have to be taken into account.Currently, the consensus among major Islamic schools is that apostacy
(leaving Islam) is considered treason and that the penalty is death; this is supported not in the Quran but in the Hadith
. This confusion between apostasy and treason almost certainly had its roots in the Ridda Wars
, in which an army of rebel traitors led by the self-proclaimed prophet Musaylima attempted to destroy the caliphate
of Abu Bakr
.
In the nineteenth and early twentieth century, the Iranian Cleric Sheikh Fazlollah Noori
opposed the Iranian Constitutional Revolution
by inciting insurrection against them through issuing Fatwahs and publishing pamphlets arguing democracy will bring vice to the country. The new government executed him for treason in 1909.
In Malaysia, it is treason to commit offences against the Yang di-Pertuan Agong
’s person, waging, attempting to wage war or abetting the waging of war against the Yang di-Pertuan Agong
, a Ruler or Yang di-Pertua Negeri
. All these offences are punishable by hanging, which derives from the English treason acts (a former British colony, Malaysia's legal system is based on English common law
).
Algeria
In Algeria, treason is defined as the following:- attempts to change the regime or actions aimed at incitement
- destruction of territory, sabotage to public and economic utilities
- participation in armed bands or in insurrectionary movements
Bahrain
In Bahrain, plotting to topple the regime, collaborating with a foreign hostile country and threatening the life of the Emir are defined as treason and punishable by death. The State Security Law of 1974
was used to crush dissent that could be seen as treasonous, which was criticised for permitting severe human rights violations in accordance with Article One:
"If there is serious evidence that a person has perpetrated acts, delivered statements, exercised activities, or has been involved in contacts inside or outside the country, which are of a nature considered to be in violation of the internal or external security of the country, the religious and national interests of the State, its social or economic system; or considered to be an act of sedition that affects or can possibly affect the existing relations between the people and Government, between the various institutions of the State, between the classes of the people, or between those who work in corporations propagating subversive propaganda or disseminating atheistic principles; the Minister of Interior may order the arrest of that person, committing him to one of Bahrain's prisons, searching him, his residence and the place of his work, and may take any measure which he deems necessary for gathering evidence and completing investigations.
"The period of detention may not exceed three years. Searches may only be made and the measures provided for in the first paragraph may only be taken upon judicial writ."
Iran
In Iranevery act of disloyalty is considered high treason, even expressing one's mind against the Supreme Leader of Iran
. Acting against the military forces or police forces is also treason because they are arguably loyal to the supreme leader. Most judges are careful with the death sentence if the crime is considered a disloyalty to the supreme leader because every sentence lower than death sentence is not acceptable.
After a presidential election in which people started to oppose the government and country leaders, courts have been a lot more sensitive about the crime of treason in order to keep better control of the situation.
Palestinian territories
In the areas controlled by the Palestinian National Authority, it is treason to give assistance to Israeli troops without the authorization of the Palestinian Authority or to sell land to Jews (irrespective of nationality) and also non-Jewish Israeli citizens under the Palestinian Land Laws
, as part of the PA's general policy of discouraging the expansion of Israeli settlement
s. Both crimes are capital offences subject to the death penalty, although the former provision has not often been enforced since the beginning of effective security cooperation between the Israel Defense Forces
, Israel Police
, and Palestinian National Security Forces since the mid-2000s under the leadership of Prime Minister Salam Fayyad
. Likewise, in the Gaza Strip
under the Hamas
led government, any sort of cooperation or assistance to Israeli forces during military actions is also punishable by death.
Related offences
There are a number of other crimes against the state short of treason:- Apostasy in IslamApostasy in IslamApostasy in Islam is commonly defined in Islam as the rejection in word or deed of one's former religion by a person who was previously a follower of Islam...
is currently considered treason in Islamic belief, but this was not historically the case. - Compounding treasonCompounding treasonCompounding treason is an offence under the common law of England. It is committed by anyone who agrees for consideration to abstain from prosecuting the offender who has committed treason.It is still an offence in England and Wales, and in Northern Ireland...
is dropping a prosecution for treason in exchange for money or money's worth. - DefectionDefectionIn politics, a defector is a person who gives up allegiance to one state or political entity in exchange for allegiance to another. More broadly, it involves abandoning a person, cause or doctrine to whom or to which one is bound by some tie, as of allegiance or duty.This term is also applied,...
, or leaving the country, is regarded in some communist countries (especially during the Cold WarCold WarThe Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
) as disloyal to the state. - EspionageEspionageEspionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
or spying. - Lèse majestéLèse majestéLese-majesty is the crime of violating majesty, an offence against the dignity of a reigning sovereign or against a state.This behavior was first classified as a criminal offence against the dignity of the Roman republic in Ancient Rome...
is insulting a head of stateHead of StateA head of state is the individual that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchy, republic, federation, commonwealth or other kind of state. His or her role generally includes legitimizing the state and exercising the political powers, functions, and duties granted to the head of...
and is a crime in some countries. - Misprision of treasonMisprision of treasonMisprision of treason is an offence found in many common law jurisdictions around the world, having been inherited from English law. It is committed by someone who knows a treason is being or is about to be committed but does not report it to a proper authority...
is a crime consisting of the concealment of treason. - SeditionSeditionIn law, sedition is overt conduct, such as speech and organization, that is deemed by the legal authority to tend toward insurrection against the established order. Sedition often includes subversion of a constitution and incitement of discontent to lawful authority. Sedition may include any...
is inciting civil unrest or insurrection, or undermining the government. - TreacheryTreacheryTreachery is a statutory offence in Australia. There was also an unrelated statutory offence bearing that name in the United Kingdom, but it has been abolished. Both of these offences were derived from or inspired by the related offence of treason. The name treachery was chosen because it is a...
, the name of a number of derivative offences. - Treason felony, a British offence tantamount to treason.
Further reading
- Elaine Shannon and Ann Blackman, The Spy Next Door : The Extraordinary Secret Life of Robert Philip Hanssen, The Most Damaging FBI Agent in US History, Little, Brown and Company, 2002, ISBN 0-316-71821-1
- Ben-Yehuda, Nachman, "Betrayals and Treason. Violations of trust and Loyalty." Westview Press, 2001, ISBN 0-8133-9776-6
- Ó Longaigh, Seosamh, "Emergency Law in Independent Ireland, 1922–1948", Four Courts Press, Dublin 2006 ISBN 1-85182-922-9
External links
- British Treason Law
- Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, Official site