Idiots Act 1886
United Kingdom legislation
| Act of Parliament | |
 | |
| Citation | 49 & 50 Vict. c. 25 |
|---|---|
| Other legislation | |
| Repealed by | Mental Deficiency Act 1913 |
Status: Repealed | |
The Idiots Act 1886 (49 & 50 Vict. c. 25) was an act of Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was intended to give "... facilities for the care, education, and training of Idiots and Imbeciles".[1]
The Act made, for the first time, the distinction between "lunatics"[n 1], "idiots", and "imbeciles" for the purpose of making entry into education establishments easier and for defining the ways they were cared for.
Before the Act, learning institutions for idiots and imbeciles were seen as either "licensed houses" or "registered hospitals" for lunatics, for which the parents of children hoping to enter would have to complete a form stating that they were "a lunatic, an idiot, or a person of unsound mind". Additionally, they were required to answer irrelevant questions and present two medical certificates.[2]
The Act was repealed by the Mental Deficiency Act 1913, by which time two further classifications had been introduced: "feeble-minded people" and "moral defectives".[3]
References
- ^ "Chronological and alphabetical bibliographies of lunacy". studymore.org.uk. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
- ^ "Idiots Act, 1886". Journal of Mental Science. 33 (141): 103–108. 1887. doi:10.1192/bjp.33.141.103. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
- ^ "Mental Health (History) Dictionary". studymore.org.uk. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
- Notes
- ^ Covered under the Lunacy Act 1845
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Mental health law in the United Kingdom
- Madhouses Act 1774
- Criminal Lunatics Act 1800
- County Asylums Act 1808
- Marriage of Lunatics Act 1811
- Madhouses (Scotland) Act 1815
- Criminal Lunatics Amendment Act 1815
- Irish Lunatic Asylums for the Poor Act 1817
- Pauper Lunatics Act 1819
- Lunacy (Ireland) Act 1821
- County Asylums Act 1828
- Madhouses Act 1828
- Chancery Lunatics Property Act 1828
- Madhouses Act 1832
- County Asylums Act 1845
- Lunacy Act 1845
- Lunacy (Scotland) Act 1857
- Idiots Act 1886
- Lunacy (Vacating of Seats) Act 1886
- Mental Deficiency Act 1913
- Mental Deficiency and Lunacy (Scotland) Act 1913
- Mental Treatment Act 1930
- Mental Health Act 1959
- Mental Health Act 1983
- Mental Capacity Act 2005
- Mental Health Act 2007
- Mental Health (Discrimination) Act 2013
- Commissioners in Lunacy
- Commissioners in Lunacy for Scotland
- Board of Control for Lunacy and Mental Deficiency
- Mental Health Review Tribunal (England and Wales)
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