Septennial Act 1716 Septennial Act 1716 The Septennial Act 1716 (1 Geo 1 St 2 c 38), also known as the Septennial Act 1715, was an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain. It was passed in May 1716. It increased the maximum length of a parliament (and hence the maximum period between general elections) from three years to seven. This seven-year ceiling remained in law from 1716 until 1911. The previous limit of three years had been set by the Triennial Act 1694, enacted by the Parliament of England. The act's ostensible aim was to reduce the expense caused by frequent elections.
Septennial Act 1716 Whigs won the following general election in 1722. During the First World War, a series of Acts was passed to prolong the life of the parliament elected in December 1910 until the end of the War in 1918. A series of annual Acts was also passed during the Second World War to prolong the parliament elected at the 1935 general election until the War in Europe had ended in mid-1945. Septennial Act 1716 The Septennial Act 1716 (1 Geo 1 St 2 c 38), also known as the Septennial Act 1715, was an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain.