Ceremonial maces in the United Kingdom carried by the Yeoman Usher of the Black Rod and placed behind the Lord Speaker on the Woolsack before the House sits. All members are required to bow their heads to the mace upon entering the chamber. It is absent when the monarch delivers his or her speech from the throne at State Openings of Parliament. The other mace accompanies the Lord Chancellor on official duties outside the House of Lords. Mace A was made in the reign of Charles II , is long and weighs . Mace B was made in the reign of William III and Mary II
Judicial functions of the House of Lords was ignored. There was, however, no provision whereby the number of Law Lords could be regulated. In 1856, it was desired to increase the number of Law Lords by creating a life peerage. The House, however, ruled that the recipient of the peerage, Sir James Parke, was not entitled thereby to sit as a Lord of Parliament. Under the "Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876", the Sovereign nominated a number of Lords of Appeal in Ordinary to sit in the House of Lords. In practice, they were appointed on the advice of the Prime Minister (they were not covered by the Judicial