The Disarming Act was an 18th-century Act of Parliament of Great Britain that was enacted to curtail Jacobitism among Scottish clans in the Scottish Highlands after the Jacobite rising of 1715. The new law came into effect on 1 November 1716 and aimed at “securing the peace of the highlands in Scotland”.
The Disarming Act of 1716 proved ineffectual and a subsequent act was passed in 1725 for more effective disarming of the highlands and better securing of peace.
Major-General George Wade played a significant role in enforcing a new act passed in 1725 for “disarming the highlands in that part of Great Britain called Scotland; and for the better securing the peace and quiet of that part of the kingdom”. He used this law to successfully confiscate a significant number of weapons.
