1833 Althorp Act

The 1833 Althorp Act was legislation aimed at ending the practice of legally imprisoning individuals for debt in England. Before this law, many debtors—people unable to pay what they owed—were confined in jail until their debts were settled, often causing hardship. The Act limited debt imprisonment to cases involving fraud or criminal behavior, reducing unnecessary detentions. Its goal was to promote fairer treatment and encourage debt resolution without undue hardship, reflecting a shift toward more humane debtor laws during the 19th century.