John Wilkes is expelled from Parliament over press freedom

In April 1763, John Wilkes, the Member for Aylesbury, published issue No. 45 of his opposition paper, The North Briton, attacking a speech by King George III as dishonest. The government answered with a general warrant that named no one specifically, arresting Wilkes and dozens of printers. Wilkes sued for trespass, and the courts ultimately ruled such warrants illegal — a landmark check on state power over the press.

Parliament was less sympathetic. The Commons voted that No. 45 was a “false, scandalous and seditious libel,” and ministers also seized on his obscene Essay on Woman to discredit him. Early in the morning of 20 January 1764, the House voted to eject Wilkes from his seat.

“Wilkes and Liberty!” became a rallying cry in Britain and the American colonies alike.

Though driven out, Wilkes returned again and again, repeatedly re-elected and re-expelled. His defiance made him an enduring emblem of freedom of the press and the rights of voters against an overbearing state.