Habeas Corpus Act 1679

The Habeas Corpus Act 1679 was an act on Parliament passed during the reign of King Charles II. Literally "show the body", this act allowed an accused person to challenge the legality of his/her imprisonment beofre a court. Without the Habeas Corpus Act, people would be accused of crimes and were immediately shut down, without any form of rebuttal coming from the accused.

Context
The Act arose becuase the Earl of Shaftesbury, Anthony Ashley Cooper, encouraged others to introduce a Bill. This Bill passed and was soon sent up to the Hous of Lords. Cooper was the leading Exclusionist--those who wanted to exclude Charles II's brother James, Duke of York, from succession--and the Bill was part of that struggle as they believed James would rule randomly.

The Bill went back and forth between the two houses. The clerk at the current moment recorded the Lords' votes, with 57 "ayes" and 55 "nays", a total of 112. The King arrived shortly thereafter and gave Royal Assent before proroguing Parliament. The Act, now passed, resides presently in the Parliamentary Archives.

Writ of Habeas Corpus
The Act is often wrongly described as the origin of the writ of habeas corpus. Though the two systems share a similar function, the writ existed in England for at least three centures.

As for the writ itself, it is a court order that requires a person under arrest to be brought before a judge or into court. The principle of habeas corpus ensures that a prisoner can be released from unlawful detention. It has historically been an important legal instrument safeguarding individiual freedom against arbitrary state action.