“The Riot Act” is shorthand for a law that was passed by the British Parliament in 1714. The law’s official name is “An Act for Preventing Tumults and Riotous Assemblies.” King George instated the act to disperse crowds and prevent them from becoming loud and unruly.

Colonial American governments used "The Riot Act" to quiet mobs and bring order back to crowds. Governor Patrick Gordon was first called on to read "The Riot Act" to angry mobs that were breaking windows and street lights in Philadelphia in 1729.

Boston Spice wanted to get in on the action, so we created "The Riot Act." This bold spice shakes its heat up with cayenne pepper, file powder, oregano, dried mustard, and thyme. Next time you're in need of a special flavor for your chicken, pork, fish, or shrimp, read them "The Riot Act." Your taste buds will be glad you did.

The early 1700s was a time of unrest in Britain with riots occurring in 1710, 1714 and 1715. The preamble of the Riot Act refers to these ‘rebellious riots and tumults’ and states that the existing laws were insufficient. The Act allowed local officials to read a proclamation ordering illegally assembled groups of more than twelve people to disperse. Refusal to disperse was a felony offense which carried the death penalty. It is from this we get the phrase ‘reading the Riot Act’. Contemporary accounts disagree as to whether the Riot Act was successfully read at the 1839 Newport Rising. Some claim that the mayor read the full proclamation, others claim that he was shot and injured while trying to read the Act from the window of the Westgate Hotel. Interestingly, the leaders of the Newport Rising were charged with treason rather than being charged under the Riot Act. The Riot Act was repealed in 1973.