The Seditious Meetings Act of 1817 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland which made it illegal to hold a meeting of more than 50 people. The act was passed by Lord Liverpool's government in March, 1817 in retaliation to the March of the Blanketeers in the same month. John Ehrmann, biographer of William Pitt, refers to the act as being, "open-endingly severe". On the other hand, this piece of legislation can be seen as exploiting The Sword of Damocles effect by quickly suppressing any symptom of distress effectively and efficiently in order to prevent a major outbreak of revolution.