The Clergy Act (1640), also known as the Bishops Exclusion Act, or the Clerical Disabilities Act, was an Act of Parliament, effective 13 February 1642. Prior to the Act, bishops of the Church of England sat in the House of Lords, where they comprised 22 out of a total membership of 60-70 peers. This allowed them to block legislation proposed by the Commons, which was increasingly dominated by Puritans. In 1649, the House of Lords was abolished by the Protectorate; it was restored in 1660, but bishops were not readmitted until the 1661 Clergy Act.