liliH?!- 
 
 till III* •JmIjIIh' 

 
 A 
 
 DESCRIPTION 
 
 OF 
 
 THE CLOSE ROLLS 
 
 IN THE 
 
 TOWER OF LONDON. 
 
 4 1 & > 5
 
 SI// 
 
 <?s0iA/. y. ^s* 
 
 A / 
 
 DESCRIPTION 
 
 OF 
 
 Clje Close &olte 
 
 IN 
 
 THE TOWER OF LONDON; 
 
 WITH 
 
 AN ACCOUNT 
 
 OF 
 
 THE EARLY COURTS OF LAW AND EQUITY, 
 
 AND VARIOUS 
 
 By THOMAS DUFFUS HARDY, F. S. A. 
 
 OF THE INNER TEMPLE. 
 
 PRINTED FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION. 
 MDCCCXXXIII.
 
 London : 
 Printed by George Eyre ami Andrew Spottiswoode. 
 Printers to the King's most Excellent Majesty.
 
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 lHE following pages contain the Intro- 
 duction prefixed to the First Volume of The Close 
 Rolls, printed and recently published by order of 
 His Majesty's Commissioners for Public Records. 
 
 The Editor's motive for printing in a separate 
 volume a limited number of copies for private distri- 
 bution, may be briefly stated. 
 
 The Work itself is one that will not fall into 
 the hands of general readers, and from its size and 
 necessary cost, to a certain extent does not come 
 within the means of many individuals to whom an 
 account of those valuable and important documents 
 and the subjects incidentally connected with them, 
 might be interesting. To such persons the Editor 
 trusts the information contained in his prefatory ob- 
 servations will not be found unacceptable in the 
 present form, his sole aim being to induce a more 
 extended acquaintance with the nature of the Close 
 Rolls, and to forward the objects of the Commission 
 by rendering the publication more generally known. 
 
 1st July 1833.
 
 TABLE 
 
 OF SOME OF 
 
 THE PRINCIPAL MATTERS. 
 
 Abbreviations, explanation of, 74 to 77. 
 
 table of, 78 to 85. 
 
 Adultery, illustration of the law of, 125, 126. 
 
 Alexander, King of Scotland, robes worn by him at his knight- 
 hood and marriage, 159, 160. 
 
 Alexander of St. Albans, Royal Letter to the Pope con- 
 cerning, 147, 148. 
 Arts, illustrations of, 177 to 182. 
 Attestations, remarks on, 60, 61, 64 to 74. 
 Brevia. 
 
 De cursu, 127, 128. 
 
 De ventre inspiciendo, 123 to 125. 
 
 Cancellations, Deletions, and Interlineations, observa- 
 tions on, 49 to 62. 
 
 Chancellor, The Lord, his station in the Concilium Regis, 
 106. 
 
 singular instance of the exercise of his duty in cutting a 
 
 clause from an act of parliament, 49, 50. 
 
 Charter Rolls, nature of, 30. 
 
 Close Rolls, origin and description of, 1 to 22. 
 
 the official calendars of, ordered to be printed, 6 to 9. 
 
 Tyrrell's statement and arguments concerning, 9 to 14. 
 
 b
 
 x TABLE. 
 
 Colechurch, Peter de, architect of London Bridge, notice re- 
 lating to, 167. 
 
 Commodities, prices of, 173 to 175. 
 
 Concilium Regis, distinguished from the Commune Concilium, 
 96 to 98. 
 
 its jurisdiction, 98 to 121. 
 
 Contrabreve or Counterwrit, explanation of, 39. 
 Deletions, v. Cancellations. 
 Description and origin of the Close Rolls, 1 to 22. 
 Duplicates of the early Chancery Rolls, remarks on, 35 to 49. 
 
 Ecclesiastical Law, illustrations of, 131 to 134. 
 Elianore, sister of Arthur Duke of Brittany, notices relative 
 to her imprisonment, 139 to 146. 
 
 Enrolments, origin of, 23 to 31. 
 
 modes of, practised by the Courts of Exchequer and 
 
 Chancery, 30, 31. 
 Equitable Jurisdiction, remarks on the origin of, 88 to 121. 
 
 Erasures and Interlineations, Laws of the Romans relating 
 to, 53, 54. 
 
 Estreat, explanation of, 39. 
 
 Excerpta Historica, necessity of preserving peculiarities in 
 Records exemplified by an article in, 55. 
 
 Falsifying, remarks on, 129, 130. 
 
 Fine Rolls, nature of, 30. 
 
 Gibbets, notice of erection of, 187- 
 
 History, illustrations of, 135 to 190. 
 
 Interlineations, v. Cancellations and Erasures. 
 
 Jews, persecution of, 188. 
 
 Kings' Reigns, observations on the commencements of, 135 
 
 to 137. 
 Knights, their robes and insignia, 158 to 161.
 
 TABLE. xi 
 
 Law, Courts of, remarks on, 85 to 88. 
 
 Laws illustrated by instruments on the Close Rolls, 121 to 
 134. 
 
 Leprosy, illustration of the law of, 122, 123. 
 
 Liberate Rolls, nature of, 15. 
 
 Louis, Prince of France, entries relating to, 156 to 158. 
 
 Marginal Notes of the Close Rolls, observations on, 62 to 64. 
 
 Navy, entries relative to maritime affairs, 161 to 164. 
 
 Norman Rolls, nature of, 15. 
 
 Originalia, v. Estreat. 
 
 Original Writs, remarks on, 126 to 129. 
 
 Paris, Mathew, some of his narrations corroborated by entries 
 on the Close Rolls, 138, 139, 147 to 149, 164, 165. 
 
 Patent Rolls, nature of, 30. 
 
 the series commences in the 3d of John, 2. 
 
 Peculiarities in Records, remarks on the necessity of pre- 
 serving, 54 to 60. 
 
 Pensions, and presents to Nurses of the Royal Family, 182 to 
 
 184. 
 Pipe Rolls, nature of, 16. 
 
 Plan of Publication of the Close Rolls, 31 to 85. 
 Political Economy with regard to Ireland, 187. 
 Portsmouth Dockyard, probable origin of, 162. 
 Prices of provisions and commodities, 173 to 175. 
 Prisoners, treatment of, 184 to 186. 
 
 Queen of England, attendance on, at dinner, 188. 
 
 Regnal Years, observations on, 135 to 137. 
 Robes for the King and Queen, 160, 161. 
 
 and insignia of Knights, v. Knights. 
 
 Koyal Diversions,, entries relating to, 167 to 171-
 
 xii TABLE. 
 
 Royal Kitchens, notices of two, 189, 190. 
 
 Scotland, King of, v. Alexander. 
 
 Subpcena, Origin of the writ of, 117 to 120. 
 
 Teste meipso and Teste Rege, remarks on the formules of, 
 
 67 to 74. 
 Tyrrell, James, his statement and arguments concerning the 
 
 Close Rolls, 9 to 14. 
 Wages of Soldiers and Artificers, 175, 176. 
 Will and Testament, 130, 131. 
 Writs, v. Brevia, Contrabreve, Original, and Subpcena.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION 
 
 TO 
 
 THE CLOSE ROLLS. 
 
 J. HE Records intituled Rotuli Litterarum origin 
 Clausarum, or Close Rolls, are a series of description 
 Parchment Rolls commencing with the sixth close rolls. 
 
 year of the reign of King John, Anno Domini 
 
 1204, on which are recorded or enrolled all 
 Mandates, Letters, and Writs of a private 
 nature. They are denominated Close, in con- 
 tradistinction to another series of Rolls called 
 Patent. The entries registered on the Close 
 Rolls are Letters addressed in the King's name 
 to individuals, for special and particular pur- 
 poses, and were folded, or closed up, and sealed 
 on the outside with the Great Seal : it is 
 chiefly in these particulars that they differ 
 from the Letters Patent, which were addressed 
 to all the King's liege subjects, and not 
 folded up, but had the Great Seal attached
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 origin at the bottom, and are enrolled on the Patent 
 
 AND 
 
 Description Rolls. 1 
 
 OF THE 
 
 Close Roli.^. 
 
 The value and importance of the " Close 
 Rolls " have long been acknowledged by all 
 who have consulted them ; but the want of 
 Calendars and Indexes has prevented the mis- 
 cellaneous matter recorded on them from being 
 generally known and appreciated. 
 
 The Close Rolls are of infinite variety 
 and importance, both in a public and private 
 point of view. They illustrate in an eminent 
 degree the Policy and History as well of foreign 
 nations as of this country, in the thirteenth, 
 fourteenth, and fifteenth centuries, the bio- 
 raphy of the Princes and other illustrious per- 
 sonages of the times ; and elucidate the Laws, 
 particular and general, the prerogatives of the 
 Crown, the power and influence of the Clergy 
 and Nobility, and the relative condition of the 
 people, as well morally as politically. When 
 it is remembered that these Records contain 
 the commands of the Sovereign upon all matters, 
 
 1 The series of Patent Rolls commences in the third 
 year of the reign of King John. It may be inferred from 
 the words " has lileras nostras fieri fecimus patentes," which 
 occur towards the conclusion of the patents on the first 
 Patent Roll now in existence, that there was an evident 
 distinction between the Patent and Close Writs.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 JRIGIN 
 AND 
 
 whether of a domestic or public nature, many 0l 
 
 of which were intimately connected with the Description 
 
 OF THE 
 
 first interests of the Empire ; namely, treaties Close Rolls. 
 and other diplomatic correspondence between 
 the Kings of England, France, Germany, and 
 the Heads of other States, exhibiting undoubted 
 evidence, in various forms, relating to feudal 
 and other property, the titles, genealogies, alli- 
 ances, special rights, and privileges enjoyed by 
 most of the ancient families of the realm, and 
 by innumerable other individuals, their historical 
 value must be at once apparent. 
 
 A glance at the following enumeration of 
 subjects, taken promiscuously from documents 
 contained in this Volume, but which is far from 
 being full or complete, may afford, however, 
 a more impressive idea of their miscellaneous 
 nature, and importance. 
 
 In reference to the King and his royal 
 rights and authority may be included articles 
 concerning the Royal Prerogative, Crown Re- 
 venue, Deodands, Treasure Trove, Gold and 
 Silver Mines, Donationes Regis, Fines for Trans- 
 gressions, Royal Parks and Forests, Magna 
 Charta, the Charter of the Forest, the Royalties 
 of Hunting and Hawking, Economy of the 
 Royal Household, Royal Marriages, Robes 
 and Dresses, Jewels, Coins, Aurum Reginas or 
 
 b 2
 
 4 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Origin Queen's Gold, Tournaments, Levying of Armies, 
 Description King's Messengers, Naval and Military Affairs, 
 
 0F THE I T r • A ' 1 J 
 
 Close Rolls. Homage, Fealty, Knights' Service, Aids and 
 Marriages, Duels, Bail and Pardons, Protections, 
 Truces, public and private Letters to and from 
 the King upon State Affairs, Scutage, Talliage, 
 Livery of Lands, Assignments of Dower, Royal 
 Presents to distinguished Individuals, &c. 
 Connected with the Courts of Law will be 
 found matters relating to Politics and Laws, the 
 Chancellor of England, Deliveries of the Great 
 Seal, Jurisdiction of the Courts of Chancery, 
 King's Bench, and Exchequer, Wardship of 
 Minors, Custody of Idiots and Lunatics, Ap- 
 pointments of Justices of the Peace, Eschea- 
 tors and Coroners, the Privy Council and Sum- 
 mons to the Councils, Ordinances, Books, 
 Records, &c. Under Ecclesiastical Affairs, the 
 subjects of Divorce, Adultery, Alimony, Pray- 
 ers, Masses, Papal Bulls, Knights Hospitallers 
 and Templars, &c. will occur. In illustration 
 of the Introduction and Progress of Trades 
 and Manufactures various entries will be found 
 respecting Repairs of Palaces, Public Build- 
 ings, and Bridges, &c. ; — the Arts — Pictures, 
 Paintings, Costume, &c. 
 
 It must consequently be evident that the 
 Investigator of English History will find a rich 
 and inexhaustible fund of materials, from the
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 5 
 
 careful examination and thorough understand- Origin 
 
 AXD 
 
 ing of which can alone be drawn any just in- Description 
 
 r- • n 0F THE 
 
 ferences respecting the real causes of those Close rolls. 
 numerous changes in State Policy, in Legisla- 
 tive Enactments, in the Administration of Jus- 
 tice, and in the moral condition of Society, 
 which took place in the period embraced by 
 these muniments. 
 
 The Biographer may also become better 
 acquainted, not only with the public actions of 
 the most distinguished personages that adorn 
 or disgrace those times, but sometimes with 
 the sources, till now unexplored, from whence 
 those actions flowed, and which are traceable 
 to private feelings, or to the personal and 
 domestic habits, manners, and modes of living 
 peculiar to those early periods of our history. 
 
 The Statesman, the Political Economist, 
 and the Jurisconsult may derive important in- 
 formation respecting the forms of Government 
 as then existing, and especially as to the acts 
 of King John and King Henry III., in the 
 exercise of their legislative and executive autho- 
 rity, with or without the aid and consent of 
 either their Common or the Privy Council. 
 Moreover, they may investigate the probable 
 origin, and familiarize themselves with the prac- 
 tice of the Courts of Law and Equity. They 
 
 b 3
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 origin ma y penetrate the motives of foreign and do- 
 Description mestic Diplomacy — may take a view of the 
 
 OF THE A ^ J 
 
 Close Rolls, state of Arts and Manufactures — of public and 
 domestic Establishments — of Religious Foun- 
 dations and Observances — of the Commercial 
 Interests of the Nation — of the nature of Mu- 
 nicipal Charters and Institutions ; from a proper 
 examination of which they may arrive at a 
 tolerably correct idea of the whole fabric of 
 Society as it then existed : But no description 
 of Reader, perhaps, will be able to reap more 
 advantage from a careful examination of the 
 pages of this Volume than the practical Lawyer, 
 for scarcely a single case can arise, in illustra- 
 tion and explanation of which a knowledge of 
 the ancient usages and law of the Realm may 
 be necessary or important, but he may be 
 able to derive numerous elucidatory passages, 
 many of them of deep interest, and of essential 
 legal importance. 
 
 The value of these Records early attracted 
 the attention of His Majesty's Commissioners 
 appointed for the arrangement and preservation 
 of Public Records, when plans were proposed 
 for their publication ; the first was in the year 
 1801, when the Secretary of the Commission 
 was ordered to write to the Keeper of the 
 Records in the Tower, " to request him to 
 cause Calendars and Indexes to the Patent,
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. / 
 
 Close 1 , and Charter Rolls, to be printed, of Origin 
 
 * ' * * AND 
 
 the same size as the Rolls and Journals of Description 
 
 OF THE 
 
 Parliament." Close rolls. 
 
 By the general Report of the Commis- 
 sioners to the King, dated 24th March 1802, 
 it appears that, in pursuance of the preceding 
 order, progress had been made in transcribing 
 for the Press the then existing Office Calendars ; 
 and by another Report of the date of 24th March 
 1803, further progress was stated to have been 
 made in transcribing them for the Press ; and 
 the Commissioners, in this Report, state to His 
 Majesty, that they had ordered the Official 
 Calendars of the Close Rolls at the Tower to 
 be printed forthwith ; inserting therein such of 
 the articles contained in a selection referred 
 to in the Resolution of the Board of the 25th 
 of June 1802. 2 But by the Report in the fol- 
 
 1 The Office Calendars of the Close Rolls consist of 
 only eight quarto Volumes, commencing with the reign of 
 Henry III., and ending with that of Edward IV. ; and in 
 these not more than one instrument out of a hundred is 
 noticed. To the Rolls of the reign of King John there 
 was neither index or calendar, until within a few years 
 since, when an admirable one was completed by Henry 
 Petrie Esq., the present Keeper of the Records; and which 
 is as useful and valuable as a calendar can be made. 
 
 2 Mr. Robert Lemon, chief clerk in the Record Office 
 in the Tower, had, in obedience to an order made 22d July 
 1800, been employed in making a selection of treaties, ne- 
 
 B 4
 
 8 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Origin lowing year, bearing date the 24th March 1804*, 
 description it appears that the printing of the Calendars 
 
 OF THE 
 
 Close Rolls, to the Close Rolls was postponed until they had 
 been rendered more complete. No further 
 steps, however, seem to have been taken for 
 completing those Calendars, though a plan for 
 that purpose had been submitted to them by 
 William Ulingworth Esq., then Deputy Keeper 
 of the Records, than whom, from his practical 
 knowledge and acquaintance with the contents 
 of the Rolls themselves, no person could be 
 more competent to judge of their value and 
 utility. Mr. Illingworth's plan was not carried 
 into effect, owing, perhaps, to the Commissioners 
 being impressed with an opinion that other works 
 were more immediately deserving of their con- 
 sideration. Notwithstanding, however, a con- 
 stant demand for these documents, the Com- 
 missioners did not think it advisable to pro- 
 ceed with the completion of the Office Calen- 
 dars, and their contents remained unavailable 
 to the Public, until the present Commission was 
 formed, when no sooner was the attention of 
 
 gociations, and other instruments of state, for a Supple- 
 ment then intended to be printed to llymer's Fcedera, 
 and which he completed towards the close of the year 
 1801. On the 25th of June 1802, " it was resolved by the 
 Board, that such part of the list of the instruments on the 
 Close Rolls as shall not be fit for insertion in the Supple- 
 ment to Rymer's Fcedera, be inserted in the Calendar to the 
 Close Rolls."
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 9 
 
 the Secretary drawn to these Rolls by the Editor 1 , Origin 
 
 J J 7 AND 
 
 than he became so fully impressed with a con- description 
 
 J l OF THE 
 
 viction of their legal and historical value, that Close rolls. 
 he immediately recommended to the Board to 
 cany into effect the plan of publication sug- 
 gested, and now effected. To this recommen- 
 dation, therefore, the world in general and his- 
 torians and antiquaries in particular, are in- 
 debted for these valuable illustrations of the 
 history, laws, manners, and customs of the 
 periods to which they refer. 
 
 The most ancient of these Close Rolls now 
 extant is that of the sixth of King John, Anno 
 Domini 1204 ; but whether there were any 
 anterior to that period, there is no direct evi- 
 dence upon which to determine ; nor is there 
 perhaps sufficient reason to assert that there 
 were none, though the strongest evidence now 
 to be obtained seems rather to sanction such 
 an assertion. On this point it is, however, 
 proper to state what Tyrrell, a most inde- 
 fatigable and laborious writer, has urged in 
 his Bibliotheca Politica 2 , where he says, that 
 Brady (to whom he is violently opposed) alleges, 
 that all the Close Rolls of the reigns of John 
 
 1 See An Account of the most important Public 
 Records of Great Britain, &c. 2 vols. 8vo., by C. P. Cooper 
 Esq. Vol. i. page 409. 
 
 2 Bibliotheca Politica. By James Tyrrell Esq. Fol. 
 1718, p. 372.
 
 10 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Origin 
 and 
 
 and Henry III. are extant in the Tower ; "which 
 description « ls a g rea t mistake," says Tyrrell, "for I have 
 
 OF THE 
 
 Close Rolls. « had a friend who has given me a note of 
 " what Close Rolls are still extant in those 
 " reigns, and what are lost, which you may 
 " here see. To begin with King John : pray 
 '•* observe that all the Close Rolls of the first 
 " five years of his reign are gone ; and so they 
 " are in the 9th 1 , 10th, 11th, 12th, and 13th; 
 " for certainly there were some in those as 
 " well as in the succeeding years. In the 
 " next place, till the 18th 2 there is but one 
 " Roll left of each year ; but then there are 
 " three, and after that but one or two in a year 
 " to the very end. Now pray tell me how we 
 " can be assured that there was not more than 
 " one Roll in every precedent year, as well as 
 " in the 15th. The like I may say for the 
 " reign of Henry III., which though I grant 
 " are more entire than those of King John, 
 " there being some left us of every year but 
 " the 23d, yet they are but a few, and for the 
 " greatest part but one in each year; never 
 ,f but two in any year in all this long reign, 
 " unless it be in the 39th, in which there are 
 " four, which is very strange that in so busy 
 " a time as most of this reign was there should 
 
 1 This a mistake : the Close Roll for the 9th is still 
 extant, see p. 84 et seq. 
 
 2 Evidently an error for the 1.5th.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 11 
 
 " be no more Rolls left ; and therefore it seems origin 
 
 AND 
 
 " very probable that at least half are lost." Description 
 
 OF THE 
 
 Close Rolls. 
 
 This statement of Tyrrell contained in 
 the first part of Mr. Freeman's answer to 
 Mr. Meanwell (for his work is constructed in 
 dialogue), that the Close Rolls for the five first 
 years of the reign of King John were gone or 
 lost, is true only to this extent, that there are 
 none now in existence ; though there is, more- 
 over, in favour of his assertion the fact, that of 
 every description of Rolls in the Inventory of 
 Richard II. 1 there are but7<5 altogether assigned 
 to the reign of King John : though that Inven- 
 tory does not particularize the number of Rolls 
 of each description. At present there are only 
 66 Rolls altogether of the reign of John, and 
 if the number of Close Rolls wanting be 
 added, namely 9, to the number at present 
 
 1 " Haec Indentura facta inter dominium Willielmum 
 de Burstall clericum nuper custodem Ilotulorum Cancel- 
 lariae domini Regis et dominum Johannem de Waltham 
 nunc custodem Rotulorum praedictorum, testatur quod 
 pracfatus dominus Willielmus pratextu cujusdam brevis 
 ipsius domini Regis eidem domino Willielmo directi 
 liberavit pnedicto domino Johanni officium pra;dictum ac 
 Rotulos Memoranda et alias evidentias subscripta dictum 
 officium tangentia videlicet, sexaginta et quindecim Rotulos 
 in duabus bagis de tempore Regis Johannis,'' &c. " Data 
 London, nono die Septembris anno regni Regis Ricardi 
 secundi post conquestum quinto." Ex vet. membrana in 
 arch. Turr. Lond.
 
 12 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Origin known, they will together produce 75, the num- 
 Description ber stated to be in existence when the Inventory 
 
 OF THE' 
 
 Close Rolls, was made. But then this is supposing that the 
 whole series of other Rolls are perfect, namely, 
 the Patent, Fine, and other Rolls, which is not 
 the case, for each series of Rolls is imperfect 
 for other years of this reign. Thus, for the 
 12th year of the reign of John, there is only 
 one Roll, namely, a Prestita Roll ; and for the 
 11th and 13th years of that reign there are no 
 Rolls at all now extant : the conclusion from 
 which is, that there was no earlier series of 
 Rolls than that of which we are now in posses- 
 sion ; namely, the Charter Rolls, commencing 
 with the 1st, the Patent with the 3d, and the 
 Close and Fine with the 6th years of King John's 
 reign. The instruments on the Charter Rolls 
 were perhaps the first species of Royal Diplo- 
 mas enrolled, and that by reason of their great 
 importance. The plan of recording Charters 
 being found of considerable advantage, Letters 
 Patent were also afterwards recorded, and then 
 Letters Close 1 ; and it is not at all improbable 
 
 ] In support of this inference it may be remarked, that 
 Treaties and other Public Protocols, such as were afterwards 
 entered upon the Close or Patent Rolls, according to their 
 nature, are found to be enrolled on the backs (technically 
 called the " Dors'') of the Charter Rolls for the first and 
 second years of John's reign; and that Diplomas of this 
 sort are not to be found entered on Charter Rolls since the
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 13 
 
 that the nine Rolls missing may have belonged Origin 
 to the 11th, 12th, and 13th years of John's Description 
 
 11 1 1 1 OF THE 
 
 reign, but by some accident have been lost. Close rolls. 
 For otherwise how is it that no registration of 
 Charters or Letters Close for either of those 
 years exists ? 
 
 The other points which seem to embar- 
 rass Tyrrell are easily answered. He says, 
 "that till the 18th," doubtless a typographical 
 error for the 15th, " there is but one Roll left 
 " of each year, and then there are three, and 
 Ci after that but one or two in a year to the 
 " very end ;" and asks " how he can be assured 
 " that there was not more than one Roll in 
 " every precedent year, as well as the 15th ?" 
 The answer is simply this : every Roll, when 
 there is only one for a year, is perfect in itself; 
 that is, it commences with the day of the Ascen- 
 sion (from which day the regnal year of John 
 was computed), and ends the day before the 
 following Ascension Day : but when the trans- 
 actions of one year were so extensive as, by 
 registration of the same, to make one Roll too 
 bulky, the Roll was then divided into two parts 
 
 commencement of Close or Patent Rolls ; the Dors of the 
 Patent or Close Rolls, according to their nature, being the 
 place used for such entries; where those here alluded to 
 would also doubtless have been registered had such species 
 of Rolls been then in existence.
 
 14 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 origin f or ^ e sa k e f convenience ' ; and this was 
 
 AND 7 
 
 description the case as to the Rolls of the 15th and 16th 
 
 OF THE 
 
 Close Rolls, years of that reign ; the entries of business 
 performed in those years being too great in 
 quantity to be admissible upon one Roll, it was 
 divided into two parts, one for the first, and the 
 other for the last six months of the year ; and 
 these parts, with copies of the same (which it 
 was then the practice to make), complete the 
 number of three for each of those years. 2 
 The same reasoning may be applied to the 
 reign of Henry III. 
 
 From the title of the Close Roll of the 6th 
 of John, it may also be inferred to be the Jirst 
 of that species of Roll, for it is observable that 
 this is not styled a Close Roll 3 , nor is that spe- 
 cific title applied to this description of Roll 
 until we come to the Roll of the 8th year of 
 
 1 Great inequality in the quantity of registration in 
 different years must necessarily have resulted from the 
 rapid and irregular movements of a sovereign like King 
 John, whose indolence and other vicious habits must have 
 frequently interrupted and delayed legal process of every 
 kind, and consequently occasioned at one time a paucity, 
 and at another time an accumulation of business. 
 
 2 A slight variation in this respect must be admitted 
 as regards the Roll of the 15th year, the third part of 
 that Roll being the Justiciary's Roll, when the King was in 
 Poictou. 
 
 a " Rotulus terrarum datarum et commissarum et 
 denariorum et quietantionum anno regni Johannis sexto."
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 15 
 
 that reign ', though the entries recorded on origin 
 
 O ' O AND 
 
 those of the 6th and 7th years of the same Description 
 
 J OF THE 
 
 reign are precisely similar to those of the 8th ; Close rolls. 
 and it might have happened that the classifica- 
 tion of the Chancery Rolls had not, till that 
 period, assumed the form it afterwards bore ; 
 for many of the entries on the early Close 
 Rolls more properly belong to that series of 
 entries found on the Fine and Liberate 2 Rolls, 
 all of which may be considered as branches of 
 the Close Rolls. 3 
 
 The documents on the early Rolls are 
 invariably written in corrupted Latin, and being 
 full of abbreviations, with many of the letters 
 
 1 Rotulus Litterarum Clausarum anni regni Regis 
 Johannis octavi. 
 
 2 On the Liberate Rolls are recorded precepts directing 
 the payment of sums of money ; and also orders to sheriffs 
 to deliver possession of lands or goods which had been 
 extended. 
 
 3 The entries on the Norman Rolls of the 2nd and 6th 
 of John, calendared in Carte's Gascon and French Rolls, 
 torn. i. p. 241, et seq. are also Rolls of a close nature. It ap- 
 pears, however, from Carte's Catalogue, that the matters 
 recorded on them relate wholly to Normandy ; but this is 
 not the fact, more than one half of the instruments having 
 relation, not only to other parts of our then ultra-marine 
 dominions, but also to this country, which are omitted. It 
 may not be irrelevant here to state, that the Norman 
 Contrabrevia Roll of the 4th of John had, by some means 
 or other, escaped Carte's notice ; and that lately another 
 Norman Roll, of the 5th of John, has been discovered, 
 which also, of course, is not noticed in Carte's work.
 
 16 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Origin bearing a strong resemblance to eacli other, 
 
 AND & ° ' 
 
 description it is by reference to the context alone that many 
 
 OF THE * J 
 
 Close Rolls, words can be decyphered. The handwriting 
 prevalent in England at this period was deno- 
 minated Norman, or the Monastic hand ; partly 
 allied to the elegant Saxon, and partly to the 
 Lombardic. A great difference may, however, 
 be observed between this and the Chancery 
 hand of the same period, both as it regards 
 the shape of the letters and the frequent oc- 
 currence of abbreviations, the latter ' being 
 more careless and cursive. The great simi- 
 larity of the n to the u t of in to m, of the t to 
 the c, and of the f to the s, often renders it 
 a matter of some difficulty to determine on 
 which to fix ; but sometimes the distinction 
 is clearly apparent ; and., doubtless, as a differ- 
 ence must always have been intended, it may, 
 when imperceptible, have been occasioned by 
 the carelessness of the scribe. More instances 
 of this distinction are to be found on the 
 Pipe Rolls 2 than on the Chancery Rolls, for 
 
 1 The handwritings of the Exchequer Rolls are more 
 analogous to the Monastic than to the Chancery hand. 
 
 2 The Pipe Rolls, or the Great Rolls of the Pipe, 
 sometimes called the " Rotuli Annales," contain many im- 
 portant entries respecting the revenue and property of the 
 Crown, and afford the most minute particulars of its terri- 
 torial possessions, whether ancient demesne, or otherwise. 
 All the fiscal accounts are there recorded ; and though 
 these Rolls were not originally intended for any other than
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 17 
 
 the most unpractised eye may in the former origin 
 determine, at a glance, what are the letters description 
 intended; but on the latter, where the dis- close rolls. 
 tinction is less remarkable, the context can 
 alone enable the transcriber to determine what 
 must be the proper word required to complete 
 'the sense. 
 
 Great ambiguity prevails in the proper 
 names of persons and places which occur on 
 the Close Rolls ; for these were either Latinized 
 or Gallicized, whenever it was possible to do 
 so, according to the fancy of the scribe, or 
 the degree of knowledge which he happened 
 to possess. Thus, he rendered into Latin or 
 French a Norman or Saxon appellation, just as 
 he happened to prefer the one to the other. 
 Consequently, to express one and the same 
 name, we sometimes find it written Boscus, at 
 other times Bois ; for De Alneto elsewhere will 
 be found Dauney ; for Beaumarsh, De Bello 
 Marisco ; and for Beaupre, De Bello prato. 
 Whitchurch is sometimes written De Albo Mo- 
 naslerio, sometimes Blancmuster or Blauncmus- 
 tier. Again, Mains Catulus is sometimes con- 
 
 financial affairs, yet in the early Rolls much curious matter, 
 nowhere else to be found, is recorded ; and even private 
 Charters were, before the commencement of the Chancery 
 registration, entered thereon. 
 
 C
 
 18 
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Origin 
 
 and 
 
 Description 
 
 of THE 
 Close Rolls. 
 
 verted into Malcheen, at other times into Machel; 
 De Monte alto into Moald or Montalt ; De 
 Sancta Barbara into Senbarb or Simbard. Even 
 when the unaltered name is preserved in the 
 ancient vernacular language, still, owing either 
 to the unsettled and changeable orthography of 
 those times 1 , or to the undistinguishable junc- 
 
 1 The same name, in being pronounced by a German, 
 an Italian, a Frenchman, a Norman, or an Englishman, 
 inevitably became subjected' to a variation in its sound ; 
 consequently, if a scribe were writing from oral instruction, 
 he must have been very apt to spell the name falsely, being 
 guided by the manner in which the word was articulated, 
 and not according to its proper orthography ; and this is 
 probably the reason why proper names are often disfigured 
 by additions, retrenchments, or changes of letters ; to say 
 nothing of mis-spellings which may have been owing to the 
 negligence or inadvertence of the writers. 
 
 But these defects of an unsettled and imperfect or- 
 thography were not peculiar or confined to English di- 
 plomas, as the following testimonies, gathered from most 
 distinguished diplomatic writers, will show. 
 
 " Nee offendere quempiam debet, tibi subinde in una 
 eddemque chartd orthographies diversitas observatur, maxime 
 in nominibus propriis ; quippe veteres sua scribendi methodo 
 usi de uniformitate nihil cur abant.'' Gudenus. Cod. Diplom. 
 Prefat. p. 15. 
 
 " Scriptores diplomatitm ac chartarum pagensium medio 
 avo nomina propria personarum aque ac locorum diversimode 
 ac distorts scepe et nonnunquam in uno eodemque doci.mento 
 vario referunt." Hergott. Genealogia Diplomatica gentis 
 Habsburgicae Prolegomen. p. 8. 
 
 " Voila encore au ll e siecle, non simplement une ortfio- 
 graphe, mais une construction diferente, en moins d'une ligne : 
 et cela repete en diverses pieces. L'orthographe des noms et 
 des mots barbares on derives des langues etrangeres n'est pas
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 19 
 
 tion of the letters L n. m, and u, in the same origin 
 
 ' J ' AND 
 
 word, it is extremely difficult to ascertain the Description 
 
 * OF THE 
 
 true reading ; one document frequently exhibit- close rolls. 
 ing material variations in the spelling of the same 
 name, and to such a degree, that a person, not 
 familiar with the almost countless modifications 
 of English nomenclature, would scarcely be able 
 to recognize the modern name from seeing it 
 as it was anciently written. It is therefore 
 necessary to guard the Reader from conclud- 
 ing, when he sees a proper name, or any other 
 word, spelt in various ways, or in a different 
 manner to that in which he has been accus- 
 tomed to see it, that such word has therefore 
 been mistaken by the Editor, or that it is a 
 typographical error. At pages 42 and 46 the 
 same name is spelt in four different ways ; 
 Resaham, Roffham, Refham, and Besham ; and 
 yet the letters are so completely formed, and 
 so incapable of being mistaken, as to admit no 
 doubt of the propriety of literally following the 
 text. The only conclusion, therefore, to be 
 drawn is, that the clerk (whether he copied 
 from the original writ, or whether he composed 
 from oral instruction,) must in either case have 
 been guilty of carelessness. At page 79 is an 
 entry relative to W m . de Wrotham, Archdeacon 
 
 mains incertaine dans les siecles suivans." Nouveau Traite 
 de Diplomatique, par deux Religieux Benedictins. Paris, 
 1765, 6 vols, in 4 t0 . torn. v. p. 508. 
 
 C 2
 
 20 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Origin f « Cant. ,y (Canterbury), evidently a mistake 
 Description for Tant. (Taunton) ; and this is a very curious 
 
 OF THli . , . 
 
 Close Rolls, instance of a name being misread in the Original, 
 for the clerk who wrote the Patent Rolls also 
 misread this identical name, which has led Le 
 Neve into the error of making William de 
 Wrotham succeed Henry de Sandford in the 
 Archdeaconry of Canterbury ' ; whereas Sand- 
 ford continued Archdeacon of the latter place 
 until the year 1227, when he was preferred to 
 the Bishoprick of Rochester. The name of 
 Chaworth, de Cadnrcis, is spelt not less than 
 twelve different ways. Limintun Meany is 
 written for Luvnnton Meavy : here the letters 
 cannot be mistaken, as dots are put over both 
 of the letters i. At pages 241, 242, and 244 
 the same names are spelt in three different 
 ways ; as thus : — John Moriston of Tyreford, 
 John Ayston of Tyrefeld, and John Merston of 
 Tynefeld : and many similar instances could be 
 adduced. 
 
 Though much more might have been at- 
 tempted from a desire to assist the Reader, had 
 the Editor indulged in conjectures, yet so many, 
 and so well founded, are the objections to Edi- 
 torial surmises and emendations, that he has in 
 
 1 Fasti Ecclesise Anglicanac, p. 11. by John Le Neve, 
 fol. 1716.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 21 
 
 this publication adhered strictly to the Record, Origin 
 
 and printed every document exactly as it there Description 
 
 i i i i i i OF THE 
 
 appears ; but, wherever the names could be Close rolls. 
 
 sufficiently identified, they have been arranged 
 in the several Indexes, in so conspicuous a 
 manner as to leave no room for mistake. To- 
 pographers and County Historians must, how- 
 ever, be aware, that it is next to an impossi- 
 bility for any person to be perfectly acquainted 
 with such a variety of proper names as are 
 contained in this volume ; and though much 
 labour has been bestowed upon all the means of 
 correcting and of avoiding errors, yet the Editor 
 is fully aware that, in defiance of the most 
 zealous care, some possibly still remain. They 
 ought not, however, to be ascribed to inattention 
 or negligence; and, by observing a simple rule, 
 they can easily be rectified. Such errors are 
 those which regard the letters ?n, n, v, u, occur- 
 ring in groupes of four, five, six, or more up- 
 right strokes of the pen, undistinguishable by 
 any peculiarity to guide the eye to their proper 
 signification. Whenever a cluster of these 
 letters appears together, and the name is con- 
 sequently doubtful, count the number of these 
 upright parallel strokes requisite in composing 
 the name presumed to be the right one, allow- 
 ing three strokes for an m, and two each for 
 the supposed n, v, or u, and observe whether 
 the printed name is found to correspond ; as 
 
 c 3
 
 22 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Origin [ n Mimican, which has sometimes been printed 
 
 AND ' L 
 
 Description Mutiican, from the letters bearing that appear- 
 
 OF THE 
 
 close rolls, ance. Here it will be seen that the number 
 of upright parallel strokes necessary to com- 
 pose the first part of either of those names, 
 written thus — Wiuvc&vu, » is eight ; and as 
 clusters like these, of several upright parallel 
 strokes, frequently occur, the difficulty of deter- 
 mining upon the right reading may easily be 
 conceived. 
 
 There is another cause of confusion, upon 
 which a remark is necessary. Hitherto, in Pub- 
 lications of Records, words ending in tio, &c. 
 have, with much impropriety, been invariably 
 spelt with a c, instead of the t. That mode is 
 here pursued, wherever it had the appearance of 
 c, but not otherwise ; for a manifest difference 
 is often perceptible, in the early Rolls, between 
 the two letters, especially in words where c and 
 t stand in juxta-position ; for instance, in rec- 
 tum and rettatus, &c. Again, there are cases 
 wherein the t occurs by itself, in substitution 
 for which a c is so decidedly inadmissible, that 
 the Editor has not adopted it, but it is not im- 
 probable that an occasional error may be found 
 to arise from the difficulty of always distinguish- 
 ing between the c and /, from the great simi- 
 larity in the formation of those two letters by 
 some scribes.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. '23 
 
 ORIGIN OF ENROLMENTS. 
 
 The custom of recording documents on origin of 
 
 Rolls of parchment, though of very ancient 
 date, commenced, nevertheless, at a period 
 subsequent to the Conquest; for no vestige 
 can be traced of such a system during the 
 Anglo-Saxon dynasty, 1 "Apud Anglo-Saxones," 
 says Hickes, 2 " etiam mos erat leges Regum 
 
 1 Transfers of property and legal grants were regis- 
 tered by the Anglo-Saxons in the " Land-boc," and in the 
 vacant leaves of Mass-books, " In membranis liturgicis con- 
 tractus suos scribendi mos apud Anglo-Saxones fuit ;" and 
 these registrations, though received as evidence in courts 
 of justice, were not, however, official registers preserved for 
 that purpose in the King's Court ; nor could there have 
 been then any judicial records, as all the juridical proceed- 
 ings were conducted by oral pleadings, and determined in 
 a plain and simple manner, in the Folkmotes of the several 
 districts. These were not officially recorded ; although 
 upon special occasions, it appears that the decision of the 
 Wittena-gemote was made out " sedente curia" with the 
 names of the principal persons present subscribed to it, and 
 a memorandum afterwards entered, in perpetuam ret memo- 
 riam, on the blank leaf of some missal, "■ Mos erat apud 
 Anglo-Saxones in libros, qui in Ccenobiorum bibliothecis 
 asservati erant, tanquam in tabulas publicas, acta curiarum 
 communium referre et emptiones, venditiones, donationes, 
 &c." The testimony, nevertheless, of these proceedings, 
 for legal purposes, was allowed only to be received in the 
 Hundred or County Courts in which the trial had taken 
 place. 
 
 2 Linguarum Veterum Septcntrionalium Thesaurus, 
 Epist. Dissert, torn. i. p. 29. 3 vols. fol. 1705. 
 
 c 4 
 
 Enrolments
 
 24 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 origin of ] atas j n codicibus monasteriorum, tanquam in 
 
 Enrolments. ' i 
 
 tabulas publicas referendi." It may be assumed 
 
 that, had such a plan been then in operation, 
 the same would have been adopted by the 
 Conqueror, to perpetuate the survey ' of the 
 kingdom which he caused to be made, and 
 for the preservation of which he evinced so 
 much zeal and anxiety. As to the precise 
 time when the use of Rolls, for the entry of 
 matters of business, first began, there is still 
 considerable doubt ; Antiquaries are much di- 
 
 1 This important territorial survey has been supposed 
 by some persons to have been originally written in the form 
 of a Roll, in consequence of a passage in Ingulphus, an 
 historian contemporary with the Conqueror, who, speaking 
 of this survey, says, " Ipse Rotulus vocatur Rotulus Win- 
 tonice, et ab Anglicis pro sua generalitate, omnia tene- 
 menta totius terrae integrae continente, Domesdei cognomi- 
 natur ; talem Rotulum et multum similem ediderat quondam 
 Rex Alfredus, qui quidem Rotulus Wintonice vocatus est, 
 quia disponcbatur apud Wintoniam conse?'vandus." The 
 word Rotulus must not, however, be understood to signify 
 simply and exclusively a Roll, for it is synonimous with 
 the word Liber. Vide Dufresne, sub voce Rotulus ; where 
 " Veteres volumen, recentiores Graeci ri\*T<i.oiov appellarunt, 
 nostri Roolle et Rolle, Germani Rodel. Ejusmodi porro 
 chartarumvolumina inter magistratuum insignia in utriusque 
 Imperii Notitia conspiciuntur, ut inde liceat conjicere, 
 horum usum ea tempestate obtinuisse, hoc est, circa tem- 
 pora Theodosii junioris, in qua? acta judicaria referebant, 
 licet etiam codicibus, qui et hie effinguntur, uterentur." 
 Durandus, lib. 1. Ration, cap. 3. num. 11. ait; Prophetas 
 et Apostolos depingi sol ere cum Rotulis vel Libris. Ita 
 Baldricus Burguliensis Abbas Rotulum pro Libro dixit; 
 torn. iv. Historice Francorum.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. ( 25 
 
 vided in opinion on the subject, and indeed, origin of 
 
 1 •* * Enrolments. 
 
 it is difficult, if not impossible to ascertain, with 
 
 any degree of certainty, the exact period of its 
 commencement. 
 
 The Author of the Dialogus de Scaccario ' 
 asserts that theRoTULi Annales of King Henry 
 I. were then remaining in the Exchequer 2 ; and 
 Alexander de Swerford, Archdeacon of Shrews- 
 bury, who was a clerk in the Exchequer in the 
 third year of the reign of Henry III., and the 
 compiler of the Red Book, states, that he had 
 seen some of them :i , but that he knew of no 
 one who had seen any of so early a period as 
 that of the Conqueror. 4 That no Rolls of a 
 date antecedent to that of the 18th Henrv 1. 5 
 
 1 Madox has satisfactorily proved, in his Disceptatio 
 Epistolaris, addressed to Lord Halifax, prefixed to the 
 Dialogus, that Richard Fitz Nigel, Bishop of London, and 
 Treasurer to Richard I., was the author of that work, and 
 not Gervaise of Tilbury, to whom it had been generally 
 ascribed. 
 
 2 " Servabatur per plures annos ad Scaccarium lex 
 hujus solutionis : unde frequenter in veteribus Annalibus 
 Rotulis Regis illius invenies scriptum," he. Dialog, de Scac. 
 lib. 1. cap. 7. (p. 20.) 
 
 a " Licet ejusdem (Henrici I.) paucos inspexerim 
 annales." Lib. Rub. fol. 47- col. 2. 
 
 4 " Nee annalia sua (R. Willielmi I.) temporibus meis 
 a quibusdam visa sunt." Lib. Rub. fol. 47 a. 
 
 6 This Roll has generally been supposed to belong to 
 the fifth year of the reign of Stephen ; but Madox has 
 conclusively proved that it belonged to that of Henry I. 
 Treating of it in his Disceptatio Epistolaris de Magno
 
 c 26 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Origin of are now m existence is certain. It may, 
 
 Enrolments. j 
 
 ■ therefore, be presumed, that the practice of 
 
 enrolling prevailed shortly after the Conquest. 
 
 That the making of Enrolments was first 
 practised in that branch of the Curia Regis 
 called the Exchequer, there can be little or 
 no doubt ; that such practice was introduced 
 by the Normans is also admitted : and it may 
 be assumed, that the advantages resulting from 
 this method of preserving the memory of public 
 transactions became so apparent, as, in all pro- 
 bability, to induce the officers of the other 
 branches of the Curia Regis to adopt a similar 
 plan of perpetuating the transactions and oc- 
 currences of their respective departments. 
 Madox, in endeavouring to account for the 
 origin of Chancery Enrolments, which differ in 
 their form and mode from those of the Ex- 
 chequer, seems to think, that the acts of Chan- 
 
 Rotulo Scaccarii, he says " Hactenus, Amplissime Baro, 
 tanquam in lance libravi subjectam materiam in tres 
 quaestiones divisam ; primam, utrum vetus hie Rotulus sit 
 Regis Henrici II.; secundam, an R. Stephani ; tertiam, 
 an R. Henrici I. Libramenti istius hie est eftectus ; majus 
 rationis pondus in tertiam quaestionem recidit : nempe 
 Rotulum ilium ad Henrici I. tempora oportere referri : 
 utrum autem ad annum decimum octavum, an alium 
 quempiam annum dominationis illius Regis, periti judicent," 
 &c. Prynne, who carefully examined the contents of this 
 Roll, pronounces it to be of-the 18th Henry I. Prynne de 
 Auro RegituB. in Append, p. 5.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 27 
 
 eery, at the end of the twelfth century, being; ° RIGIN 0F 
 
 J J ° Enrolments. 
 
 so interwoven with those of the Exchequer, and 
 
 the business of both being principally directed 
 towards ascertaining and preserving the rights 
 of the King, was owing to both these Courts 
 having been held together in the same place, 
 and to the Chancellor having been in the habit 
 of affixing the Great Seal to all instruments 
 promiscuously, whether appertaining to one 
 Court or to the other ' ; but as soon as the 
 Chancery, which was the Secretarial depart- 
 ment of the Curia Regis, came to be separated 
 from the Exchequer, and to be held in a differ- 
 ent place, (which happened towards the latter 
 
 1 " Cancellarius, sicut in Curia sic ad Scaccarium 
 magnus est : adeo ut sine ipsius consensu vel consilio nil 
 magnum fiat, vel fieri debeat. Verum hoc habet officium 
 dum residet ad Scaccarium, ad ipsum pertinet custodia 
 sigilli Regii, quod est in Thesauro, sed inde non recedit nisi 
 cum praecepto Justitiae ab inferiore ad superius Scaccarium 
 a Thesaurario vel Camerario defertur, ad explenda solum 
 negotia Scaccarii. Quibus peractis in loculum mittitur, et 
 loculus a Cancellario consignatur, et sic Thesaurario tra- 
 ditur custodiendus. Item, cum necesse fuerit, signatus sub 
 omnium oculis Cancellario offertur ; nunquam ab ipso vel 
 ab alio alias offerendus. Item ad ipsum pertinet Rotuli qui 
 est de Cancellaria, custodia per suppositam personam ; et 
 sicut viris magnis visum est de omni scriptura Rotuli Can- 
 cellarius aeque tenetur ut Thesaurarius, excepto duntaxat 
 de hoc, quod scribitur in thesauro receptum: licet enim 
 non praescribat ut Thesaurarius conscribit tamen etsi ille 
 erraverit, licet ipsi vel Clerico ejus Thesaurarium cum 
 modestia corripere, et quid debeat suggerere." Dial, de 
 Scacc. lib. 1. cap. 5.
 
 <28 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Origin of part f t ] ie re ig n f Richard I., 1 ) that then it 
 
 Enrolments. * ° ' 
 
 became necessary to adopt a more particular 
 
 mode of recording and distinguishing the several 
 acts of that Court, the business of which had 
 very materially increased since the two offices 
 of Chancellor and Chief Justiciary were filled 
 by one and the same person. 2 
 
 Great inconvenience had been felt in the 
 reign of Richard I. from the want of proper 
 memoranda whereby it could be ascertained 
 what Charters had previously been granted, 
 under the Great Seal, to individuals ; which 
 was, perhaps, another motive for settling some 
 regular mode of registration ; for many persons 
 were obliged, at a great expence, to get those 
 Charters renewed which had been passed under 
 
 1 The cause of the separation of the two Courts is 
 conjectured by Madox, and with great probability, to have 
 been this: that during the time of Richard I., being out of 
 the kingdom, William de Longchamp, the High Justiciary 
 and Chancellor, was, by the power and intrigues of the 
 King's brother, John Earl of Mortain, deprived of his 
 office of Chief Justiciary ; and although he for some time 
 continued to be Chancellor, he did not attend and act at the 
 Exchequer as theretofore, by which means the business of 
 the Chancery, which had previously been transacted at the 
 Exchequer, was then done at another place. Hist. Exch. 
 p. 132. 
 
 2 " Willielmus vero Eliensis obtinuit Justitiariam a 
 magno flumine ad plagam Australem, usque ad mare Gal- 
 licanum, cum sigillo Regis et Turri Londinensi." Mat. 
 Par. 110.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 29 
 
 Enrolments. 
 
 the Great Seal, lost off the Isle of Cyprus. 1 Origin of 
 For this there would have been no occasion 
 had such Charters been registered by the King's 
 Chancellor. 2 
 
 1 When Master Roger Mai us Catulus (Malchien), Vice 
 Chancellor to Richard L, was drowned off the Isle of 
 Cyprus, and the King's Great Seal was lost, the King 
 ordered all Charters to be newly sealed, as appears by the 
 testimony of contemporary historians. " Deinde veniens 
 ( Ricardus) in Normanniam (anno 1 194-) moleste tulit quicquid 
 factum fuerat de supradictis treugis, et imputans Cancellario 
 suo hoc per eum fuisse factum, abstulit ab eo sigillum suum, 
 et fecit sihi novum sigillum fieri, et man davit per singulas 
 terras, quod nihil ratum foret, quod fuerat per vetus sigillum 
 suum ; turn quia Cancellarius ille operatus fuerat inde minus 
 discrete quam esset necesse, turn quia sigillum illud per- 
 ditum erat, quando Rogerus Malus catulus, vice cancel- 
 larius suus, submersus erat in mari ante insulam de Cipro ; 
 et praecepit Rex quod omnes, qui chartas habebant, venirent 
 ad novum sigillum suum ad chartas suas renovandas." 
 Rerum Anglicarum scriptores post Bedam, 1596. p. 425. 
 (i Duae busciae perierunt in quibus multi milites, et ser- 
 vientes, de familia Regis submersi sunt ; inter quos, proh 
 dolor ! Magister Rogerus Malus catulus, vice cancellarius 
 Regis, submersus est, et sigillum Regis, quod gestabat in 
 collo ejus suspensum, inveniebatur.'' Hoveden, p. 393. 
 
 2 In corroboration of the opinion that Chancery enrol- 
 ments were not in existence prior to the reign of John, 
 one or two instances may be deemed sufficient. It has 
 been alleged that Richard I., on pretence of his seal 
 being carried out of his kingdom, and lost at sea, com- 
 pelled all persons who, prior to that accident, had obtained 
 Grants from him, to renew them under the new seal ; a 
 Charter which Richard had granted having been destroyed, 
 a jury was impanelled for the purpose of ascertaining the 
 particulars of that grant ; and then a new Charter was 
 made out according to their verdict, which stated the 
 contents of the old one; a procedure which would not have
 
 30 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Origin of The consequence of the separation of the 
 
 Enrolments. x 
 
 Chancery from the Exchequer was the organi- 
 zation or classification of the different acts which 
 passed under the Great Seal, each of which was 
 entered upon a distinct Roll appropriated to 
 instruments of its peculiar class ; and hence the 
 origin of the Patent ', Close, Charter 2 , Fine 3 , 
 and other Rolls. 
 
 The mode of joining or fastening the 
 membranes of the various Rolls together was, 
 
 been adopted had any enrolment of the first of these 
 Charters been then in being, as such enrolment would have 
 been as good evidence as the Charter itself. Again, the 
 Charter granted to Alan Basset in the sixth, was in the ninth 
 year of the same reign confirmed under the new seal. "Is 
 erat tenor cartae nostra: in primo sigillo nostro, quod quia 
 aliquando perditum fuit, et dum capti essemus in Ale- 
 mannia in aliena potestate constitutum, mutatum est, hujus 
 autem,'' &c. Had there been Rolls of Grants in existence 
 at that time, Richard could not have imposed upon his 
 subjects heavy fines for the renewal of those Charters, for 
 the reasons already stated. 
 
 1 The Patent Rolls contain Grants of Offices, Lands, 
 Privileges, and Immunities : Restitutions of Temporalties 
 of Bishops, Abbots, and other Ecclesiastical persons : 
 Grants, Confirmations of Grants made to Corporate bodies : 
 Grants in fee-farm, Special Liveries, Patents of Creation, &c. 
 
 2 The Charter Rolls contain Royal Grants to Cities, 
 Boroughs, and Corporations : Grants of Markets, Fairs, 
 Free Warrens, &c. 
 
 3 The Fine Rolls contain general Liveries of lands 
 holden in capite of the Crown, Writs of " diem clausit 
 extremum," Fines paid for Alienation, for Relief, " pro 
 licentia concordandi," " pro exoneratione militum," &c.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 31 
 
 OF 
 
 Enrolments. 
 
 perhaps, purposely invented to distinguish them ^ )RI G L I 1 ^ 
 from the Rolls of the Exchequer and those of 
 the Curia Regis. In the Chancery Rolls the 
 membranes are sewed together consecutively, 
 making one continuous Roll ; whereas, in those 
 of the Exchequer and Curia Regis, each mem- 
 brane is fastened or filed at the top with a 
 slip of parchment, leaving the ends loose. The 
 same manner of making up the Rolls is, at this 
 day, peculiar to each of the two Courts. 1 
 
 PLAN OF THIS PUBLICATION. 
 
 This Work presents the whole of the Plan of this 
 
 . Publication. 
 
 Close Rolls of the period to which it ex- 
 
 tends, as it was considered that a mere Calendar 
 would be but imperfect and unsatisfactory, 
 
 1 Many opinions have prevailed as to the preference 
 of the modes of enrolment practised by each Court. The 
 Rolls of the Exchequer are not so convenient for reference 
 as those of the Chancery, whilst they are more exposed 
 to laceration and other injury, owing to the ends of each 
 skin hanging loose and unprotected ; and although, when 
 the Chancery Rolls arrive at any great bulk, there is an 
 inconvenience, and, perhaps, some wear occasioned by 
 coiling and uncoiling the membranes, to which the Ex- 
 chequer Rolls are not subject, nevertheless the form used 
 in the Chancery is better calculated for the preservation 
 of the documents entered on the membranes ; a reason 
 which is decisive for giving it the preference.
 
 32 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 plan of this an d that an Abstract of them would be scarcely 
 
 Publication. ... ., , 
 
 more useful, inasmuch as it is impossible to 
 
 predetermine what may or may not, to par- 
 ticular individuals and for special purposes, 
 be important ; added to which is the con- 
 sideration that of many of the entries on 
 these Rolls no further abridgment could be 
 effected, as the enrolling clerk had himself 
 abridged the Original Mandates, so that there 
 is hardly a word but what is in some way 
 of real importance, not merely to the sense, 
 but as tending to determine the object and 
 bearing of the document ; no useless words 
 being employed. Moreover, it has been proved 
 by actual trial, that documents so short as the 
 generality of those contained in the Close Rolls 
 can be copied in much less time than would 
 necessarily be occupied in abstracting them, an 
 expert writer being able to copy a document 
 very nearly as fast as he can decypher it ; 
 whereas, for the purpose of abstracting it, he 
 must indispensably first read the document 
 through, next, he must make himself familiar 
 with its various points and bearings, and then 
 he will have to consider the most concise and 
 explicit way of forming the abstract. Added 
 to all this, there is a difficulty, not so slight 
 as it may appear, in reducing into a more com- 
 pendious form matter that has already undergone 
 the process of curtailment, and which by re-
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 33 
 
 abridgment would be subjected to the danger PlANOFTH,s 
 
 ° ° Publication. 
 
 of omitting some expression which possibly 
 
 might alter the purport or embarrass the sense 
 of the whole instrument. 
 
 In being furnished with a transcript of 
 the documents themselves, the Reader can 
 suffer no disappointment ; for it often happens 
 that what is deemed worthless by some, may 
 be held by others to be of the greatest value ; 
 nor can he have any anxiety to see the Origi- 
 nals, instigated by the possibility of discovering 
 some different reading, or other matter which 
 had escaped the notice and proper attention of 
 the abstracter. So important, indeed, has it 
 been thought for every document to be printed 
 in the most correct manner, that in many in- 
 stances obliterations of whole sentences have 
 been retained (though marked as effaced in the 
 Original) as essential to the meaning, it being 
 impossible without them thoroughly to under- 
 stand the document in which they occur, as 
 the scribe appears frequently to have erased 
 words fatal to the sense, forgetting at the 
 moment the structure of the sentence ; and, 
 consequently, unless the effacement or oblitera- 
 tion had been retained, the instrument must 
 have appeared to be incapable of rational con- 
 struction ; whereas, by exhibiting it to the 
 Reader whole and entire, he is enabled to ascer- 
 
 D
 
 34< GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 plan of this ta j n -£ s rea j meamn2 - For these reasons it has 
 
 Publication. © 
 
 been deemed expedient to give a complete and 
 
 literal transcript; in short, as close a facsimile 
 of the Originals as modern types would admit. 
 No effacement or obliteration has, however, 
 been preserved where it was evidently a mere 
 clerical error, or where the sense of the docu- 
 ment is not obviously affected by it. 
 
 Wherever the sense of a document happens 
 to be obscure from the omission of a word, 
 and no doubt can exist as to the word which 
 ought to have been inserted, it has been thought 
 advisable to supply such word ; but wherever 
 this has happened, the deficiency (whether of 
 a word, or of any other accidental omission,) 
 has invariably been printed within crotchets by 
 way of parathesis. In cases where a duplicate 
 of the Roll has been found, the deficiency has 
 been supplied from that source, still, however, 
 exhibiting it within crotchets, for the purpose 
 of enabling the Reader to satisfy himself that 
 nothing has been inconsiderately inserted by- 
 way of conjecture. It is only necessary to 
 add, that in no case whatever has the liberty 
 been taken of altering or amending a word 
 when wrong from either clerical or grammatical 
 error, such inaccuracies being denoted by an 
 underline, to indicate that such error did not 
 escape attention.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 35 
 
 Duplicates. — Of most of the early Patent, Plan of this 
 
 J Publication. 
 
 Fine, and Close Rolls in the Tower there are 
 
 some termed Duplicates ; but this term or deno- 
 mination must not be understood in the usual 
 meaning of a Duplicate or Counterpart made 
 and authenticated at the same time with its 
 Original, for these Duplicates may either have 
 been so made, or be merely Copies transcribed 
 at the distance of five or ten years, or other 
 indefinite period, subsequently to the making 
 up of their Originals. Of such Duplicate Rolls 
 there are now extant only fourteen of the class 
 called Close Rolls, namely, those of the 15th, 
 16th, 17th, and 18th years of the reign of King 
 John, and of the 1st, 2d, 3d, 4th, 5th, 6th, 
 7th, Sth, 9th, and 10th years of the reign of 
 Henry III. The reason of Copies having been 
 made of the Rolls of those years in particular, 
 and not of any Rolls either of an antecedent 
 or of a subsequent period, has not yet been dis- 
 covered ; but that these Duplicates or Copies 
 cannot be considered as contemporaneous with 
 their Originals, but rather that they must be 
 deemed to have been made somewhat later, 
 though evidently within a few years of the 
 Originals, may be reasonably inferred. There 
 is a distinctive character about some of the 
 Copies, which mark a manifest difference be- 
 tween them and the Originals ; though, in 
 regard to many, a difference would only perhaps 
 d 2
 
 36 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 plan of this b e perceived by persons possessed of a familiar 
 
 Publication. x j l r 
 
 acquaintance with ancient muniments. Upon 
 
 a careful examination and comparison of the 
 Original with the Copy, there will, however, 
 always be found some material particulars, 
 which clearly distinguish the Original from the 
 Copy. 
 
 Of these characteristic particulars a few 
 instances are here submitted : — 
 
 Firstly. The Instruments on the Copies 
 are somewhat abridged by the non-insertion of 
 certain technical phrases ; for instance, in the 
 Originals, the precepts which begin with the 
 words, or similar thereto, " Rex dilecto el fideli 
 suo Willielmo Brewer" will sometimes be found 
 in the Copy reduced to " Rex Willielmo Brewer" 
 Again, many well-known phrases and clauses 
 of frequent occurrence, even when entered at 
 length in the Originals, are not unfrequently ex- 
 pressed in the Copies by an et &c," as the clauses 
 u Quia volumus et Jirmiter prcecipimus," and 
 " Quamdiu Regi placuerit" which will often be 
 found abbreviated in the Copy to ' ' Quia, fyc." 
 " Quamdiu, §c" 
 
 Secondly. When the writer of the Original 
 Roll has fallen into a grammatical error, or 
 omitted a word important to the sense, such 
 error or omission is often, though not always*
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. S*J 
 
 found to have been corrected in the Copy, pro- Plan of this 
 
 . n 1 i Publication. 
 
 bably from the copiest or the latter having 
 
 detected the blunder, and feeling: an unwilling- 
 ness to perpetuate what could only embarrass 
 the reader. 
 
 Thirdly. All documents cancelled on the 
 Original Rolls are, without exception, excluded 
 from the Copy. 
 
 Fourthly. When a mandate has by accident 
 not been entered on the Original Roll, such 
 mandate is sometimes copied on a slip of parch- 
 ment, and sewed to the Roll at the place where 
 mandates of the same date occur, the slip so 
 attached being in general a verbatim copy of 
 the mandate as it was originally dispatched. 
 In the Copies, these mandates are introduced in 
 their proper places, but abridged in the same 
 manner as the other documents. If, however, 
 an entry be left out in the Copy, which is of 
 very frequent occurrence, it is never added by 
 annexing a slip to the Roll, but is introduced 
 at any place where there happened to be room 
 for its insertion, without regard to the chrono- 
 logical arrangement ; and occasionally the omis- 
 sions are not even supplied. 
 
 Fifthly. The proper names of persons and 
 places are generally more correct in the Original 
 than in the Copy. 
 
 d 3 

 
 38 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 plan of this Sixthly. The handwriting and appearance 
 
 Publication. ° 
 
 of the Original Rolls are very distinct from 
 
 those of the Copies. In the former, several 
 autographs are perceptible, and the entries are 
 all properly separated. But on the Copies, the 
 entries are written in one hand, and are much 
 crowded together, so closely, indeed, that on 
 some of these Rolls the commencement of each 
 document cannot easily be discovered. 
 
 Seventhly. On the Originals are to be seen 
 divers symbols and characters, some of which 
 were evidently intended as private memoranda 
 for the use of the scribe. A few of these have 
 been inserted in this Volume, because it is ob- 
 vious that some particular meaning was attached 
 to them. These must not, however, be depended 
 upon as general guides, for there does not seem 
 to have been, for the same class of instruments, 
 any peculiarly appropriated mark ; on the con- 
 trary, they are most frequently dissimilar in 
 their forms, and apparently depended only on 
 the fancy or caprice of the scribe. 1 Some, 
 indeed, of these characters seem to have been 
 the production of the fancy of the clerks. 2 
 On the Copies, however, none of these marks 
 or devices are to be found. 
 
 1 To have given specimens of such marks in type 
 would have been almost impracticable, and could only have 
 been effected at an enormous expense. 
 
 2 See pp.264. 281.315.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. -39 
 
 Eighthly. On the Original Roll memoranda p lax of this 
 
 o y o Publication. 
 
 similar to the following frequently occur : 
 
 " Hinc mittenda sunt contrabrevia" &C. 1 These 
 words are never to be found on the Copies, but 
 their meaning is this : they form a memorandum 
 for the Chancery clerk, reminding him that all 
 the counter-writs preceding such memorandum 
 had been estreated and transmitted to the Ex- 
 chequer ; and that all similar writs, after such 
 memorandum, remained to be estreated. 2 
 
 1 According to Madox, the word Contrabreve, occur- 
 ring in the margin of a Roll, signifies that a Counter-writ 
 was made out at the same time with the Original, and sent 
 into the Exchequer, in order that the treasurer of the Ex- 
 chequer might be able to check the various accounts of the 
 sheriffs, and other persons, rendered into the Exchequer ; 
 for instance, if the King wanted any thing to be purchased, 
 either for his own use, or as a present to any one, he issued 
 a mandate out of Chancery, commanding some sheriff or 
 farmer to procure the thing wanted, for which the sum laid 
 out would be allowed to him at the Exchequer, when his 
 account was given in. Upon this, a Copy of the mandate 
 was sent into the Exchequer, in order that the treasurer 
 might be certified of the truth of the statement of the 
 sheriff; and when such writ issued, the scribe made this 
 mark against the entry, to signify that aCopy of that docu- 
 ment was to be sent into the Exchequer. 
 
 2 An Estreat is an extract or copy of a document 
 enrolled, either on the Patent, Close, or Fine Rolls, relat- 
 ing to fines, fee farms, &c. ; that is, when a grant was 
 made, wherein any sum of money was reserved or to be 
 rendered to the Crown, a notice of the same was sent into 
 the Exchequer, in order that the treasurer might know what 
 sums of money he had to expect. Such Records, or Es- 
 treats, when they got into the Exchequer, were then deno- 
 minated " Originalia." 
 
 D i
 
 40 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 plan of this Ninthly. Some of the entries on the Origi- 
 
 l'UBLICATION. ^ ~ 
 
 nal Rolls are written in cursive and straggling 
 hands ; in others, some of the letters are much 
 blotted ; and in several of these instances, the 
 scribes of the Copies have left spaces for such 
 words as they were unable to decypher. A 
 remarkable instance of this occurs on the Close 
 Roll 15th of John, Part 1, at the end of mem- 
 brane 3, where there is a very considerable 
 obliteration, which appears to be contempo- 
 raneous. On the Copy of the Close Roll 15th 
 John, Part 3, the scribe seems to have been 
 unable, or he did not chuse to take the trouble 
 of decyphering two instruments which happened 
 to be greatly effaced, and consequently he has 
 left a space on the Roll for them. The greater 
 part of these two documents has, however, been 
 recovered. The instances of misreadings and 
 inattention on the part of the Chancery scribes 
 seem, therefore, to afford irrefragable proof that 
 what have been hitherto denominated " dupli- 
 cates," ought not to be so considered in the 
 sense of authenticated counterparts, but merely 
 as copies of the Original Rolls, made up at a 
 period, though perhaps but a few years, sub- 
 sequently to that which must be assigned to 
 the Originals. That such is the fact must be 
 acknowledged by all who are well versed in 
 ancient writings, upon a careful comparison of 
 the two sets of Rolls with each other.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 41 
 
 Every one of these Transcript Rolls has Planofthis 
 
 J x Publication. 
 
 been compared with its Original, and in no 
 
 one case whatever have they been found to 
 contain more than the Original i ; but, on the 
 contrary, many instruments are inscribed on 
 the Originals, which, through inadvertence, have 
 been excluded from the Copies. The Tran- 
 scripts have, notwithstanding, been of great 
 service in many cases, especially when some 
 part of the Original Roll has been effaced. 
 In all such cases, wherever a passage or a 
 word could not be made out in the Original, 
 the deficiency has been supplied from the Copy, 
 but is printed between two crotchets, thus 
 ]. It should be remarked that in the 
 Original Rolls most of the final membranes 
 have been miscalled the first, and being much 
 lacerated and defaced, rendered a reference to 
 the Copies 2 in such instances necessary, which 
 gives therefore an additional value to them ; 
 but it has neither been deemed necessary, nor 
 expedient to notice and perpetuate all the differ- 
 ent modes of spelling words, or other trifling 
 deviations from the Original, which undoubtedly 
 
 1 Excepting where additions have been made to sucli 
 Copy subsequently to the period when the Copy itself was 
 made ; and of all such additions particular notice has been 
 taken. 
 
 2 Many of the documents in the late edition of the 
 Foedera have been transcribed from the Copies, instead of 
 the Originals.
 
 42 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Planofthis deteriorate to a certain extent the value of the 
 
 Publication. 
 
 ■ Copy, but can only have arisen from errors or 
 
 oversight on the part of the transcriber. If, 
 indeed, both were Copies, instead of one being 
 the Original, and the other a Copy, then the 
 variations of the two might be worthy of notice. 
 
 The portion of this Volume which refers 
 to the Close Roll of 15th of John, Part 2, has 
 been wholly printed from a Copy, and because 
 from its general appearance, combined with in- 
 ternal evidence, it was not thought entitled to 
 be considered, as it hitherto has been, an Origi- 
 nal Roll, a notice to that effect has been placed 
 at its commencement, in page 143. The Editor 
 having here ventured to advance an opinion of 
 his own, it is proper to guard the Reader from 
 ascribing to it more value and importance than 
 fairly belongs to it ; for although such opinion 
 is founded on what appears to him to be in- 
 controvertible proof, a question may hereafter 
 be raised in Courts of Law concerning the pro- 
 priety of admitting in evidence office copies 
 taken from the Roll in question, on the plea 
 of its not being an Original Record. 
 
 It is also necessary to draw T attention to- 
 wards that portion of this Volume which relates 
 to the Rolls of the 8th of Henry III. They 
 consist of one Original Roll, divided into two
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 43 
 
 Parts, and one Copy of the whole. The latter Plan of this 
 
 Publication. 
 
 part of the Original Roll was, however, only 
 
 discovered by mere accident whilst this work 
 was printing, amongst the Fine Rolls ; and it 
 having been considered as a Fine Roll for up- 
 wards of two centuries, it has, of course, during 
 that period been missing from its proper place 
 amongst the Original Close Rolls. 1 The recent 
 
 1 It may not be uninteresting to explain the way in 
 which this error is supposed to have originated, and of 
 the reasons why it was not sooner discovered. 
 
 It seems that the last or concluding membrane of the 
 Duplicate Fine Roll for the 8th year of Henry III. (with the 
 title of the same written both upon its intus and its dorsum) 
 had, by some accident, become detached from the said 
 Fine Roll, and by mistake been sewed on to the end of the 
 final membrane of that 2d part of the Original Close Roll 
 for the same year recently found ; that about two centuries 
 ago, when the Rolls in the Tower were newly covered or 
 furnished with wrappers, and also inventoried, the name and 
 date of each Roll being respectively indorsed on its cover 
 or wrapper, upon such occasion the title as it appeared upon 
 such membrane of the Fine Roll so attached to the Close 
 Roll first attracting the notice of the persons employed in 
 the performance of that duty, the same title was by 
 them transferred to the cover or wrapper of the Close 
 Roll in question, giving it, from that time, the appear- 
 ance and character of a Fine Roll ; and that, having been 
 so marked, it was inventoried by those persons whose 
 names are subscribed at the bottom of each reign : viz. 
 John Borough (Garter), Aug. Vincent (Windsor Herald), 
 and Geo. Robson ; but if the Indenture made in the 5th 
 year of the reign of King Richard II. noticed at p. II, can 
 be implicitly relied on, it would seem that the confusion 
 of these Rolls had taken place before that time, for two 
 Close Rolls and three Fine Rolls are therein assigned to
 
 44 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Plan of this discovery not having been made until after the 
 
 Publication. j n 
 
 latter part of the Roll for the 8th of Henry III. 
 
 was printed, as appears at page 612, that part 
 was of course transcribed from the Copy of 
 the Roll for that year. This fact will be 
 found stated in a note at page 633, referring 
 the Reader to the explanation here given : 
 it has therefore occasioned the necessity of 
 printing the latter part of the Original Roll 
 itself, which, though chiefly a repetition of 
 what had been given before, was nevertheless 
 the only satisfactory way in which the varia- 
 tions of the two could be clearly and fully 
 shewn ; and the circumstance is not, perhaps, 
 to be regretted, since it will afford a general 
 exemplification of the differences which have 
 here been attempted to be described as exist- 
 ing between Original Rolls and their Copies. 
 
 The Pico Rolls of the 9th Henry III. present 
 a very remarkable anomaly, as each consists of 
 a portion both of the Original and of the Copy. 
 This fact (only ascertained by a laborious col- 
 lation) rendered it excessively difficult to decide 
 upon the course best to be pursued in printing 
 
 the 8th year of Henry III., whereas it now appears that 
 there are only two Fine and three Close Rolls for that year. 
 That the discovery should only now be accidentally 
 made need not create much surprise, the Fine Rolls being 
 but partially available to the Public from their want of 
 Calendars and Indexes.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 45 
 
 them ' ; for to print both Rolls would be attended J^"™" 
 
 with a useless expence ; Part c 2 being, as far as 
 
 membrane 17, only a copy of Part 1, as far as 
 membrane 4, with the exception of one or two 
 trifling alterations, which are apparently subse- 
 quent emendations : these, however, are all 
 noticed. Nevertheless, about two thirds of one 
 membrane (where the change of Rolls took 
 place) has been printed twice, not only in order 
 that it may be shewn in what manner this 
 singular mistake originated, but also as the 
 best means of exhibiting all the matter that 
 occurs on the two Rolls. 
 
 The probable way of accounting for the 
 irregularity seems to be this : 
 
 Supposing Part 1 and Part 2 to have been 
 made up at the same time, and that Part 1 was 
 at first the Original Roll, and was continued 
 to be so as far as membrane 4 ; then, it seems 
 that, by some mistake, the writs were for a time 
 wrongly enrolled on Part 2 instead of Part 1 ; 
 and that the error was not discovered for 
 some time afterwards, when it was attempted to 
 be rectified by enrolling on the dorsum of Part 1 
 those instruments which had been entered 
 by mistake on the intus of Part 2 ; but this 
 
 1 These Rolls of the 9th of Henry III. commence the 
 second volume of this work.
 
 46 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 plan of this \) e [ n cr found to be impracticable, Part 1, as the 
 
 Publication. ° r 
 
 Original Roll, was brought to a hasty termina- 
 tion, and Part 2 continued as the Original Roll. 
 This supposition is suggested for the following 
 reasons ; viz. Grammatical errors in Part 1 have 
 been corrected in Part 2. — Other trifling errors 
 of grammar in Part 1 have been unconsciously 
 repeated in Part 2. — A few unimportant words, 
 not to be found in Part 1, are inserted in Part 2, 
 with an intention of assisting the sense ; and 
 in one or two instances, it is plain that the 
 scribe of Part 2 has committed an error in in- 
 serting such words, the same being in nowise 
 necessary, but rendering the passage in some 
 degree more obscure. — There are several errors 
 in Part 2 not to be found in Part 1 ; and inter- 
 lineations and subsequent alterations in Part 1 
 appear not as such, but properly placed in line, 
 in Part 2. — Many words of doubtful construc- 
 tion in Part 1 have been misunderstood and 
 mis-spelt in Part 2. — On membrane 20 of Part 1 
 there is an unfinished mandate to H. de 
 Neville, which, being there cancelled, is not 
 to be found on Part 2. — A Liberate Writ, on 
 the same membrane 20, in Part 1, has been 
 left out in Part 2. — On membrane 19 of Part 1 
 is the Clause of " Hinc mittenda sunt" &;c. 
 (one of the best criteria whereby to distinguish 
 the Original from the Copy), which is not in- 
 serted in Part 2. — On same membrane 19, Part 1^
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 47 
 
 in a Writ of " Compulate" an entire sentence Plan of this 
 
 Publication. 
 
 of 33 words is not to be found in Part 2. — On 
 
 membrane 18, Part 1, a clause in a Writ ad- 
 dressed to the Sheriff of Bedford is omitted in 
 Part 2. — On the same membrane is a Writ of 
 " Computate " for the Bishop of Norwich, which 
 is omitted in Part 2. — On membrane 8, Part 1, 
 another instrument occurs, also omitted in Part 2. 
 — On membrane 6, Parti, is a long memo- 
 randum, which does not appear in Part 2 ; and 
 there are no less than 12 cancelled instruments 
 on Part 1, which are entirely left out in Part 2. 
 
 The foregoing instances are however only 
 a few amongst many which can be produced as 
 proofs of Part 1 not having been copied from 
 Part2, but the contrary; for, otherwise, if Part2 
 be considered as the Original, and Part 1 as the 
 Copy, how are those entire instruments to be 
 accounted for which are to be found in Parti, 
 but are not noticed in Part 2 ? 
 
 It seems to have been a very early custom 
 in England to make Duplicates or Transcripts 
 of the most valuable Records, doubtless with 
 a view of perpetuating their contents in the 
 event of the Originals being lost or destroyed. 
 Thus it is believed by many, that there were 
 two copies of Domesday Book ; one preserved 
 at Westminster, and the other at Winton ; 
 several ancient authors having alluded to such
 
 48 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Plan of this ^^t^oo 1 
 Publication 
 
 copies \ of which only one is now known to 
 be in existence. Several copies were also made 
 of the Great Charter of Henry I. which he 
 granted at the commencement of his reign, and 
 deposited in the principal monasteries of the 
 Kingdom. The Pipe Rolls of the Exchequer 
 were likewise in duplicate ; and Henry II., for 
 still greater security, and to prevent fraud, 
 ordered a third copy to be made of each Roll, 
 which third copy he placed under the direction 
 of Master Thomas Brim. 2 Several copies of 
 Magna Carta are also now known to have been 
 
 1 The History of the Foundation of Burton Abbey 
 gives a description of land, more than once, " ut habetur 
 in libro de Domusdie, apud Wintoniam et Westmonasteriumr 
 Rudborne speaks of two copies of the Survey, " Eodem 
 tempore factus est magnus Liber qui habitus est in thesauro 
 
 Westmonasterii, et alius in thesauro Ecclesiae Cathedralis 
 Wyntonice, vocatus Domysday." See more upon this sub- 
 ject in Ellis's elaborate Introduction prefixed to Domesday, 
 p. 104. " Ce fameux livre de cens, dresse par ordre de 
 Guillaume I., et qui comprend la description de toute 
 l'Angleterre, ne fut pas seulement depose dans le tresor 
 royal ; on en tira encore deux copies authentiques, dont 
 l'une fut conservee dans les archives de Westminster, et 
 l'autre dans celles de l'Eglise Cathedrale de Winchester." 
 Nouv. Trait, torn. 1. p. 107. 
 
 2 Porro in capite quarti sedilis quod opponitur Jus- 
 ticiariis, residet Magister Thomas cognomento Brunus. 
 Hujus ad scaccarium non vilis est auctoritas. Magnum 
 enim et validum fidei ejus et discretionis est argumentum, 
 quod a tarn excellentis ingenii Principe electus est, ut prceter 
 antiquam consuetudineni tertium habeat Rotulum, in quo Regni 
 jura Regisque secreta conscribat. Dial, de Scacc. lib. 1. 
 cap. 6.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 49 
 
 made and deposited in safe custody. The Plan of TH1S 
 
 1 J Publication 
 
 custom of making Copies of the Rolls seems, 
 
 however, to have fallen into desuetude some 
 time in the 11th year of the reign of Henry III. 
 
 Cancellations, Deletions, and Inter- 
 lineations. — Cancellations of whole instru- 
 ments are very frequent on the early Rolls, and 
 it has been here considered necessary to insert 
 them in their proper places in the text. 
 
 The cancelling of the Enrolments of Letters 
 Patent and of Charters, which had passed under 
 the Great Seal, was, according to Lord Coke, 
 4 Inst. 88., the highest office belonging to the 
 Chancellor's jurisdiction. This dictum of Lord 
 Coke can only, however, be applied to a can- 
 cellation by judgment, and not to a cancella- 
 tion of course ; the former of which signifies, 
 that, when Letters Patent or Charters have been 
 adjudged to be void, the Chancellor is the per- 
 son who condemns and cancels them ' ; and the 
 
 1 The following extract from the Lords Journals, vol. i. 
 pp. 483-4, affords a singular instance of the Lord Chancel- 
 lor's exercise of his duty in cutting a clause from an act of 
 parliament. : 
 " Die Veneris, videlicet, 4° Januarii, 1 & 2 Ph. & Mary, 1554. 
 
 " Hodie allatae sunt a Domo Communi tres billaj 
 quarum 
 
 " Prima, &c. 
 
 " Secunda, &c. 
 
 " Tertia, Repealing all statutes, articles, and pro- 
 visions made against the See Apostolick of Rome since 
 
 e
 
 50 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 plan of this latter, that when a document has been written 
 
 Publication. * 
 
 on a wrong roll, or entered in a year to which it 
 
 does not belong, or when the person for whom the 
 writ was intended never received it, the cancel- 
 lation was made of course, by the person finding 
 out such error, without any other authority. 
 
 Cancellations of enrolments, when properly 
 executed, are made by drawing lines through 
 the entry lattice-wise, from whence they take 
 their name ; but original instruments are seldom 
 cancelled in that manner. The most usual way 
 of cancelling an original instrument was to 
 make irregular incisures in the parchment, of 
 various forms, transversely through the writing ; 
 
 the 20th year of King Henry the Eighth ; and for the esta- 
 blishment of all spiritual and ecclesiastical possessions and 
 hereditaments conveyed to the laity ; with two new pro- 
 visoes added thereto by the Commons ; and also a request 
 that the two clauses, containing nineteen lines, and con- 
 cerning the Bishops of London, &c, and the Lords Went- 
 worthe, &c, should be clearly put out. Whereof one of 
 the provisoes, for the manner of the penning thereof, being 
 misliked to the house, another to the same effect was com- 
 manded to be drawn, which being three times read, and 
 agreed unto by the whole house, except the Viscount 
 Mountacute and the Bishops of London, Coven', and 
 Lichef', was sent down to the Commons, where being also 
 thrice read and agreed unto, it was brought, up again, as an 
 Act fully assented unto by both houses ; nor the said nine- 
 teen lines were not razed nor taken out of the Act ; but the 
 Chancellor, in the sight of all the Lords, with a knife, cut 
 them, saying these words, ' I noiv do rightly the office of a 
 Chancellor? "
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 51 
 
 sometimes in the curvilinear, sometimes in the Plan of this 
 
 , . , , , , . Publication. 
 
 denticulated, and at other times in an undu- 
 
 lated form ; but none of these modes are ever 
 adopted in cancellations of enrolments. 
 
 There are, indeed, but few instances of 
 enrolments being cancelled without some reason 
 being stated upon the face of the Roll ; such 
 as " quia super his, " " quia iiiferius" meaning 
 that the entry cancelled occurred higher up or 
 lower down on the Roll. Again, " quia in 
 Rotulo Finium," " quia in Rotulo Patentium" 
 that is, the same entry belonged to the series of 
 Fine or Patent Rolls, as its nature required, 
 where accordingly it may be found ; also " quia 
 non kabet" signifies, because the person for 
 whom the writ was intended had never received 
 it. 1 A few instances are, however, to be met 
 
 i On the Close Roll of the 12th of Henry III. memb. 3, 
 a document was cancelled, and the reason assigned for its 
 being so is rather curious, " quia Episcopus noluit Mud breve 
 inrotulari." Who the Bishop was does not appear, but 
 there is no doubt that it was the Bishop of Chichester, at 
 that time Chancellor ; for no Bishop, in his spiritual capa- 
 city, could, it is presumed, have had any right to forbid 
 the enrolment of an instrument ; and yet if the Chancellor 
 be meant, it seems strange that he should have refused the 
 enrolment in his spiritual and not in his temporal character. 
 At any rate, it argues a power not supposed to exist, — the 
 right of an officer to refuse the just demand of an indivi- 
 dual, without a good and sufficient reason assigned for such 
 refusal ; and if such reason could have been given, why was 
 the same omitted to be set forth on the Roll ? 
 
 E 2
 
 52 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 plan of this w ith of cancellations without causes assigned ; 
 
 Publication. ° ' 
 
 but these are, without exception, the effects of 
 
 clerical errors, which may be attributed to the 
 clerk, who, in attempting to abstract a mandate, 
 and having probably committed some mistake, 
 thought it better to cancel what he had done, 
 and begin de novo. Sometimes only a sentence, 
 a phrase, or even a word in the middle of an 
 instrument is cancelled on the Rolls. 1 
 
 It has been before observed, that, with the 
 exceptions of merely clerical and literal errors, 
 cancellations of every kind have been carefully 
 noticed : interlineations, and other emendations 
 introduced above deletions, have likewise been 
 marked in the text when written in a different 
 hand to that employed on the rest of the docu- 
 ment, or where the colour of the ink does 
 
 1 It may not be known to all, that type used in cancel- 
 lations is thereby rendered unfit to be employed again, and 
 that this is the case even for cancellation itself, such type 
 being by one operation of this kind completely defaced 
 and destroyed. It is for this reason that the form of can-- 
 cellation first resorted to in this Volume was afterwards 
 altered. In the beginning of the Work, and as far as page 
 21, it may be perceived, that the cancellations were made 
 in a manner similar to that in use upon the Roll ; but a 
 quantity of type having been thus sacrificed, and great 
 difficulties presenting themselves in accomplishing the task 
 by that mode, without any likelihood of producing ulti- 
 mate satisfaction, the same was abandoned altogether, 
 and the method adopted which commences at page 21, and 
 which has been subsequently persevered in.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 53 
 
 not correspond with that used in the body of [' LAN 01 
 
 r J Public 
 
 the instrument, thereby showing the alterations 
 or interpolations to be of a subsequent period ; 
 in all such cases they have been most scrupu- 
 lously preserved. 
 
 These explanations may appear unnecessary 
 to persons who are not aware of the inferences 
 which are sometimes to be drawn from pecu- 
 liarities in records ; but when it is considered 
 that many important historical facts are depen- 
 dent upon, and have been established by a 
 nice observance of such points, it must be 
 allowed that a sufficient excuse is presented 
 for the care and labour which have been be- 
 stowed upon this Work. 
 
 By the laws of the Romans, their scribes 
 were obliged to mention all erasures and inter- 
 lineations occurring in the manuscript tran- 
 scribed. 1 That rule has been practised in this 
 as well as in other countries.- There are now 
 
 i Vide Ulpien, Dig. lib. 28. tit. 4. 1. 1. 
 
 2 Breve quidem Regis in se nullam debet continere 
 falsitatem, nee aliquem errorem ; apparere debet vel in 
 prima sui figura non vitiosum ; maxime si fuerit patens 
 sive apertum, quia originalia qua?dam sunt clausa et 
 quondam aperta ; et sive aperta sive clausa, apparere debent 
 non abrasa nee abolita : Et si inveniatur abrasio, tunc refert 
 quo loco, a quo, et quando : quo loco, viz., utrum in nar- 
 ratione facti vel juris; si autem in narratione f'acti, cadet 
 coram Justitiario quia suspectum, facta enim et nomina 
 mutari non debent, sed jura ubique scribi possunt : a quo, 
 
 E 3 
 
 KTHIS 
 \TION.
 
 54 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Plan of this extant many Charters which notice erasures 
 
 Publication. . J 
 
 and interlineations thus, " propria manu scripsi 
 
 una cum interlineaturis et rasuris factis in dic- 
 tionibus septem, et de its mihi constat ad plenum, 
 quia propria manu feci" 1 Again, " rasuras 
 factas in octavd lined + sub eodem signo jideliter 
 approbo " 2 also, " rasura ex auctoritate regid, 
 in quartd lined a fine, facta est de prcecepto 
 domini cancellarii nobis facto, et it a rasura in 
 originali ibidem"* In the Augmentation Office 
 is an original deed containing an erasure, with 
 the following memorandum written at the bottom 
 of it, " ilia rasura facta fuit ante consignati- 
 onem" In a grant also to Catharine Swyneford 
 by John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, there 
 is a clause erased, which is stated to have been 
 done by command of the Duke himself, if de 
 mandato domini" 4 
 
 Three curious examples of the necessity of 
 printing Records in the most literal manner 
 may be stated : 
 
 The first of these may be found in an article 
 
 utrum videlicet per clericum Cancellarii cui authoritas data 
 fuerit, vel ausu temerario per alium, sicut clericum Justi- 
 tiarii vel Vicecomitis ad procurationem alicujus partis, quo 
 casu omnes agentes et consentientes tanquam falsarii puni- 
 antur. Fleta, lib. 2. cap. 13. Selden. Edit. p. 76. 
 
 1 Nouv. Traite, torn. 4. p. 461. 
 
 2 Nouv. Traite, torn. 4. p. 461. 
 
 3 Nouv. Traite, torn. 4. p. 462. 
 
 4 Vide Reg. in Due. Lane, tempore Ric. II.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 55 
 
 by Sir Harris Nicolas in the Excerpta Histo- £ lan of this 
 
 J Publication. 
 
 rica l , where the following remarks occur : 
 " It has been generally considered that the 
 instrument by which the Beauforts were legiti- 
 mated, contains a special exception with respect 
 to the Royal dignity ; but a very remarkable 
 fact has been recently discovered on the subject. . 
 The Patent, as originally granted, contains ?io 
 such reservation, nor was it introduced into the 
 copy which was entered on the Rolls of Par- 
 liament when it received the sanction of the 
 legislature ; but when Henry IV. exemplified 
 and confirmed the grant of Richard II. to the 
 Earl of Somerset, in 1407, the words " excepta 
 dignitate regali " appear to have been added to 
 the enrolment of the grant on the Patent Roll, 
 for those words occur on it as an interlineation, 
 and, from the difference in the colour of the 
 ink, are presumed to have been inserted at a 
 subsequent period, though the hand is very 
 
 1 Excerpta Historica, or Illustrations of English 
 History, 8vo., 1830, p. 157. A publication undertaken and 
 begun by an able and spirited individual, (Samuel Bent- 
 ley Esq.) who, at great pecuniary sacrifice, and accompanied 
 by laborious exertions, made an attempt to advance the 
 cause and promote the true interests of historical literature, 
 in presenting to the Public documents hitherto inedited, 
 in illustration of English History ; and it is to be regretted 
 that a work of such promise and value to a literary Public 
 should have been stopped at the conclusion of the first volume 
 from the want of support sufficient even to indemnify him 
 from heavy pecuniary loss. 
 
 E 4
 
 56 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 plan of this lie arly the same. In the exemplification by 
 
 Publication. j cm 
 
 Henry IV., in 1497? the words are inserted, and 
 
 the following explanation of the circumstance 
 is probably not far from the truth. Henry IV. 
 was the son of John of Gaunt, and finding that 
 the grant to his father's children, by Catharine 
 Swyneford, might authorize them to assert a claim 
 to the throne on the failure of his own issue, as 
 representatives of the line of Lancaster, pro- 
 bably thought it prudent to prevent such an 
 occurrence, by assuming a power which would 
 now be held illegal, of adding a reservation to 
 the grant of his predecessor, and obliging one 
 of the grantees to receive a confirmation of that 
 grant with the exception introduced into it, as 
 if it had formed part of the original document. 
 It escaped Henry, however, that the grant had 
 become an act of Parliament ; and even if he 
 had a right of his own authority to qualify a 
 former grant, he could not interpolate a statute ; 
 so that, in a legal view, the addition to the Patent 
 of the 20th of Richard II. on the Patent Roll 
 is of no effect." 
 
 The next instance, in confirmation of the 
 necessity of noticing most of the peculiarities 
 in Diplomas, occurs in a work which has just 
 appeared, on the subject of the ancient depen- 
 dency of Scotland upon England ' ; wherein 
 
 1 Vindication of the ancient independence of Scotland 
 by John Allen, 1833.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 5J 
 
 the Author, Mr. Allen, has established the fact PuNOFTH ^ 
 
 Publication. 
 
 for which he contends, namely, " the non-de- 
 pendence of that kingdom upon England." In 
 discussing that point, Mr. Allen brings forward 
 an interesting piece of evidence of the artifice 
 of Edward I., who, at the sacrifice of honesty 
 and good faith, ordered an erasure to be made 
 on the Roll ', and clearly had something in- 
 serted which was not previously there. 
 
 The last of the three instances alluded to 
 is a mistake into which Dr. Lingard has been 
 betrayed by the omission of Rymer, who cer- 
 tainly did not always attend with sufficient care 
 to the peculiarities of Records. That Historian, 
 in an elaborate discourse on the impropriety 
 of placing faith in the attestations of diplomas, 
 mentions two writs, tested at different places, 
 by Richard IL, on the same day. " In April 
 1399 (says he), Richard II. , with his army, 
 was on his road to Ireland.- On the 27th of 
 that month we have a writ, Teste Mege, at 
 
 1 Close Roll 6 Edw. 1. m. 5. d. For a full statement 
 of this curious fact, see pages 15, 16, and 17 of the 
 Vindication. 
 
 2 Here Doctor Lingard is in error, for Richard II. 
 was at Westminster from the 1st day of April 1399 until 
 the 23d of the same month. On that day the King went 
 to Windsor Castle, where he remained till the 25th of April, 
 whence he returned to Westminster, and stayed there until 
 the 1st of the next month, May, on which day he left 
 London, on the Irish expedition so fatal to him. His route,
 
 58 
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 plan of this Bristol, where he really was ; and another, on 
 
 Publication. j 
 
 the same day, Teste Rege, at Westminster, 
 
 where the Chancellor was ■" and for this he 
 quotes Rymer, torn. 8, p. 81. This has the ap- 
 pearance of authority, which seems at first sight 
 unassailable. On reference, however, to the 
 
 as collected from attestations on the Close and Patent Rolls, 
 was as follows : 
 
 A.R.R. 
 
 A.D. 
 
 Ma 3 
 
 r 
 
 22Ric.II. 
 
 1399. 
 
 1 
 
 Westminster. 
 
 
 
 2 
 
 Oxford. 
 
 
 
 3 
 
 Uncertain. 
 
 
 
 4 
 
 Gloucester. 
 
 
 
 5 
 
 Gloucester. 
 
 The Chronicles of this reign say that Richard 
 went to Bristol on his route to Ireland, which 
 
 
 
 ;• 
 
 is in perfect accordance with the route here 
 
 
 
 descrihed, for as the attestations do not cer- 
 
 
 
 
 tify where he was on the 6th and "th, it may 
 fairly he concluded that he was there on 
 those two days. 
 
 
 
 8 
 
 Caerdiff 
 
 
 
 9 
 
 CaerdifF. Then to Cowbridge. 
 
 
 
 10 
 
 Uncertain. 
 
 
 
 11 
 
 Morgan. Then to Swansea. 
 
 
 
 12 
 
 Swansea. 
 
 
 
 13 
 
 Uncertain. 
 
 
 
 14 
 
 Carmarthen. 
 
 
 
 15 
 
 Ilaverford. 
 
 
 
 16 
 
 Haverford. Back to Carmarthen. 
 
 
 
 17 
 
 Haverford. 
 
 
 
 18 
 
 Ilaverford. 
 
 
 
 ■H 
 
 Haverford. Then to Pembroke. Then to 
 
 
 
 Carmarthen. 
 
 
 
 20 
 
 Haverford. 
 
 
 
 21 
 
 Haverford. 
 
 
 
 22 
 
 Haverford. Then to Pembroke. Then to 
 
 
 
 23 
 
 Haverford. 
 
 
 
 24 
 
 Haverford. 
 
 
 
 25 
 
 Haverford. 
 
 
 
 26 
 
 Haverford. 
 
 
 
 27 
 
 Milford Haven. 
 
 
 
 28 
 
 Haverford and Milford Haven. 
 
 
 
 29 
 
 Sailed for Ireland. 
 
 
 
 30 
 
 
 
 
 31 

 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 59 
 
 Patent Roll of the 22d Richard II., Part 3, J tA!,OFTH,s 
 
 Publication. 
 
 m 26, from which Rymer has printed the docu- 
 
 ment in question, these words appear in the 
 margin, " vac' q' al' in a xxj°., which en- 
 tirely destroy the inference drawn by the His- 
 torian, and show that the entry upon which he 
 relies was cancelled ; and for the reason that it 
 properly belonged to the preceding year. Upon 
 the Roll for that year the same is to be found ! , 
 and consequently its being recorded again on 
 
 1 Rot. Pat. 21 Ric. II. p. 3. m. 1. The document in 
 question is a grant of an annuity of 100 marks to Sir 
 Walter Styward of Scotland and Isabella his wife, at the 
 end of which is the following notice : — " Et memorandum 
 quod Dominus Rex concessit istam annuitatem die Mercurii 
 proximo ante Dominicam in Ramis Palmarum anno regni 
 ipsius Kegis vicesimo primo &c. Et praecepit idem Domi- 
 nus Rex Magistro Edmundo Stafford Episcopo Exon. can- 
 cellario suo ut litteras patentes faceret praefatis Waltero 
 et Isabellas super annuitate praedicta in forma praedicta." 
 
 The enrolment of this patent is attested at Bristol on 
 the 27th of April, which is evidently a clerical error, as 
 the above memorandum proves. Palm Sunday in the year 
 1398 fell on the 31st day of March, and the Wednesday 
 next before was of course the 27th, on which day the King 
 was at Bkistol, on his route to London from Shrews- 
 bury, where he had been holding a parliament, the sessions 
 of which began 29th January 1398. 
 
 The clerk in Chancery did not, as it seems, receive 
 the Chancellor's order to issue the patent until the end of 
 Richard's 21st regnal year, for it is almost the last instru- 
 ment on the Rolls of that year. The whole membrane 
 upon which this patent is entered exhibits no little confu- 
 sion as to dates, and it is not one mistake alone which the 
 enrolling clerk has evidently committed. In the instance 
 here quoted he has substituted April for March.
 
 CO GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Plan of this the Roll for the year succeeding was a mis- 
 
 PUBLICATION. . i - 11 11 
 
 i — . take. It is not here intended to cast a shadow 
 of blame upon Dr. Lingard on account of this 
 error into which he has unconsciously fallen ; 
 for it must not be expected that such men as 
 Dr. Lingard can spare the time, or submit with 
 patience to the drudgery, of wading through 
 dust and cobwebs for hours, and sometimes 
 days, in examining records, for the purpose of 
 arriving at facts which ought to have been pre- 
 pared ready for their hands. 
 
 It is here seen that so simple, and, as it 
 might seem at first sight to some persons, so 
 unimportant a matter as the mere " Teste' 3 of a 
 writ is often of the utmost consequence, and 
 that in many cases, by the means of attestations, 
 circumstances and occurrences transmitted to 
 posterity by our ancient chroniclers and histo- 
 rians may be verified. 
 
 On the subject of attestations, as affect- 
 ing historical data, it is necessary to enter into 
 some further explanation. Excepting in cases 
 of mere clerical inaccuracy, which can always 
 be detected by an inspection of the writs pre- 
 ceding and following, the attestation of a Char- 
 ter, of a Letter Patent, or of a Letter Close may 
 always be relied upon as the best evidence 
 of where the King was on any particular day.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. Ol 
 
 This remark applies until about the reign of PLAN0 " T,ns 
 
 ° Publication. 
 
 Richard II. ; but after that period this rule 
 
 must not be implicitly confided in, and for 
 this reason, that the Court of Chancery in the 
 preceding reign had become stationary, no longer 
 following in attendance upon the person of the 
 King ; and even in the reign of Richard II. it 
 often happened that a writ which had passed 
 for some weeks under the Privy Seal, owing to 
 some fortuitous occurrence, did not find its 
 way into Chancery immediately ; and many 
 letters issued in one month are found to have 
 been enrolled in the following, most commonly* 
 however, bearing their proper date in the enrol- 
 ment ; but then there are many instances where 
 the clerk has erroneously dated the enrolment of 
 such letters, as of the day upon which he en- 
 rolled them, instead of the day upon which they 
 were officially issued. This occasioned in after 
 times no little confusion, which the Stat. 18 
 Henry VI. cap. 1. was made to rectify, by enact- 
 ing "That of every warrant hereafter sent to 
 the Chancellor of England, the day of the date 
 of the delivery of the same to the Chancellor 
 shall he entered of record in the Chancery, and 
 that the Chancellor do cause Letters Patent to 
 be made upon the same warrant, bearing date 
 the day of the said delivery into Chancery, and 
 not before, in anywise." From that time, there- 
 fore, this statute prevents reliance upon the at-
 
 62 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 plan of this testations of writs on the Rolls in evidence of 
 
 Publication. 
 
 the place where the King was at any given time. 
 Neither can it be admitted that Judicial 
 Wrtts are evidence of the King's presence, as 
 they are not intended to convey any such idea. 
 
 Of the peculiar interest which sometimes 
 attaches to matters of this nature, it may be 
 adduced as an instance, that by the attestation 
 of a writ we are assured of the fact, that King- 
 John was personally present at Rouen ] on the 
 very day whereon Prince Arthur is said to have 
 disappeared from thence, and, according to the 
 opinions of most writers, was murdered by his 
 uncle 2 ; nor can it be denied, that the circum- 
 stance of his being actually there in person at 
 that very time, does certainly sanction the tra- 
 ditional and historical belief generally enter- 
 tained on that subject. 
 
 Marginal Notes. — The Marginal Notes 
 on the earlier Close Rolls of the reign of John, 
 being but comparatively few, are in the beginning 
 of this Volume printed in italics, upon the spaces 
 which separate the documents from each other. 
 
 1 Vide the Itinerarium Johannis Regis Angliae, com- 
 piled from the Attestations of Records, and published in 
 the Archaeologia vol. 22. 
 
 2 " Arthurus subito evanuit, modo fere omnibus igno- 
 rato, utinam non ut fama refert invida." Matt. Paris. 
 «' Ut Rex Johannes suspectus haberetur ab omnibus quod 
 ilium manu propria peremisset." Ibid. p. 145.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 63 
 
 This plan was originally fixed upon for the PuN op THIS 
 
 1 ° J x Publication. 
 
 purpose of saving the additional cost of print- 
 
 ing them in the margin, but as towards the 
 close of the reign they were found to occur 
 more frequently, a new method was pursued, 
 as at page 204, where such notes will be seen 
 for the first time inserted in italics, at the begin- 
 ning of each document. As, however, a dis- 
 agreeable effect, and some degree of confusion 
 to the eye, was produced by this arrangement, 
 at the commencement of the reign of Henry 
 III. a brace or bracket was added thereto, 
 which renders the whole completely clear and 
 intelligible, and removes all possibility of con- 
 founding such marginal references with the 
 text. Wherever such notices contain the par- 
 ticular reason for which an instrument was 
 cancelled, they are placed immediately after the 
 entry so cancelled, and are printed in italics. 
 
 On account of the confused appearance 
 which would have arisen from placing words or 
 symbols of this form, qt° ', on the spaces 
 between the documents, it was considered best 
 to dispose of them in this Work immediately 
 after the entries to which they relate. This 
 plan has removed much of the deformity which 
 
 1 Fully described and explained at page 39 of this Intro- 
 duction, under the article on Duplicates.
 
 64 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 plan of this W ould otherwise have offended the eye, and 
 
 Publication. j 
 
 has been persisted in to the end of the Volume. 
 
 The peculiar appearance of the marginal 
 notes, corroborated by other evidence, seems 
 to imply that they were not written at the 
 same time with the entries to which they refer ; 
 though in all probability not later than six 
 months afterwards. It is not unlikely, when 
 the estreating clerk examined the Roll for the 
 purpose of extracting the documents of a fiscal 
 nature, (in the ordinary performance of his 
 duty to send copies of the same to the Ex- 
 chequer,) that he then made these marginal 
 notes, as guides, for his own convenience. 
 
 Attestations. — Before any Royal Charters 
 or Letters, whether Patent or Close, become 
 operative, it is requisite to their validity, that 
 the Great Seal of England should be attached 
 to them ; and it was one of the principal duties 
 of the Chancellor, in all cases, to affix the 
 same ! ; for, until that act is performed, the 
 
 1 The practice of giving authority to diplomas by seal 
 is supposed to have been introduced into England by 
 Edward the Confessor, he having learnt the same from his 
 cousin William Duke of Normandy, during a visit to the 
 latter. Nevertheless it does not appear to have been gene- 
 rally adopted in England until after the Norman Conquest ; 
 though Sir Edward Coke, 1 Inst. 7. imagines authenticating 
 by seal to be of greater antiquity. But the instances he 
 produces of Rex Edwin, in 956, viz. Ego Edtvinus, &;c.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. (j~> 
 
 instrument is wholly ineffective; and even if Pjanofthm 
 
 1'UISLICATION. 
 
 the Privy Seal directing such Letters Patent to 
 
 issue be not followed by the Patent itself in 
 the life-time of the grantee, the authority for 
 creating such Letters Patent becomes inopera- 
 tive. But, before the act of sealing took place, 
 the Chancellor necessarily required some proof 
 of the authenticity of the order he received, 
 as an indemnity for his act of ratification, and 
 that he might know to whom to refer. This, it 
 is submitted, is the reason of the appearance of 
 so many other attestations besides those of the 
 Sovereign, which are found to have been in use 
 throughout the reign of King John and during 
 the minority of King Henry III. Those persons, 
 however, whose names appear as subscribing 
 
 meum donum proprio sigillo confirmavi, and Ego Elf winus 
 Wintori ecclesice Divinus speculator proprium sigillum 
 impressi, cannot be relied upon as warranting such a con- 
 clusion, the word sigillum, before the Conquest, having 
 been used in the same sense with signum. On this sub- 
 ject, vide Spelman, sub vocibus sigillum and signum, and 
 Madox, Formulare Anglicanum Diss. 27. The celebrated 
 charter of Offa, under seal, preserved in the Royal Library 
 at Paris, is by many persons supposed to be a counterfeit 
 or forgery. The opinion, however, that the use of seals in 
 confirming charters was introduced in this country by the 
 Confessor seems to be somewhat shaken by a recent dis- 
 covery, made by some workmen whilst digging a bank 
 near Winchester, of a seal bearing the inscription " Sigil- 
 lum jfflfrici Al." and supposed to have belonged to Alfric 
 Earl of Mercia, who flourished in the reign of King 
 Ethelred.
 
 (36 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Plan of this witnesses were generally persons high in autho- 
 
 PUBLICATION. ° J m 
 
 rity, or holding some important trust in the 
 
 Royal household. According to the nature of 
 the mandate, so we find the attestation. Juri- 
 dical mandates were attested by the King or the 
 High Justiciary ; and mandates relating to the 
 economy of the Royal household were either 
 witnessed by the King, the Chamberlain, the 
 Steward, or by the chief of the department to 
 which the document more especially related ; 
 but during these early periods no certain rule 
 can be laid down. At the close of many of 
 the documents are memoranda, such as per 
 Radulphum Clericum y per Petrum de Rupibus, 
 &c, meaning that those persons had given the 
 instructions to the Chancellor, who thereupon 
 issued precepts, whether Close or Patent, as 
 the case required. Per breve signifies that the 
 instructions given were by letter; per ipsum 
 Regem, that the order was given by the King 
 himself, verbally ; per eundem, per eosdem, that 
 the same person or persons who attested the 
 mandate had also given the order. 
 
 The Kings of England, previous to the ac- 
 cession of the House of Plantagenet, seldom 
 performed the act of attesting their own diplo- 
 mas, and when they did so, it was according 
 to no fixed rule. Sometimes, in confirmation 
 of the act, they made the sign of a cross
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 67 
 
 before their names; and sometimes they ab- PuN0FTHIS 
 
 J Publication. 
 
 stained from taking any active part in the ratifi- 
 
 cation, otherwise than by their presence ; the 
 usual ratification being generally made either 
 by one, two, three, or more witnesses, as Teste, 
 Galfrido de Bosco, &c, or Hits testibus ', or Tes- 
 tibuSy Willielmo Archiep'o Ebor\ Johanne de 
 Segrave, &c. Sometimes the Chancellor was the 
 only attesting witness. But it was not until the 
 reign of Richard I. that the Kings of England 
 generally attested their own diplomas. 
 
 Henry II. was the first who introduced into 
 a royal diploma the formule of Teste meipso. 
 The introduction of this formule into English 
 diplomas has been attributed to Richard I. by 
 Mabillon 2 and other diplomatic writers. But 
 
 1 The phrase of Hiis testibus in royal diplomas is pecu- 
 liar to that species designated as charters, and continued 
 to be the ratifying formule until charters were merged into 
 letters patent in the 12th year of the reign of James I. 
 
 2 " Lapsu temporis inventa est ab Anglicanis Regibus 
 compendiosior via, ut non aliis testibus, quam teste Rege 
 ipso litteras quasdam suas roborarent. Hujusce ritus origi- 
 nem Richardo Primo antiquiorem esse non puto, cujus 
 Richardi complures litterae hac formula, Teste meipso, vel 
 consimili praeditae reperiuntur apud Rogerum Hoveden 
 (Fol. 375. 377. 380. 386. 413. 422. 445.) Ejusmodi formula 
 Teste meipso, Testibus nobis ipsis, seu Teste Rege, propagata 
 est ad Richardi successores Johannem, Henricum, Edwardos 
 tres, aliosque Reges subsequentes, qui in rccognoscendis, 
 seu restituendis vetustis instrumentis, eamdem formulam 
 non raro adhibuerunt. At in concedendis privilegiis, aliis- 
 
 F ?
 
 68 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 plan of this tne erudite Authors of the Nouveau Traite 
 
 Publication. 
 
 have clearly proved that Henry II. x often used 
 
 it ; and, indeed, they give an instance of the 
 use of the same by Henry I. 2 The formule of 
 
 que litteris quantivis momenti in posterum valituris, ab 
 ilia abstinere solent, immo permultos testes laudant sub 
 hac formula His testibus aut simili. Aliquando vero solum 
 testem advocabant Cancellarium." Mab.de Re Diplomaticd, 
 vii. p. 159. 
 
 1 Lobin. Hist, de Bret. torn. ii. p. 394. 
 
 2 Nouveau Traite, torn. v. p. 829. There is on the 
 Patent Roll, 20Edw. IV. part 1. m. 4., an inspeximus char- 
 ter of this King, confirming a charter said to be granted 
 to the Priory of Armethwayt by William the Conqueror, 
 where the formule " Teste meipso '' occurs. No one, 
 however, who has any skill in documentary evidence, can 
 fail to perceive instantly that Edward had confirmed a 
 direct forgery, for who can produce an original charter 
 of the Conqueror worded in the style of the one referred 
 to? 
 
 ~j Rex omnibus ad quos, 
 -Pro Monialibus de Armathawyte. j- &q salutem> Inspexi . 
 
 mus literas patentes domini Willielmi quondam Regis 
 Angliae progenitoris nostri factas in haec verba. Williel- 
 mus Dei gratia Rex Angliae et Dux Normanniae omnibus 
 suis Christi fidelibus praesentes literas inspecturis salutem. 
 Sciatis quod nos ex mero motu nostro et intuitu caritatis 
 fundavimus construximus et imperpetuum ordinavimus in 
 puram et perpetuam elemosinam unara domum et monas- 
 terium Nigrarum Monialium ordinis Sancti Benedicti in 
 honore Jesu Christi ac Beatae Marias Virginis pro animabus 
 progenitorum nostrorum et omnium Christianorum prout 
 situatur juxta aquam vocatam Croglyn' in comitatu Cum- 
 brian. Etiam dedimus et concessimus Monialibus ibidem 
 duas acras terrae super quas praedicta domus et monas- 
 terium situantur. Et etiam dedimus et concessimus eisdem 
 Monialibus tres carucatas terrae et decern acras prati cum 
 omnimodis communis boscis et vastis eisdem tribus carucatis
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 09 
 
 Teste meipso, peculiar to the English diplomas, plan of this 
 
 ± L ° * Publication. 
 
 has been used by the Kings of England from 
 
 terrae quovismodo pertinentibus jacentes juxta monasterium 
 praedictum. Etiam dedimus et concessimus eisdem Moni- 
 alibus et successoribus suis imperpetuum ducentas et 
 sexdecim acras terrae existentes infra forestam nostram 
 delngilwod' jacentes ex parte boriali cujusdam aquae vocatae 
 Tarnwadelyn' cum omnibus boscis proficuis et commodi- 
 tatibus super easdem existentibus sive unquam postmodum 
 crescentibus. Etiam concessimus eisdem Monialibus com- 
 raunam pasturam cum omnibus animalibus suis pro se et 
 suis ibidem tenentibus per totam forestam nostram de 
 Ingilvvod' capiendo ibidem sufficienter maeremium pro om- 
 nibus suis edificiis quandocumque et quotiens necesse fuerit 
 per deliberationem forestariorum nostrorum sive eorum 
 unius ibidem existentium. Et etiam concessimus et con- 
 firmavimus eisdem Monialibus et successoribus suis quen- 
 dam annuum redditum quadraginta solidorum annuatim 
 percipiendum imperpetuum de tenementis nostris in villa 
 nostra de Karlile solvendum eisdem Monialibus et succes- 
 soribus suis per manus custodis nostri villae de Karlile 
 praedictae ad festa Pentecostes et Sancti Martini in 3'eme 
 per equales portiones. Et etiam concedimus pro nobis 
 et baeredibus nostris quod praedictae Moniales tenentes et 
 sui servientes liberi sint de tolneto pacando per totum 
 regnum nostrum Angliae pro aliquibus bestiis sive rebus 
 quibuscumque per eas sive eorum aliquem tenentem seu 
 servientem imposterum emendis. Et etiam concedimus et 
 conrirmavimus quod monasterium et domus praedicta cum 
 praedictis tribus carucatis duabus acris terrae cum decern 
 acris prati in omnibus libera sint et habcant omnes libertates 
 suas simili modo sicut conceditur nostro monastcrio de 
 Westmynstr' absque vexatione molestatione sive aliqua in- 
 quietatione seu lesione aliquorum vicecomitum escaetorum 
 ballivorum seu aliquorum ministrorum seu ligeorum nos- 
 trorum quorumcumque. Et etiam concedimus eisdem 
 Monialibus communani pasturam cum animalibus suis infra 
 villam et communam de .Aynstaplyth cum liberis introitibus 
 
 F 3
 
 70 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Plan of this 
 Publication. 
 
 that period to the present. The same formule 
 appears also, by the enrolments, to have been 
 used by the High Justiciary of England; but 
 the Editor has seen only one original mandate, 
 and that a judicial writ, wherein the clause 
 " Teste meipso " is to be found ; and if an 
 opinion founded upon a solitary instance may 
 be regarded, it is submitted, that in most of the 
 instances where this formule has been inserted, 
 it has been done by clerical inadvertence ; for 
 in an original precept, where the attesting 
 
 et exitibus. Necnon concedimus quod praedictae Moniales 
 liberae sint per totam terram suam pro quibuscumque te- 
 nentibus et liberam habeant warennam tarn pro lettis curi- 
 arum nostrarum quam in aquis boscis terris pJanis seu metis 
 suis eidem monasterio spectantibus seu quovismodo perti- 
 nentibus. Habenda et tenenda et occupanda omnia et sin- 
 gula pnedicta recitata praefatis Monialibus et successoribus 
 suis imperpetuum de nobis et haeredibus nostris in puram 
 et perpetuam elemosinam spontanea ita voluntate et con- 
 cessione as hert may it thynk or ygh may it se. In 
 cujus rei testimonium has literas nostras fieri fecimus 
 patentes. Teste me ipso apud Westmonasterium sexto die 
 mensis Januarii anno regni nostri secundo. Nos autem 
 literas praedictas ac omnia et singula in eisdem contenta 
 rata habentes et grata ea pro nobis et haeredibus nostri s 
 quantum in nobis est acceptamus approbamus et dilectae 
 nobis in Christo Isabella? nunc Priorissae dicti monasterii 
 juxta aquam vocatam Croglyn' in dieto comitatu Cumbriae 
 situati et ejusdem loci Monialibus et successoribus suis 
 ratificamus et confirmamus prout literae praedictae rationabi- 
 liter testantur. In cujus, &c. Teste Rege apud West- 
 monasterium xx°. die Junii. 
 
 Pro dimidio marcae soluto in hanaperio." 
 
 Rot. Pat. 20 Edw. IV. p. 1. m. 4,
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 71 
 
 clause is Teste G. Fir Petri Justic 1 Angl\ the g^g^™ 
 
 enrolment of the same precept is erroneously 
 
 written " Teste meipso ;" and as one instance of 
 an error can be produced, it is not unfair to 
 assume that similar inaccuracies might have 
 been committed upon other occasions. 
 
 The anomaly of using the words Rex, fyc. 
 and Teste meipso may be considered as an ad- 
 ditional evidence of the want of accuracy in 
 the enrolling clerks. Throughout the reign of 
 John nearly all the documents are abbreviated 
 at their commencement, and the style and 
 titles of the King either curtailed or excluded, 
 the words Rex, &c. being substituted. The 
 clerk, however, not adhering to any uniformity 
 in his abbreviations, has in many instances com- 
 mitted a grammatical error, by neglecting to 
 make a corresponding change in the attestation 
 to agree with the address : thus, in those docu- 
 ments tested by the King, he has preserved the 
 Teste meipso instead of Teste Rege, whereby 
 the first part of the document is in the third 
 person, whilst the conclusion is in the first. 
 
 The formule of Teste Rege has caused much 
 discussion amongst diplomatic writers, both 
 English and foreign, which has been owing to 
 their not properly understanding that clause. 1 
 
 1 " La Formule Teste Rege qui tcrmine les lettres 
 patentes des Rois d'Angleterre, est quelquefois exprimee 
 
 F 4
 
 7 2 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 plan of this Mabillon, and the Authors of the Nouveau 
 
 Publication. 
 
 Traite, assert that some of the English Mo- 
 
 narchs, amongst their various modes of attes- 
 tation, used the form ule Teste Rege. Rymer's 
 Fcedera and the diplomatic treatises of other 
 English antiquaries have been the means of 
 betraying these authors into this mistake ; for 
 
 par ces deux siglis, T. R. Les actes de Henri III. finissent 
 encore par ' Teste meipso apud Westmonasterium, 19 die 
 Octobris.' " Nouv. Traite, torn. vi. page 32. 
 
 " Les Rc-is d'Angleterre se donnent eux seuls, ou l'un 
 de leurs officiers, pour temoins dans leurs mandemens et 
 leurs chartes peu importantes. La formule Teste meipso est 
 ordinairement jointe a la date ; mais le sceau, qui seul 
 donne l'autenticite a ces lettres royaux, n'est point anonce. 
 Le recueil de Rymer fournit une multitude de pieces en 
 cette forme. Mais les traites et les actes de consequence 
 sont attestes par un nombre de temoins, dont les noms pre- 
 cedes de la formule ' Testibus, &c.' Jean Sans-terre anonce 
 de plus sa bulle d'or dans l'acte, par lequel, comme vassal, 
 il fait hommage avec serment au Pape Innocent III. apres 
 avoir remis sa couronne entre les mains de Pandolfe, legat 
 du S. Siege. Henri III. se sert de la formule suivante, ou 
 il n'est point parle du sceau royal : ' In citjus rei testimonium 
 has litteras nostras vobis mittimus patentes.' " Nouv. Traite, 
 torn. vi. page 21. 
 
 " Edward IV. premier Roi d'Angleterre de la maison 
 d'York couronne a Westminster le 20 Juin 1461, commence 
 souvent ses diplomes par ces formules : ' Rex omnibus ad 
 quos praesentes, &c. salutem. Sciatis quod, &c. Rex ad 
 perpetuam rei memoriam.' Edouard V. proclame Roi 
 d'Angleterre fan 1483 emploie le meme style : ' Rex omni- 
 bus ad quos, fyc. salutem. Sciatis quod de gratia nostra speciali, 
 ac ex certd scientid et mero motu nostris concessimus, fyc. Dat. 
 nostro sub privato sigillo apud Turrim nostram Londonice, 
 duodecimo die Junii, anno regni nostri primo.' " Nouv. Traite, 
 torn. vi. page 87-
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 73 
 
 which no blame ouffht to be attached to them, £ LAN 0F THIS 
 
 ° Publication. 
 
 since they had not the opportunity of obtaining 
 
 access to the original instruments. The occa- 
 sion of their error is easily explained. All 
 original documents commence with the name, 
 style, and title of the Sovereign, as Henricus, 
 Dei gratia, Rex Anglian Dominus Hibernice, 
 Dux Normannice, Aquitanice, et Comes Andegavice. 
 The enrolling clerks or chancery scribes, either 
 with a view of saving their own labour or the 
 skins upon which they wrote, (for they were 
 obliged to procure the latter themselves, 1 ) in- 
 stead of writing the King's name and titles at 
 full length, contented themselves with intro- 
 ducing the same into the first entry on the 
 Roll 2 only, and afterwards with limiting all the 
 subsequent entries to Rex, 8$c. To make the 
 concluding part of the document agree with 
 the commencement, they substituted the formule 
 Teste Rege for Teste meipso ; yet, strange as it 
 may appear, the form of the rest of the instru- 
 ment was suffered to remain unaltered, and con- 
 sequently was not in accordance with the pre- 
 
 1 " Scriptor iste de proprio an de fisco Rotulos invenit?" 
 asks the scholar in the Dialogus de Scaccario, to which 
 the master answers ; " In termino iste Sancti Michaelis 
 5 solidos de fisco recipit, et scriptor Cancellariac alios nihil- 
 ominus 5 ex quibus ad utrumque Rotulum, et ad summoni- 
 tionesad receptas inferiorisScaccarii membranas inveniunt. 
 
 2 This was not a universal, although a general custom.
 
 74 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Plan of this yious changes : since the document began and 
 
 Publication. ° 
 
 ended in the third, whilst the body or the 
 
 same was expressed as in the first person 1 , as 
 Rex. Sfc, concessimus, §c, Teste Rege. This 
 fact is unnoticed by Rymer, Madox, or Casley ; 
 and it is therefore not surprising that foreign 
 diplomatists should have been mislead, when 
 it is considered that the only data from which 
 they drew their conclusions were selected from 
 the Fcedera and the Monasticon, the Editors of 
 which two works have not made a distinction 
 between Original Instruments and their Enrol- 
 ments. 
 
 Abbreviations. — Without some explana- 
 tion of the Abbreviations used in this work, 
 
 1 King Richard the First was the first English Monarch 
 who adopted the plural number, Nos. His predecessors 
 used the first person singular, Ego. Ruddiman, in the 
 preface to Anderson's " Selectus Diplomatum et Numismatum 
 Scotice Thesaurus" p. 31, on the question whether the di- 
 ploma whereby Malcomb did homage to Edward the Con- 
 fessor be not spurious, advances in proof of its being a 
 forgery, " Quod in hoc Milcolumbus, de se loquens, plurali 
 numero utatur, qui mos nondum apud Angliae aut Scotiae 
 Reges erat introductus : inter Anglos quippe Ricardus I. 
 inter Scotos vero Alexander II. ; qui pluralem de se solis lo- 
 quentes adhibuerint, primi reperiuntur ; quorum utrumque 
 Milcolumbus 3 centum minimum annos praecessit.'' Nichol- 
 son, author of the English Historical Library, part 3, page 2, 
 is of opinion, that King John was the first English Monarch 
 who used the plural number : this opinion, however, is 
 contradicted by the existence of several original charters 
 of King Richard I. wherein that Sovereign makes use of 
 the plural number throughout, except in his attestation.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. J5 
 
 Readers in general would find great difficulty Plan of this 
 
 ° ° J Publication. 
 
 in understanding many of the entries ; espe- 
 cially as the ancient style of punctuation rather 
 obscures than elucidates the construction. A 
 few general rules are therefore indispensable for 
 the assistance of those who wish to acquire a 
 knowledge of this peculiar species of literature. 
 A Table will also be given of the Abbreviations 
 of such words as invariably occur in one form. 
 
 The most usual mode of abbreviating words 
 is to retain some of the letters of which such 
 words consist, and to substitute certain marks 
 or symbols in place of those left out. 
 
 The Abbreviations most common are a 
 right line thus (-), and a curve, approaching the 
 form of the Greek circumflex accent, thus (~), 
 placed horizontally over a letter. The Jirst of 
 these marks, over a vowel, in the middle or at 
 the end of a word, denotes that one letter is 
 wanting, as in vedfit for vendant, bonu for 
 bonum, terra for terrain, &c. ; and the latter, 
 when seen above or through a letter, either 
 in the middle or at the end of a word, signi- 
 fies the omission of more than one letter ; but 
 the number of letters wanted is left to be 
 ascertained by the Reader, as in aia for anima, 
 air for aliter, alia for animalia, ablaco for ablatio, 
 Winton for Wintonia, nob for nobis, manct for
 
 70 
 
 Plan of this 
 Publication. 
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 mandatum, &c. A straight line through a con- 
 sonant also denotes the omission of one or 
 more letters, as in vod for vobis, qd for quod, 
 &c. 
 
 Several symbols have positive and fixed 
 significations. Thus, the character I always 
 stands for er or re, as the sense requires, as rra 
 for terra, pdictus for prcedictus. x 
 
 A straight or a curved line through the let- 
 ter p thus p p, stands for per, por, and par. 
 The curved line through the same letter p de- 
 notes pro. 
 
 This character 3, at the end of a word, 
 signifies us, as omnib} for omnibus, and likewise 
 et, as deb3 for debet. 
 
 The figure £, represents rum, ras, res, 
 ris, and ram, as eo& for eorum, lib£ for libras 
 or Ubris, Windeso^ for Windesores, Alieno^ for 
 Alienoram, ancesso^ for antecessorum and ante- 
 cessors. 
 
 Etiam is thus denoted &, and que, quia, and 
 quod thus q v 
 
 The character represented in type by the 
 figure of 9, is sometimes called the c cursive, or 
 c reversed. When found at the commencement 
 
 1 The diphthong was not. in use at this period, but 
 sometimes at the end of a word, is represented by a cha- 
 racter similar to the French c ; thus, terre for terrce.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 77 
 
 of a word this character signifies com or con, as Plan of THls 
 
 Publication. 
 
 Qimtto for committo, 9victo for convicto ; but 
 
 placed in the middle or at the end of a word, a 
 little out of the line, it signifies us, as De 9 for 
 Deus, reb 9 for rebus, Aug 9 ti for Augusti. It 
 also occasionally stands for ost and os, as p 9 
 p 9 t for post, and p 9 quam for postquam. 
 
 The word est is abridged either by a hori- 
 zontal line or by the Greek circumflex accent 
 between two points thus t , *. 
 
 Points or Dots, placed after letters, are 
 also signs of abbreviations, as di. et fi. for dilectus 
 etjidelis, e. for est, plurib. for pluribus. 1 
 
 Two points, thus ( •• ) or (*), serve as marks 
 of transposition, as ' Magnus " Albertus, for 
 Albertus Magnus. 
 
 For the word et is substituted a character 
 thus ^. 2 
 
 A small superior letter denotes an omis- 
 sion, of which such letter forms a part, as over 
 p*us for prius, i x for tibi, q°s for quos, q* for qui, 
 &c. 
 
 1 A point placed under a letter shows that such letter 
 is redundant. It was a very common mode of making a 
 deletion of a letter, or of a word, instead of disfiguring the 
 face of the document with obliterations. 
 
 2 In very early times it was represented by a figure 
 something resembling the numeral 7, thus, ~.
 
 78 
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Plan of this 
 Publication'. 
 
 Xps, Xpc, Xpo, Xpi,all stand for Christus, 
 and its different cases. 1 
 
 The Abbreviations following have defined 
 
 and explicit significations 
 
 a a an, am. ate 
 
 ante. 
 
 aplo& apostolorum. 
 
 aimus animus. 
 
 libra 
 
 apli 9 amplius. 
 
 libram. 
 
 
 Arepc Areps archiepisco- 
 
 a. a. annus and its 
 
 cases. 
 
 pus. 
 
 sl au autem. 
 
 
 appne ajppellatione. 
 
 "a. out. 
 
 
 adfr adhuc. 
 
 an ante. 
 
 
 ag r agitur. 
 
 ana antea. 
 
 
 b b for, fo's, as libtate 
 
 aia aie ai aio < 
 
 2nima, 
 
 libertate, Merlebge 
 
 anivuSf animi, ammo. 
 aial animal. 
 aiai animalis. 
 ailia animalia. 
 a a a aliarum, aliquarum. 
 am amodo. 
 
 Merleberge, nob nobis, 
 
 vob z;oZ>is. 
 b' b f e bte beatce. 
 bi fofltfz. 
 bapt baptiste. 
 bn force. 
 
 anq* anteguam. 
 
 a ap apd apud. 
 
 aq ajwa and its cases. 
 
 br foeue a/ze? #s cases. 
 bre bri bria foeve, brevi, 
 brevia. 
 
 at a/ms and its cases. 
 
 
 air aliter. 
 
 
 c cer, ere. 
 
 abnia absentia. 
 
 
 c cum. 
 
 abne absolutione. 
 
 
 c a io crastino. 
 
 assu assensu. 
 
 
 C' CWZ. 
 
 a'd aliquid. 
 
 
 c r ewr. 
 
 1 In sacred words the Latins retained the Greek letters. 
 Jesus is generally written IH2 or irj?, abbreviations of was ; 
 is, xs> for Christus, Ike.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 79 
 
 c r a cura. 
 
 c r ca circa. 
 
 capttm capitulum. 
 
 c a ca causa. 
 
 cas causas. 
 
 coa coe coam communa, 
 communal, communam. 
 
 coi 9' communi. 
 
 coe cois commune, com- 
 munis. 
 
 con a dcoe contra diction e. 
 
 c co cont a 9 a 9t a contra. 
 
 9 a io contrario. 
 
 con tu 9 tu conventu. 
 
 co 9p computate, com- 
 putabitur, fyc. 
 
 con a 9* concessa. 
 
 c 5 cf cujus. 
 
 9P3 comparet. 
 
 9°br 9t°br 9 a bre 9°bria 
 contra breve,co?i t robreve, 
 controbrevia. 
 
 c'a cit a ciYra. 
 
 c 2 l3 cujuslibet. 
 
 clt as civitas. 
 
 clcs clericus. 
 
 I> L>s DeyDeus. 
 
 di Z)f?. 
 
 d d f7er, t/e, denarius and 
 
 its cases. 
 d 9 dicimus. 
 dr dicitur. 
 Dd Z)awrf. 
 
 dd dedit. 
 
 din a divina. 
 
 dinr dicuntur. 
 
 dca cftcta. 
 
 dcs dictus. 
 
 dco J/c/o. 
 
 dns diie dfii dfio </o»?i- 
 
 7MS fiW(/ z'/s coses, 
 d} e?e&e£. 
 
 di 1 dt rf/c// o/- dicunt. 
 dent dicunt. 
 don c donee. 
 dre dicere. 
 diione dilatione. 
 di. dilectus and its cases. 
 dilcus dilectus. 
 dilco dilecto. 
 
 e <? f ^ es£. 
 e?e esse, 
 eet esse/. 
 £et essent. 
 
 em eMw, sometimes ewz'wi. 
 ecca ecclesia. 
 ecciiam ecclesiam. 
 ecctiax ecclesiarum. 
 effes effcu effectus, effectu. 
 eta etia elcmosina. 
 eiari 9 elemosinarius. 
 Epc Eps Episcopus. 
 Epo Epi Ejriscopo, Epis- 
 
 copi. 
 eq a tr equalitcr. 
 ex a e^ra. 
 
 Plan of this 
 Publication.
 
 so 
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Plan of this 
 Publication. 
 
 excoTa excommunicato,. 
 ex exemplo, excepto. 
 
 f i fieri, 
 
 f. fm fcslum. 
 
 fo festo- 
 
 fcs fca fco fern faclus 
 
 and its cases. 
 fta ftas falsa, falsas. 
 f re facer e and fratre. 
 fr fris ffes fre frem frm 
 
 f rater and its cases. 
 feia f'eie fei'as femina and 
 
 its cases. 
 f'a fia feria,figur a. 
 fit hfilius. 
 for 3 forma, forest a. 
 
 g' igitur. 
 
 gra gras grm gratia and 
 
 its cases. 
 g a erga. 
 
 g a vafn gravamen. 
 gta gloria. 
 g° ergo. 
 
 gSatr gSalit generaliter. 
 gnla genera. 
 g a tm gratum. 
 
 h ///c, /z<£c, /ioc. 
 
 h c kuic 9 hue, hie, hinc. 
 
 fr 9 ^ hucusque. 
 
 h 9 hujns, hujusmodi. 
 
 hi 9 hujusmodi. 
 
 huj 9 hujusmodi. 
 
 hiij 9 eeoi hujuscemodi. 
 
 heat habeat. 
 
 hre habere. 
 
 rieo habeo. 
 
 huit huisti habuit, habuisti. 
 
 hrnt habucrunt. 
 
 faitu habitu. 
 
 ho. /zo/wo cw<i /Vs cases. 
 
 h3 ht habet. 
 
 het r habetur. 
 
 hri haberi. 
 
 huisse habuisse. 
 
 hes hares, habes. 
 
 hoim hoiu horn hominum. 
 
 i z'ft. 
 
 a infra, ita, ilia. 
 
 b ihm ibidem. 
 
 d ztfem, z7/wd, z'efeo. 
 
 g r igitur. 
 
 ft ?7/e aw<i z7s cases. 
 
 j°. primo. 
 
 n mcfe. 
 
 nf a infra. 
 
 nf 9 inferius. 
 
 nspr insup insuper. 
 
 o ido /c/co. 
 pe zpsc. 
 
 pa zpsa. 
 
 pm ipsum. 
 
 po fpso. 
 
 pos ipsos. 
 
 pius ipsius. 
 
 t i" zVa.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 81 
 
 i te iste. 
 itm i'm item. 
 imppm imperpetuum. 
 ic r rat incurrat. 
 Itdcm interdiction. 
 ife'e interesse. 
 itm iterum. 
 Itm interim. 
 idc'co idcirco. 
 
 ki kalendce. 
 kme charissime. 
 kmo charissimo. 
 
 i vel. 
 
 1. tj. liha and its cases. 
 
 lie liha linia Licentia. 
 
 ittme ime legitime. 
 
 io. /oco. 
 
 ir libenter. 
 
 tra littera. 
 
 fras litteras. 
 
 Ire litterce. 
 
 iris litteris. 
 
 13 /?7W awe/ //c^. 
 
 m ?/z£T. 
 
 @ m a marca. 
 
 m'ia misericordia, miseria. 
 
 m'fo matrimonii). 
 
 mat a materia. 
 
 mam matcriam. 
 
 mdi mundi. 
 
 Me Marr/e. 
 
 med te medietate. 
 
 m' #22*^1, »2£2. 
 
 mv?nater,?nagistcr,ma>iijr. 
 
 mre matre. 
 
 mris matris, martyris. 
 
 mtr mulier. 
 
 mirs mulieres. 
 
 mltm multum. 
 
 mltiptr midtipliciter. 
 
 m° mod; Twoefo. 
 
 mo r monemur, movemur, 
 
 fyc. 
 m a x a maxima. 
 Memo* Memorandum. 
 
 n ffliw, wow. 
 
 n. n. nosfri. 
 
 ncce necesse. 
 
 neccia necessaria. 
 
 n c w^c. 
 
 nc WZ2WC. 
 
 neci, neque. 
 
 n' w*«, nemini. 
 
 n 1 nz7z?7. 
 
 nfta nulla. 
 
 nm numerum. 
 
 n c ii necnon. 
 
 nob 11003 72062s. 
 
 nobc nob}c nobiscum. 
 
 noia nomina. 
 
 nole nomine. 
 
 nolum nominum. 
 
 nolatl nominatim. 
 
 n'o 9 nihilominus 
 
 nr noster. 
 
 Plan of this 
 Publication. 
 
 G
 
 82 
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Plan of this 
 Publication. 
 
 lira nostra. 
 
 p a ir personaliter . 
 
 nri nostri. 
 
 pp propter. 
 
 nro nostro. 
 nram nostram. 
 
 p'us p' 9 prius, primus. 
 pb3 prcebet. 
 
 nrm nostrum. 
 no nlio numero. 
 
 pcci peccati. 
 
 pd pdic? prcedictus and 
 
 nego negotio. 
 neq a q a nequaqaam. 
 
 6 ob obolus and its cases. 
 
 its cases. 
 pdca predict a. 
 pdcas prcedictas. 
 pdcm prcBdictum. 
 
 ob obiit. 
 occo occasio. 
 
 pdco pr adict o. 
 pdcos prccdictos. 
 
 occoe occone occasione. 
 
 pr pater. 
 
 om omnis and its cases. 
 
 pri patri. 
 
 6e omne. 
 
 pris patris. 
 
 oes omnes. 
 
 pta plura. 
 
 os omnes, omnis. 
 
 pima plurima. 
 
 oia omnia. 
 
 pies plures. 
 
 oim oium omnium. 
 
 piia placita. 
 
 6105 omnibus. 
 
 pfit possint and possunl. 
 
 010 omnino. 
 oiode omnimode. 
 
 p 9 p 9 t pos£. 
 
 p 9 m p 9 tmod postmodum. 
 
 op 1 oportet. 
 
 p° primo. 
 
 oppoTo opposito. 
 
 p°ea postea. 
 
 opp a opportuna. 
 obionib3 oblationibus. 
 
 PP P a P P a P a - 
 ppli popidi. 
 ppo populo. 
 
 p per, par, por. 
 
 priam patriam. 
 
 P 2>ro. 
 
 pronat 9 patronatus. 
 
 p J9r^, jor«. 
 
 P3 p l patet, potest. 
 
 p 1 pn. 
 p a prima. 
 p a persona. 
 
 pstate p 9 tate potestate. 
 pbre prohibere. 
 psbr presbiter.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 pin proinde. 
 
 px° px* proximo, pro xima. 
 
 q qui, qua:, quod, quern. 
 
 q' qui. 
 
 % que, quia, quod. 
 
 q quod, quern. 
 
 q a si quasi. 
 
 q a qua. 
 
 q a quam. 
 
 q's quas. 
 
 q's quis. 
 
 q° c/mo. 
 
 q°s g'z/os. 
 
 qn quando, quoniam. 
 
 qrn quoniam, quern, quo- 
 
 modo. 
 q°m° quomodo. 
 q°ni°l3 quomodolibet 
 q°l3 quolibet. 
 q"q, quoque. 
 q'l} quilibet. 
 cj'b} quibus. 
 qd ^wirf, r/woc/. 
 qddm quoddam. 
 qctl} quodlibet. 
 q a i quasi. 
 qle q a le quale. 
 q°a quorum. 
 qsq a m quisquam. 
 qa r/wm. 
 q'cuq^ quicunque. 
 q'cq'd quicquid. 
 
 q a ten"' quatenus. 
 q'ppt quapropter. 
 
 Br ife,r a?zo? *7s cases. 
 
 rone ratione. 
 
 relq reliqua. 
 
 rfia regina. 
 
 roi rationi. 
 
 ronabilit roabitr rationa- 
 
 biliter. 
 vr rez rerum. 
 rspcu respect u. 
 ret° re/ro. 
 rnd3 respondet. 
 rnsum responsum. 
 rns r us responsurus. 
 r. regni. 
 
 S. Sanctus and its cases. 
 
 •s. scilicet. 
 
 s. smw£. 
 
 s. solidus and its cases. 
 
 s a supra, secunda. 
 
 Sfeifei Sabbati. 
 
 Scs Sanctus. 
 
 Sci Sancti. 
 
 Scis Sanctis. 
 
 Scos Sancios. 
 
 sat salt saft'm salutem. 
 
 sfc s^/6. 
 
 sbt 5 subtus. 
 
 s c sic.-. 
 
 sic 1 sic?//. 
 
 sic s/V/z//. 
 
 Plan of this 
 Publication. 
 
 G 2
 
 48 
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Plan of this s c ' sicut. 
 Publication 
 
 Smpir simpliciter. 
 
 singla singula. 
 
 sn sine. 
 
 si sive. 
 
 snia sententia. 
 
 sol 3 sold. 
 
 spale speciale. 
 
 splr specialiter. 
 
 sps spiritus. 
 
 sr super. 
 
 sup super. 
 
 sem 1 semel. 
 
 seq 1 ' sequitur. 
 
 s' sioi. 
 
 sittr similiter. 
 
 signicas significas. 
 
 sig a sti significasti. 
 
 S l SWW/. 
 
 sv szu£. 
 
 S3 set pro sed. 
 
 slj scilicet. 
 
 T. /esfe awe? z7s cas^. 
 
 TT. £/£«&' or titulo. 
 
 ? /er. 
 
 t'a fra. 
 
 tat talis, taliter. 
 
 tatr taliter. 
 
 tn tamen, tantum. 
 
 tm tantum. 
 
 t c /wwc. 
 
 tc tarcc. 
 
 tuc ta?zc. 
 
 tpre tempore. 
 
 temp re tempore. 
 
 tepib3 temporibus. 
 
 tec tecum. 
 
 ten tenementum and its 
 
 cases. 
 t3 fene£. 
 ten 1 zVne/. 
 
 t 1 ftfj. 
 
 tmm° tantummodo. 
 tr terra arcc? its cases. 
 t r r <Mrr/s awe? its cases. 
 Vi turri. 
 tio termino. 
 
 u. w£. 
 
 u 1 z/fo". 
 
 ub ubi. 
 
 un wradfe. 
 
 vba verba. 
 
 val3 uato. 
 
 vl ue/. 
 
 v 1 vel. 
 
 v° i^ro. 
 
 v°. quint o. 
 
 v r videtur. 
 
 vr vester. 
 
 vra vestra. 
 
 vre vestra. 
 
 vri vestri. 
 
 vfo vestro. 
 
 vrm vest rum. 
 
 utr wter, utrum. 
 
 utrcL, uterque and its cases.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 8.5 
 
 ux uxor. 
 uxis uxoris. 
 
 x. decern. 
 
 x a . decima. 
 
 X c Xc XS Xps Christus. 
 
 Xpi Christi. 
 
 Xpo Christo. 
 
 Xpiani Christian}. 
 
 xl a . quadragesima. 
 
 1 et. 
 
 5 etiam. 
 
 5 «s, sometimes et. 
 
 b th y Saxon. 
 
 x rum. 
 f est. 
 j er or re. 
 T;c. e£ cetera. 
 $ //z, Saxon. 
 
 Plan of this 
 Publication. 
 
 COURTS OF LAW. 
 
 Before it is attempted to show in what 
 manner ancient and modern laws may be illus- 
 trated by instruments in this Volume, it is 
 desirable to take a short view of the constitu- 
 tion of different Courts of Judicature existing 
 at the period to which such instruments refer. 
 
 The permanent Courts of Civil and Crimi- 
 nal Jurisdiction were the Aula or Curia Regis ', 
 
 Courts of 
 Law. 
 
 1 The primitive signification of the words " Curia Regis" 
 was the Hall or Court of the King's Palace, where he 
 convened his subjects for the discussion of public affairs. 
 It was afterwards used to denote the meetings there con- 
 vened. All assemblies there held, whether for legislative 
 or judicial purposes, also bore that designation. It does 
 not seem, however, to be confined to the limited significa- 
 tion assigned to it by some, as being merely the King's 
 
 G 3
 
 86 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 courts of w hich afterwards became the modern King's 
 
 Law. ° 
 
 Bench ' — the Court of Common Pleas 2 — the 
 
 itinerant Courts of the Justices in Eyre" — the 
 Court of Chancery — the Court of Exchequer 4 
 — and the ancient County and other Anglo- 
 Saxon Courts. These courts, with the excep- 
 tion of those of Anglo-Saxon foundation, which 
 were falling rapidly into comparative desuetude, 
 formed component parts of the primitive Curia 
 Regis, from which they had just been separated. 
 The reason of the division of the Curia Regis 
 
 Select Council, or Supreme Court of Justice. All national 
 councils, whether convoked for justice or advice, were 
 styled the Curia Regis ; even in the reign of Henry II., 
 who is supposed to have been the original institutor of this 
 high court of justice, which he ordered to be holden 
 within, or rather to be a component part of it. 
 
 1 " Habet Rex plures curias in quibus diversae actiones 
 terminantur, et illarum curiarum habet unam propriam, 
 sicut Aulam Regiam, et justitiarios capitales qui proprias 
 causas regias terminant, et aliorum omnium per querelam, 
 vel per privilegium, seu libertatem.'' Bract, lib. iii. cap. 7. 
 fol. 105 b . 
 
 2 " Habet Rex etiam curiam, et justitiarios in banco 
 residentes, qui cognoscant de omnibus placitis de quibus 
 aucthoritatem habent cognoscendi, et sine warranto juris- 
 dictionem non habent nee coertionem.'' Bract, lib. vii. 
 fol. 105 b . 
 
 3 " Justitiae (errantes) faciant omnes justitias et recti- 
 tudines spectantes ad dominum Regem et ad coronam suam ; 
 nisi tarn grandis sit querela, quod non possit deduci sine 
 domino Rege, vel talis quam justitiae ei reponent pro dubi- 
 tatione sua, vel ad illos qui in loco ejus erunt." Hoveden. 
 p. 549. no. 40, 50. 
 
 4 See Madox Hist, of Exchequer.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 87 
 
 into separate courts seems to have been owing 
 to the extensive jurisdiction which this supreme 
 court had acquired, and which became incon- 
 venient and oppressive : the necessities which 
 induced such division will be obvious on con- 
 sidering its legislative and juridical powers. 1 
 
 In the Curia Regis were discussed and tried 
 all pleas immediately concerning the King and 
 the Realm ; and suitors were allowed, upon 
 payment of fines, to remove their plaints from 
 inferior jurisdictions of Anglo-Saxon creation 
 into this court, by which a variety of business 
 was wrested from the ignorance and partiality 
 of lower tribunals, to be more confidently 
 submitted to the decision of judges of high 
 reputation. Some plaints were also removed 
 into the Curia Regis by the express order of 
 the King ; others by the justices itinerant, 
 who not unfrequently felt themselves incompe- 
 tent to decide upon difficult points of law. 
 Matters of a fiscal nature, together with the 
 business performed by the Chancery, were also 
 transacted in the Curia Regis. Such a quan- 
 tity of miscellaneous business was at length 
 found to be so perplexing and impracticable, 
 not only to the officers of the Curia Regis, but 
 
 1 The division of the Curia Regis is believed to have 
 taken place at the latter end of the reign of King Richard I. 
 Sec note l at p. 28. of this Introduction. 
 
 G 4 
 
 Courts of 
 Law.
 
 88 
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Courts of 
 Law. 
 
 also to the suitors themselves, that it became 
 absolutely necessary to devise a remedy for the 
 increasing evil. A division of that court into 
 distinct departments was the consequence, and 
 thenceforth pleas touching the Crown, together 
 with common pleas ' of a civil and criminal 
 nature, were continued to the Curia Regis ; 
 plaints of a fiscal kind were transferred to the 
 Exchequer ; and for the Court of Chancery 
 were reserved all matters unappropriated to 
 the other courts. 
 
 Equitable 
 Jurisdiction. 
 
 Equitable Jurisdiction. — The origin of 
 the jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery as a 
 court of equity still remains in comparative 
 obscurity. Much has, indeed, been written 
 on the subject ; but little in reality has been 
 done towards a satisfactory settlement of that 
 question. The nature and limits of this Intro- 
 duction do not admit of many details on the 
 point ; nor is this a proper place for the insti- 
 tution of inquiries relative to the first introduc- 
 tion and gradual rise of all and each of the 
 vast and extraordinary powers of the present 
 Court of Chancery, branching, as they do, into 
 
 1 The ( ourt of Common Pleas was by the xvij. chapter 
 of Magna Carta separated from the Curia Regis and made 
 stationary : " communia placita non scquantur curiam nostram 
 sed teneantur in aliquo certo loco." See 2 Inst. 22. Madox's 
 Hist, of Excheq. Spelm. Glos. Tit. Justitiarius.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 89 
 
 Courts of 
 Law. 
 
 jurisdictions so various and extensive. It is 
 here proposed only to take a cursory view of 
 
 _ , Equilablr 
 
 its history as a court ot equity ; suggesting to Jurisdiction. 
 those who wish for information on the subject 
 some of the sources from which materials may 
 be collected for the purpose, without entering 
 into an investigation of the peculiarities which 
 distinguish it from a court of common law. 
 
 The Court of Chancery, as a court of 
 equity began to decide causes about the reign 
 of Edward the Third, and continued to do so 
 for at least three centuries, " secundum cequum 
 et bonum" and not according to precise and 
 predetermined rules (as is now the practice 
 of that Court '), for neither Glanville, the 
 
 1 " Plusieurs siecles merae apres Installation des 
 Chanceliers dans leurs fonctions judiciaires, ils n'avaient 
 que tres rarement l'occasion de les exercer ; de sorte que, 
 sans inconvenient, ils pouvaient etre, en meme temps, 
 ecclesiastiques, et quelquefois meme militaires, ce qui est 
 arrive. La cour etant encore dans son enfance, les debats 
 judiciaires n'avaient point produit ce recueil de regies et de 
 decisions qui aujourd'hui doivent guider les juges dans 
 leurs arrets, et dont l'etude et la pleine connaissance leur 
 sont indispensables. Les Chanceliers de cette epoque 
 etaient encore libres de decider les causes suivant les 
 principes de l'equite naturelle ; car ce n'est que dans le 
 milieu du dix-septieme siecle que les maximes et usages 
 des tribunaux d'equite commencerent a devenir une science." 
 Lettres sur la Cour de la Chancellerie d A?igleterre, et sur 
 quelques points de la Jurisprudence Anglaise, pp. 62 — 72. 
 Par C. P. Cooper, Avocal Anglais. Paris Edit. 1 830.
 
 <JO[j GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 courts of Mirror, Bracton, Briton, Fleta, nor the " Diver- 
 
 Law. 
 
 site des Courtes," ever allude to it as a court 
 
 jurildktion. of equity. 1 The earliest mention of a distinction 
 betwixt equity and common law is believed to 
 be in Bracton, lib. ii. c. 7«» where that writer 
 places equity in contra-distinction to strict law ; 
 but in Glanville, who preceded him some years, 
 there is not the remotest allusion to any thing 
 of the kind. The fountain of justice and equity 
 was, in his as in all preceding time, held to be 
 in the Sovereign, who took an oath at the 
 coronation to dispense to his subjects cequam 
 et rectam justitiam ; that is, the King bound 
 himself to distribute to every individual in his 
 realm both justice and equity, or as it is more 
 commonly expressed, to temper justice with 
 mercy. But this, in all cases, and in his own 
 proper person, it was obviously impossible for 
 him to do ; he, therefore, of necessity, was 
 obliged to delegate the administration of jus- 
 tice, in various departments, to ministers and 
 officers chosen and deputed by him to fulfil 
 the duties respectively belonging to each of 
 such departments, but whose powers and modes 
 of practice were defined and circumscribed 
 within the limits of positive and admitted laws 
 and regulations. Hence arose the necessity and 
 formation of separate and distinct courts of law, 
 
 1 See 2 Inst. 552. 4- Inst. 82.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 91 
 
 which, by degrees, were brought into use, and Courts of 
 
 J ° ° Law. 
 
 which, in the King's name, and by his authority, 
 
 dispensed justice to the people, according to jJUdktion. 
 existing laws. But inasmuch as enacted and 
 positive laws must in their nature be limited 
 either to general maxims, or to provisions adapted 
 and applicable only to particular circumstances, 
 there could not but happen, in almost constant 
 succession, a variety of cases so new and unfore- 
 seen in their bearing and construction as to 
 admit of no proper or adequate remedies being 
 applied to them by these ordinary courts, if 
 they proceeded according to the existing and 
 established law, the rigor of which was found 
 to operate in a manner both oppressive and 
 unjust. It was therefore necessary, in many in- 
 stances, to have recourse to the King, who 
 being the fountain both of justice and equity, 
 had the power of affording relief in all such 
 difficulties, according as it might appear to him 
 to be reasonable, just, and merciful. 1 This 
 leads to considerations of the common modes 
 
 1 " II n'y a pas de doute que la juridiction exercee 
 maintenant par le Chancelier pour mitiger la severite du 
 droit comraun a toujours fait partie de la loi d'Angleterre. 
 Autrefois c'etait le Roi en personne, assiste du Chancelier 
 et d'autres officiers de la couronne, qui exercait cette juri- 
 diction sur la requete des parties, lorsqu'elles reclamaient 
 contre les decisions des juges." Lettres sur la Cour de la 
 Chancellerie d'Angleterre, par C. P. Cooper, p. 182. Paris 
 Edit. 1830.
 
 92 
 
 Courts of 
 Law. 
 
 Equitable 
 Jurisdiction. 
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 of administering justice during the period to 
 which this Volume especially refers, in order to 
 trace the gradual steps of equitable jurisdiction 
 which were trodden first by the King himself, 
 in his character of dispenser of justice. 
 
 Antecedent to the reign of Henry II. the 
 administration of justice had been permitted 
 to flow through many different channels ; for 
 instance, through those of the County Courts, 
 of the Hundred Courts, and of the Courts Baron. 
 So many courts of judicature (though one of 
 the great excellencies of Anglo-Saxon contriv- 
 ance, inasmuch as justice might thus be said to 
 be rendered almost at the door of every mem- 
 ber of the community) were nevertheless un- 
 suitable to the habits and prejudices of the 
 Norman invaders, accustomed as the latter were 
 to more imposing forms, and to a species of 
 jurisprudence much more subtle and refined 
 in its distinctions than that in use with the 
 Saxons. 
 
 From this multiplicity of judicatures there 
 naturally followed many and great inconveni- 
 ences, uncertainties, and, in no small number of 
 instances, debasements of the laws, owing equally 
 to the number of tribunals as to the ignorance 
 and partiality of the judges ; notwithstanding* 
 that the eldermen, from whom such judges were
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 93 
 
 selected, were supposed to be the wisest and 
 most discreet persons of those divisions over 
 which each of them respectively presided. 
 Henry I., however, seeing such inconveni- 
 ences arise, and such venality in practice, for 
 the purpose of controlling this growing evil, 
 ordained, that not only should the freeholders 
 of th° county attend these courts, but that also 
 the bishops, barons, and others of a certain rank 
 residing in the respective districts, should be 
 constant in their attendance at the same. This 
 command was for some time scrupulously obeyed, 
 but, like other salutary regulations, it soon fell 
 into disuse. The consequence of this neglect 
 on the part of the Norman nobility was, that 
 all business of any moment was thenceforth con- 
 ducted upon principles almost wholly founded 
 in factious and interested motives ; and as it 
 often happened that those who presided were 
 in many instances parties as well as judges in 
 their own cause, the decisions of the court 
 were often partial and unjust. All this took 
 place, notwithstanding redress could have been 
 had by obtaining a writ of false judgment before 
 the King or Chief Justiciary, in which case 
 the judgment, if found to be unjust or oppres- 
 sive, was annulled, reversed, or abated, and the 
 parties found to be in the wrong from such 
 decisions heavily amerced. 
 
 coiirts of 
 Law. 
 
 Equitable 
 
 Jurisdiction.
 
 94 
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Courts of 
 Law. 
 
 Equitable 
 Jurisdiction. 
 
 This, nevertheless, did not prove to be an 
 effectual and sufficient remedy ; and other mea- 
 sures were taken, in the year H76 l , to put a 
 stop to such irregular and nefarious proceed- 
 ings ; when men, versed and experienced in 
 the laws and constitution of the realm, were 
 appointed as itinerant justices 2 , to go on cir- 
 cuits through every part of the kingdom, and to 
 hear and determine pleas, as well civil and cri- 
 minal, as pleas of the crown, arising within the 
 several divisions respectively assigned to them. 
 
 1 22d Henry II. 
 
 2 It must not be inferred that the institution of itiner- 
 ant justices originated in the Council at Northampton in 
 the year 1176, for there is unquestionable evidence, the 
 Pipe Roll in the Exchequer, that there had been itinerant 
 justices, to hear and determine civil and criminal pleas, in 
 the eighteenth year of the reign of King Henry the First. 
 It is to this monarch that the introduction of such justices 
 into England is to be attributed, consequential to a similar 
 institution in France by Louis le Gros, and imparted by him 
 to King Henry. These justices, however, appear to have 
 been discontinued during the intestine commotions in the 
 reign of King Stephen : the glory, therefore, of fixing in 
 the English constitution so useful an improvement belongs 
 to Henry the Second, by whom it was revived and regularly 
 settled at the Council of Northampton. The error, into 
 which Sir Matthew Hale has fallen, of supposing the 
 original appointment of justices itinerant to have taken 
 place at this Council, seems to have arisen in consequence 
 of their being first mentioned in our ancient chronicles 
 under the year 1176, whereas only a new division of the 
 kingdom into six circuits was then settled, and justices 
 appointed thereto.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 An ordinance of such importance as this, 
 and emanating from a prince so wise as Henry I J., 
 had a direct tendency to restrain the oppres- 
 sions of the barons, and to protect the gentry 
 and common people in the enjoyment of their 
 rights and liberties ; and still, if parties felt 
 themselves aggrieved, either from the rigor or 
 imperfection of the law itself, or by the misjudg- 
 ment or venality of the itinerant justices, a door 
 was left open for redress, by the removal of 
 their plaints, upon the payment of trifling fines, 
 into the King's Court, where justice with equity 
 was supposed to reside. 
 
 95 
 
 Courts of 
 Law. 
 
 Equitable 
 Jurisdiction. 
 
 The court of judicature which sat in Curia 
 Regis, or the King's Court, is also presumed 
 to have been instituted by the same Prince, in 
 consequence of complaints made to him of the 
 partiality of his Justiciar resiant in his court j 
 the number of whom he reduced from eighteen 
 to five, and enacted " quod Mi quinque audirent 
 omnes clamores regni et rectum Jacerent ; et 
 quod a Curia Regis non recederent, sed ibi ad 
 audiendum clamores hominum remanerent ; ita ut, 
 si aliqua qucestio inter eos veniret, qua; per eos ad 
 Jinem duci non posset ; auditui regi prajsentaretur, 
 et sicut ei, et sapientioribus regni placeret, ter- 
 minaretur" ' 
 
 ! Renedic. Abbas. 266.
 
 9$ GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 C °law ° F Hence it will appear that not only was a 
 • permanent court of iustice established in the 
 
 Equitable r J 
 
 Jurisdiction. King's Court, but also that a still higher tribunal 
 was brought into use — that of the King in 
 Council 1 , to whom the justices of the first were 
 to appeal in cases of difficulty ; and this is 
 presumed to be the first germ or semblance 
 of a court of equity. This Concilium Regis 
 must not, however, be confounded with the 
 Commune Concilium. The business of the for- 
 mer was to assist the King in determining and 
 legislating upon the nicer and more intricate 
 points of law, to guide the opinions and judg- 
 ment of the Monarch, and to assist him in the 
 performance and discharge of his duties. 2 The 
 latter was the Court de more, held at the three 
 great festivals of the year, composed of " all 
 the great men over all England, archbishops 
 and bishops, abbots and earls, thegns and 
 cniths 3 ," an assembly, in fact, the same (with 
 
 1 The Concilium Regis consisted of the Chancellor, the 
 Treasurer, and Barons of the Exchequer, the Judges of 
 either Bench, the itinerant Justices, and Justices of Assize, 
 the great officers of state, and such of the dignified clergy 
 as it pleased the King to summon. 
 
 2 It is said that King Henry, at leisure hours, sat 
 every day in his own house, secum habens Comites, Barones, 
 proceres, et vavasores, to hear and determine causes. 
 Cotton. Posth. fol. 48. Madox, fol. 68. Lombard's Arch- 
 ion. 144. 165. 
 
 3 Saxon Chron. 190.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 07 
 
 some improvements) as the Saxon Wittenaee- CouRTS of 
 
 * ' & Law. 
 
 mote, which made laws and imposed taxes, and 
 advised the King in the administration of jurisdiction. 
 justice. This National Assembly or Common 
 Council of the Realm has, it is submitted, 
 been confounded, in a Report made by a 
 Committee of the House of Lords appointed 
 to inquire into the nature and dignity of a Peer 
 of the Realm ', with the King's Council. 2 That 
 Committee assumes, that the King's Select 
 Council was also the Commune Concilium de more, 
 which assembled, as before stated, three times 
 a year. That each member of the Select 
 Council was, in his individual capacity, also 
 part of the Common Council, will scarcely 
 admit of a doubt ; and it is also certain, that 
 the Concilium Regis did not merge into the 
 more numerous assembly, or Commune Con- 
 cilium, but continued, for upwards of three 
 centuries, a separate and independent body, 
 exercising its judicial and peculiar functions, 
 until the Court of Chancery came, in course 
 
 i Ordered to be printed 25th May 1820. Folio. 
 
 2 A refutation of this dictum of the Lords Committee, 
 as well as of other doctrines equally untenable, may be 
 found in the Edinburgh Review for March 1821, in an 
 elaborate article entitled " History of the English Legisla- 
 ture.'' It is however unquestionable that the reports of 
 that Committee are replete with information of the highest 
 order, and evince a most extensive display of research 
 and learning. 
 
 II
 
 98 
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Courts of 
 Law. 
 
 Equitable 
 Jurisdiction. 
 
 of time, to supersede it, from the people finding 
 it more expeditious and satisfactory for them 
 to address their petitions to the Chancellor 
 direct, knowing that to that high officer they 
 would ultimately be referred. 
 
 An inspection of the numerous entries 
 relative to this subject, occurring in the Close 
 Rolls, will make this clear, by showing the exact 
 jurisdiction and peculiar functions of the Select 
 Council ; viz. that it was always about the 
 King, attended upon him in all his expedi- 
 tions, and followed him in all his progresses 
 through the kingdom — that petitions were 
 constantly referred to it — that remedies were 
 provided by it, without delay — and that 
 doubtful and intricate points of law were there 
 discussed and determined, without 'waiting for 
 the stated meetings of the Common Council, or 
 convoking an extraordinary assembly. Such a 
 jurisdiction as is here described would have 
 been not only ill adapted to the constitution, 
 but incompatible with the nature of an assem- 
 bly like that of the Common Council of the 
 Realm, meeting together but three times a 
 year ; but instances of the jurisdiction of the 
 Select Council are, of course, more numerous 
 during the minority of Henry III. than in the 
 reign of his father, and, perhaps, the great in- 
 fluence and positive jurisdiction which it after-
 
 Law. 
 
 Equitable 
 
 Jurisdiction. 
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 99 
 
 wards assumed may have chiefly arisen during Co ^ TS 
 Henry's nonage. 
 
 Whenever, then, there appears to have been 
 any difficult point of law, or case which the 
 common law was unable to reach, the same 
 was discussed before and by the Select Council, 
 which, prior to the institution of Parliament, 
 was doubtless the highest tribunal in the king- 
 dom. " There was lodged in it," says Sir Mat- 
 thew Hale, " the plenitude of all civil jurisdic- 
 tion." 1 Various entries on the Close Rolls, to 
 be found in this Volume, exhibit convincing 
 proofs of this assertion ; for in many instances 
 they show that the Council was possessed of 
 judicial power to order the issuing of writs 
 out of Chancery for the redress of grievances, 
 and that it often commented severely on the 
 decision of other courts ; also, that it often 
 proceeded to the execution of justice in the 
 first instance, without the assistance or advice 
 of the other branches of government 2 ; and it 
 
 1 Hale, on the Jurisdiction of the House of Lords, 
 p. 96. 
 
 2 The Council had an absolute jurisdiction over all 
 the proceedings pending in the Courts below ; wherein if 
 any litigant felt himself aggrieved he applied for redress to 
 the Council, in the same manner as he would have applied 
 to the King, before the latter committed his prerogative of 
 distributing justice and equity to his Council. And here 
 it is to be remarked, that for some time after the authority 
 of the Council hud been recognized, petitions still con- 
 
 H 2
 
 100 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 courts of might well have such absolute and extensive 
 
 Law. ... 
 
 powers of jurisdiction, since, as Sir Matthew Hale 
 
 Equitable . 1 l r» l • l 
 
 jurisdiction, says, " it was not only composed ot the wisdom 
 of the nation, but also that the great officers 
 of state, the Chancellor, Treasurer, Justices of 
 each Bench, and Barons of the Exchequer were 
 all active members of it, assisting with their 
 knowledge and advice, the less experienced.'' 
 
 The exact jurisdiction of this Council may, 
 however, be pretty well ascertained from several 
 entries on the Close Rolls, and from petitions 
 addressed to it, with the answers of the Council 
 as written on such petitions, of which the origi- 
 nals are still to be found in the Tower; as 
 " sue at Common Law " — " sue in the Exchequer" 
 — " sue in Chancery" — " a writ on the subject 
 shall be dispatched out of Chancery" — "the 
 King trill consider " — " a remedy shall be pro- 
 vided" &c. 
 
 Here it may be as well to particularize 
 the nature of some of the matters, both of law 
 
 tinued to be addressed to the King, as the fountain of justice 
 and equity, but these petitions were all referred to the 
 Council ; that assembly handed them over to the Chancel- 
 lor ; " le Chancelier s etait arroge. le droit dejuridiction autrefois 
 reserve au Roi et son conseil*;" and thus the equitable juris- 
 diction of that high officer of state soon began to be acknow- 
 ledged, and by degrees, in course of time, to be firmly 
 established. 
 
 * Lettres sur la Cour dc la Chancellerie d'Angleterre, p. 184.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 101 
 
 and fact, of which this Council took cognizance, CouRTS 0F 
 
 . . Law - 
 and to prove that it had a direct jurisdiction 
 
 over all the proceedings of the courts below ', jurisdiction. 
 with the power of reversing any judgment of 
 those courts founded in error. 2 Of this nature 
 are the following: Whenever the Council thought 
 it expedient to have the advice and assistance 
 of any particular persons, whether barons, 
 bishops, or others, the Chancellor, by order 
 of the Council, issued writs of summons to 
 such persons, according to circumstances 3 ; 
 and if any information was required, writs and 
 commissions emanating from the Council were 
 dispatched out of Chancery 4 , and the inquisi- 
 tions made by virtue of such writs being pre- 
 sented to the Council, instructions upon the 
 matter at issue were thereupon delivered, as 
 the case required. 5 Conventions, recognizances, 
 bails, and agreements were also made before 
 the Council. Oaths, vouchers, and protesta- 
 
 1 Vide page 54-9. 2 Vide page 54-9. 
 
 3 Vide pages 387- 405. 
 
 4 Vide pages 549. 551. 554. 
 
 6 Vide pages 363. 404. 565. 584. 631. 
 
 « Vide pages 320. 361. 554. 584. 596. 608. By an 
 entry at page 527 5 it seems that the Council was not, how- 
 ever, always unanimous in opinion, but proceeded to a 
 division on some subjects ; " in forma in qua major pars 
 concilii nostri consensii cum ultimo tractatum fuisset apud 
 London' de codem ncgotio.'" 
 
 ii 3
 
 102 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 courts of tions were also made before it. 1 Orders for 
 
 Law. 
 
 payments of money were issued from it. 2 
 
 Equitable T . . . _ _ „ , 
 
 Jurisdiction. J udgment was given in matters tried before it 
 upon petition. 3 Persons were ordered to ap- 
 pear before the Council to show why they 
 opposed the execution of the King's precepts ; 
 and, so also, persons aggrieved to state their 
 complaints; and the aggressors were commanded 
 to appear and answer the charges preferred 
 against them. 4 On one occasion the Justices 
 in Eyre for the county of Sussex, and the Chan- 
 cellor, were commanded to put in respite the 
 pleas of the Crown in the Cinque Ports " ut 
 interim provideatur a Concilio Regis ubi et 
 coram quibus placita ilia teneri debeant." 5 
 It is declared by the King that earls and 
 barons should only be amerced before the 
 Council. 6 Justice was dispensed before the 
 Council upon allegations of any violation of 
 a truce ; ; and the Council seems to have taken 
 
 i Vide pages 477. 479. 487. 600. 
 
 2 Vide pages 480. (bis.) 549. 
 
 s Vide pages 403. 404. 405. 406. 415. 569. 
 
 4 Vide pages 358. 361. 406. 639. 
 
 5 Vide page 406. 6 Vide pages 383. 387. 
 
 7 " The King to the bailiffs of Dover, greeting. 
 Know ye that when we lately sent our Nuncios to the 
 King of France to prorogue the truce between us and him, 
 a discussion having arisen relative to the interceptions made 
 upon the King of France's men in England during the truce 
 agreed upon between Philip, formerly King of France, and
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 103 
 
 an active part in matters relating to the govern- 
 ment and juridical proceedings of Ireland 1 , as 
 
 King John our father, and afterwards between the same 
 King of France and us ; and in like manner of the in- 
 terceptions made upon our men of England in the do- 
 minion of the King of France ; it was there by our said 
 Nuncios provided, that the King of France should send into 
 England all persons of his land who had any complaints to 
 make of like interceptions, and together with them some 
 discreet men and lawyers, to be at London on Monday 
 next after the approaching Epiphany, to receive justice 
 thereupon, before us and our Council. And therefore we 
 firmly command you, all excuse, hindrance, and delay set 
 aside, to be at London on the aforesaid day, before us 
 and our Council, to answer for yourselves respecting the 
 like interceptions, and have there such, &c. of whom com- 
 plaint is made for the interceptions aforesaid, and all other 
 persons of your bailiwick of whom ye shall be able to 
 ascertain whether during those truces they intercepted 
 any thing, as ye wish to hold harmless yourselves and 
 them ; and make known to all persons of your bailiwick 
 upon whom any interception has been made in the land of 
 the King of France, during the same truces, that they may 
 be there to show in what and by whom the interception 
 was made upon them in the King of France's land, that 
 justice therein may be exhibited to them; and have there 
 this writ. Witness ourself at London, on the 12th day of 
 December. Before Hubert de Burgh, Chief Justiciary, and 
 the Bishops of Bath and Salisbury." 
 
 In like manner it is written to the other bailiffs named 
 in a schedule attached to the Roll, which also contains the 
 names of those whom the respective bailiffs are to cause to 
 appear at the day aforesaid. 
 
 i Vide pages 527. 532. 549. 551. 55k. 584. 629. For 
 much valuable information relating to the ancient usages 
 and legislative establishments introduced into Ireland, see 
 " A view of the Legal Institutions, Honorary PIcreditary 
 Offices and Feudal Baronies established in Ireland, during 
 
 H 4< 
 
 Courts of 
 Law. 
 
 Equitable 
 Jurisdiction.
 
 Equitable 
 
 Jurisdiction. 
 
 104« GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Courts of we n as [ n watching and determining the pre- 
 
 Law. ° ox 
 
 rogatives of the Crown. 
 
 Sufficient having been said to excite at- 
 tention to the variety of information to be ob- 
 tained from the Close Rolls in illustration of 
 the nature of the English Constitution, it now 
 remains only to inquire how the Chancellor 
 came subsequently to exercise that equitable 
 jurisdiction, which it appears, for such a length 
 of time, belonged alone to the Council. In 
 such attempt any thing like an essay on the 
 office and dignity of the Chancellor is far from 
 being meditated : it is merely designed to 
 show how that immense power, which first 
 resided in the breast of the King alone, was 
 afterwards transferred from him to the Council, 
 and eventually from the Council ' to the 
 Chancellor. 
 
 the reign of Henry the Second," by William Lynch esq., 
 8vo. 1830. 
 
 1 After the equitable jurisdiction of the Court of Chan- 
 cery was established, the ancient Council by degrees be- 
 came extinct, in consequence of the greater part of its avo- 
 cations devolving upon the Chancellor. The modern Privy 
 Council appears to have grown out of the Concilium Regis, 
 or ancient Council, about the reign of Richard the Second. 
 No petition, however, at all approximating to the modern 
 form has been found addressed to the Privy Council of 
 so early date as Richard the Second. Elsynge, in his 
 work intituled " The manner of holding Parliaments in Eng- 
 land," page 287, says, that in the time of Henry the Fourth 
 there were few petitions directed to the King in Council,
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 10.5 
 
 It has been proved, by the passage quoted Co ™ TS 0F 
 from Benedict Abbas, at page 95 of this Intro- 
 duction, that when Henry established a judicial jurisdiction. 
 tribunal in the Curia Regis, he reserved to 
 himself the prerogative of finally deciding the 
 law, and of calling to his assistance, when need- 
 ful, the Concilium sapientium regni. This power 
 was, however, no part of the ambition of 
 some of his successors, whose inclinations and 
 pursuits were directed more to the acquirement 
 of glory by military achievements, than by the 
 exercise of their legislative faculties. The 
 heavy and responsible duties of supreme judge 
 were therefore cheerfully, it may be supposed, 
 resigned to others, who, distinguished for their 
 attainments in learning and general knowledge, 
 w r ere better qualified for a proper discharge of 
 that important office. To the Select Council 
 this trust was confided. The private Confessor 1 , 
 
 but there were some addressed to the King alone. The 
 reason of this is obvious ; the ancient Council, as a Court of 
 Equity, had, at that time, almost ceased to exist, or rather 
 it had been superseded by the Privy Council. Petitions 
 were, however, addressed to the King for some time after 
 the Court of Chancery had become a Court of Equity ; such 
 petitions were, however, always handed over to the Chan- 
 cellor to execute. 
 
 1 Though early writers on the office of Chancellor 
 state that he was originally the King's chief Chaplain and 
 Confessor, yet there are no public instruments which confer 
 that title on him. There are, however, several entries on the 
 Parliament Roll relating to the King's Confessor, then evi- 
 dently distinct from the Chancellor. These entries occur in 
 the reigns of Edward III., Richard II.,, and Henry IV.
 
 106 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 courts of Chancellor ', and the Chief Clerk of the King, 
 
 Law. ° 
 
 would, as may naturally be presumed, be at 
 
 jurisdiction, the head of this learned assembly ; and being, 
 at least in the early periods of English history, 
 the King's Confessor, he was deemed to be 
 
 1 The Chancellor of England at this time had no dis- 
 tinct court of judicature in which he presided, but he 
 acted together with the Justiciary and other great officers, 
 in matters of the revenue, at the Exchequer, and some- 
 times in the counties, upon circuits. The Great Seal being 
 in his custody, he supervised and sealed the writs and pre- 
 cepts that issued in proceedings pending in the King's Court 
 and in the Exchequer. He also supervised all charters 
 which were to be sealed with that seal. Mr. Madox ob- 
 serves that he was usually a bishop or prelate, because he 
 was looked upon as chief of the King's chapel *, which was 
 under his special care. In the Council his rank was very 
 high ; it seems that he had the principal direction and 
 conduct of all foreign affairs, performing most of that busi- 
 ness which is now done by the secretaries of state. 
 
 * Anciently public archives were preserved in churches and other 
 religious places. The Greeks paid particular attention to the conservation 
 of their records. The temple of Delos was, according to Pausanias, the 
 general repository of records ; and part of the Areopagus and the temple 
 of Minerva were also devoted by the Athenians for the custody of their 
 public instruments. (Reflexions sur V Etude de Vancienne Histoire, torn. viii. 
 p. 260.) The Romans were not less zealous in the preservation of their 
 records than^the Greeks, and their most precious archives were de- 
 posited in their temples. (Eckkard Sc/wdiasma dc Tabular. Antiq. n. xvi. 
 p. 25.) This custom of preserving records in sacred places was followed 
 in the middle ages, and it is not improbable that the King's chapel was 
 used for that purpose, and hence it was that the Chancellor, as presid- 
 ing over the royal chapel, came to be so much connected with royal 
 diplomas and archives. " Fungebantur antique Cancellariatus dignitate, 
 viri tantum Ecclesiastici et Episcopi, qui praHerea curam gerebant Regis 
 capellae, repositaque illic monumenta (rotulos et recorda vocant) sacra 
 custodia tuebantur." " Cancellarii dignitas est, ut secundus a Rege in 
 regno habeatur, ut altera parte sigilii regii (quod et ad ejus pertinet cus- 
 todiam) propria signet mandata, ut capella Regia in illius sit dispositionc 
 et cura." Spelm. Gloss.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 107 
 
 more intimately acquainted with his inclina- Courts op 
 
 tions and wishes. 1 Hence he was called the 
 
 Keeper of the King's conscience. 2 To him, jurisdiction. 
 then, the Council properly applied for aid. in- 
 struction, and advice upon any occasion of 
 severity or defect in the law ; and here may be 
 perceived the origin of one of the principal 
 employments of the Chancellor, that of provid- 
 ing remedies for grievances not cognizable by 
 statute or common law ; or which grew out 
 of new or peculiar circumstances, to which 
 neither the one nor the other was altogether 
 applicable. 3 In order to obtain relief in such 
 cases recourse was had to a petition to the 
 King, which was commonly directed to him 
 in Council ; but to investigate and decide upon 
 such petitions occasioned an overwhelming 
 weight of business. To remedy which, an or- 
 dinance was made in the eighth year of the 
 
 1 " Et Turketulum, Athelstano, Eadmundo, et Edredo 
 Regibus necnon eorum patri Edwardo seniori Cancella- 
 rium fuisse indicat Ingulphus : etiam consiliarium primum, 
 praicipuum, et a secretis familiarissimum." Spelm. Gloss. 
 
 2 Selden, Office of Lord Chancellor, sec. 3. 
 
 3 From the Court of Chancery issue, not only man- 
 datory and remedial writs, but also original writs. The 
 latter were contrived or adapted to the special case of the 
 suitor, and upon these were founded the proceedings of 
 the King's Bench and Common Pleas. Many other writs, 
 relative to suits commenced or depending in other courts, 
 issue out of this court, many of which arc not returnable 
 into Chancery.
 
 108 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Courts of re ign of Edward I. 1 , wherein (after reciting that 
 great inconveniences had arisen from the mul- 
 
 EquxUiblc . .. i'ii/> i T"- i 
 
 jvLrhdkiion. titude or petitions laid before the King, the 
 greatest part whereof might be dispatched by 
 the Chancellor and the justices,) it was ordered, 
 that all petitions, prior to their being presented 
 to the Council, should first be discussed before 
 each of the judicial officers at the head of that 
 department to which those petitions respec- 
 tively and properly belonged ; and if the 
 matter were of such importance, or of grace 
 and favour, so that the Chancellor and others 
 could not administer relief without the King, 
 that then such petitions should be brought 
 before the King in Council, by the hands of the 
 Chancellor, to abide his (the King's) and their 
 decision. 2 
 
 Thus it is evident that to the Chancellor 
 had already been assigned the important duty 
 of attending to and judging of the merit of 
 petitions. That he was always attendant on 
 the King is proved by the statute 28th Ed- 
 ward I. c. 5., ordaining that the Chancellor and 
 other wise men of the law should always be 
 near the King 3 , to assist him with their advice 
 
 1 Rot. Claus. 8 Edw. I. m. 6. in dorso in ced. et Ryl. 
 Pla. Pari. 442. 
 
 2 Claus. 8 Ed. I. m. 6. in dorso in ced. 
 
 3 See 2 Inst. 551. 552. Lambard's Archion. 70. 129. 
 131.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 109 
 
 Courts of 
 Law. 
 
 in cases of difficulty and need. When, there- 
 fore, the Court of Chancery ceased to be 
 
 J Equitable 
 
 ambulatory, (which was in the commencement Jurisdiction. 
 of the reign of Edward the Third,) and be- 
 came fixed in a settled and appointed place, 
 the King and his Council, from that time, 
 were necessarily deprived of the ready and 
 immediate assistance of the Chancellor, who 
 had theretofore taken such an active and im- 
 portant part in advising on and devising reme- 
 dies for such causes of complaint as were laid 
 before them. 1 The Council was consequently 
 obliged, from that time forward, in cases of 
 need, to send to the Chancellor ; and hence 
 it is, that after this period the petitions are 
 often indorsed with the answer of the Coun- 
 cil, expressed thus, " Adeat in Cancellaria" 
 " Sequatur in Cancellaria" 
 
 The commencement of the Chancellor's 
 separate and independent equitable jurisdiction 
 most probably took place about the 223. year 
 of the reign of Edward III. 2 A writ addressed 
 
 1 According to Fleta, lib. ii. cap. 13. pp.75, 76, one 
 of the principal duties of the Chancellor was to hear and 
 examine petitions and complaints, and to afford the peti- 
 tioners due remedy by writ, according to the merits of the 
 case. 
 
 2 Lord Coke has stated that there was not any mention 
 in the books, &c. of a Court of Equity before the reign of 
 Henry V. See 2d Inst. 551.
 
 110 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Courts of to the sheriffs of London, entered on the Close 
 
 Law. 
 
 Rolls, as of that year, p. 2. m. C Z. in dorso, is 
 
 jurudktion. almost conclusive on this point : " Rex Vice- 
 comitibus London, salutem. Quia circa diversa 
 negotia nos et statum regni nostri Angliae 
 concernentia sumus indies multipliciter occu- 
 pati, Volumus quod quilibet negotia tarn com- 
 munem legem regni nostri Anglian quam gratiam 
 nostram specialem concernentia penes nosmet- 
 ipsos habens exnuncprosequenda, eadem negotia, 
 videlicet, negotia ad communem legem penes 
 venerabilem virum electum Cantuariensem coiifir- 
 matum Cancellarium nostrum, per ipsum eocpe- 
 dienda, et alia negotia de gratia nostra con- 
 cedenda penes eundem Cancellarium, sen dilec- 
 tum clericum nostrum custodem sigilli nostri prz- 
 vati prosequantur ; ita quod ipsi vel eorum alter 
 petitiones negotiorum quae per eos, nobis incon- 
 sultis, expediri non poterunt, una cum avisa- 
 mentis suis inde ad nos transmittant vel trans- 
 mittat, absque alia prosecutione penes nos inde 
 facienda, ut hiis inspectis ulterius praefato Can- 
 cellario, seu custodi inde significemus velle 
 nostrum ; et quod nullus alius hujusmodi negotia 
 penes nosmetipsos de caatero prosequatur, vobis 
 praecipimus quod statim visis praesentibus prae- 
 miss omnia et singula in Civitate praadicta in 
 locis ubi expedire videritis publice proclamari 
 faciatis in forma pracdicta. Et hoc nullatenus 
 omittatis. Teste Rege apud Langele xxiiij. 
 die Januarii. per ipsum Regem."
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Ill 
 
 The words " et alia negotia de gratia 
 nostra concedenda penes eundem Cancellarium " 
 seem to have first laid the basis on which the 
 equitable jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery 
 was built, for previously the granting of matters 
 of grace and favour was peculiar to the King 
 alone ' ; but this enabled the Chancellor to pro- 
 ceed in suits {C secundum cequum et bonum" 
 Although the Chancellor had, prior to this 
 time, taken the most active, and perhaps the 
 principal part in administering wquam et rec- 
 tam justitiam ; he does not appear previous!?/ 
 to have been the only responsible person, nor 
 to have had for such exercise of judgment 
 and authority a positive appointment from the 
 King ; Mr. George Jeremy, in his elaborate 
 treatise of the Equity Jurisdiction of the Court 
 of Chancery, says, " Although the Chancery, 
 and the name of the high officer who presided 
 therein, are mentioned in many early statutes, 
 it is not until the latter portion of the reign 
 of Edward the Third that a statute is met with 
 which can be considered to give any sanction 
 or even to bear any reference to the peculiar 
 or equity part of his jurisdiction. By the 36th 
 
 Courts of 
 Law. 
 
 Equitable 
 Jurisdiction. 
 
 1 The following passage on the Close Rolls shows that 
 
 in the reign of Henry III. a distinction was evidently drawn 
 
 between common law and equity. " Sciatis etiam quod 
 
 Willielmo de London unde nobis mandastis nihil fieri faciemus 
 
 per Dei gratiam nisi quod justum fuerit et consonum 
 
 JEQUiTATI."
 
 112 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Courts of Edward III. c. 9-, which forms part of a capitu- 
 lary of very comprehensive articles granted by 
 
 jurisdiction, the King with the assent of Parliament, it was 
 enacted, ' that if any man feel aggrieved con- 
 trary to any of the articles above written, or 
 others contained in divers statutes, and will 
 come into the Chancery, or any for him, and 
 thereof make complaint, he shall presently there 
 have remedy by force of the said articles and 
 statutes, without elsewhere pursuing to have 
 remedy.' Although this provision cannot be 
 considered to have laid the foundation of the 
 extraordinary jurisdiction of the Chancellor, it 
 might, according to the liberal interpretations 
 of those times, have been regarded as having 
 conferred upon him a more extensive and a 
 better sanctioned authority than he had previ- 
 ously any right to exercise ; but whether his 
 jurisdiction were assumed or delegated, it is 
 obvious that when once established, the more 
 diligently he and his officers exerted their inge- 
 nuity in the framing of new writs to the courts 
 of law, the more confined would be the oppor- 
 tunity or necessity of his extending it ; and it 
 is a matter of fact, that after the reign of this 
 monarch the number of the writs to the courts 
 of law was little, if at all, increased." ' 
 
 1 A Treatise on the Equity Jurisdiction of the High 
 Court of Chancery, p. 20, hy George Jeremy esq., Lond. 
 8vo. 1828.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION'. 
 
 113 
 
 That the Chancellor, however, did, from 
 this time forward, proceed to exercise a juris- 
 diction in matters of equity, is evident from 
 a petition addressed to him in the 38th Ed- 
 ward III. ', and that the powerful and compli- 
 cated machinery of equitable jurisdiction, as 
 
 Courts or 
 Law. 
 
 Equitable 
 Jurisdiction. 
 
 1 Au Chaunceller n're seign r le Roi J . monstre William 
 de Middelton' p'sone del esglise de Hamrae Preston q' come 
 la disme garbe de totes man's des bleedz cressantz dedeinz 
 sa dite paroche de Hamme Preston' a lui app'tinent & de 
 co'e droit deivent app'tenir i nientmeins le Dean de Wym- 
 burne mynstre ad acroche a lui p' usurpacion la disme garbe 
 de iiij xx . acres de waste t're de novel assart dedeinz sa dite 
 paroche a la value de xl. s . p' an en disheretison de sa dite 
 esglise i s r quey le dit William ad sui en consistoire levesq' 
 de Salesbury dev's Henry Bodyn & Wauter Caperon qi 
 occupieront la dite disme garbe en noun du dit Dean p r avoir 
 restitucion de mesme la disme garbe j et p r ce q' la chapelle 
 de Wymburne mynstre est la franche chapelle n're seign r le 
 Roi & exempt de jurisdiction de ordinarie mande feust 
 p'hibicion hors de la Chauncellerie au dit evesq' & son 
 official qils ne deussent riens attempter en p'judice de n're 
 s r le Roi ne de sa dite tranche chappelle :' p' quey le dit 
 official ad s v sys daler avant en la dite cause : p' quey le dit 
 William prie a v're g a ciouse seign r ie q' vous pleise ordiner 
 remedie q' sa dite esglise ne soit disherite encontre co'e 
 droit. 
 
 In dorso. — Me d q'd xxiij. die April' anno regni Regis 
 E. t'cij t'cesimo octavo tarn Will's de Middelton infrascript' 
 in p'pria p'sona sua q a m Decanus de Wymbourmynstre p' 
 Joh'em Tamworth attorn' suu' venerunt in cancellar' R' 
 apud Westm' j & de assensu eor'dem datus est eis dies in 
 eadem cancellar' in quindena S'c'e Trinitatis p'x' futur' ad 
 faciend' & recipicnd' de contentis in ista petic'o'e quod cur' 
 d'ni Regis considerav'it. Miscel. Petit, in Turr. Lond. 
 38 Ed. III.
 
 114 
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 courts of afterwards displayed, had been set in motion 
 by this proclamation is clearly to be collected 
 
 jurisdiction, from the petition of the Commons in the 7th of 
 Richard II. 1 , which prayeth, " que desormes 
 mile comision soit directe hors de la Chancel- 
 lerie, ne lettere de prive seal, pur destourber 
 la possession d'aucum liege le Roy, sanz due 
 proces & respons du partie, & especialment 
 quant la partie est prest de faire ce que la Loy 
 demande, &c." the answer to which petition 
 was, " Ceux qi se sentent grevez monstrent 
 lour grevance en especial a Chanceller, qi lour 
 purvoiera de remede, &c." In the 13th year of 
 the same King, the Commons pray, that " neither 
 the Chancellor, nor any other person, may make 
 any ordinance against the common law, or an- 
 cient custom of the realm, and the statutes 
 already made, or to be made in this present 
 parliament, but that the Common Law may run 
 impartially for all the people ; and that no judg- 
 ment given shall be annulled without due pro- 
 cess of law." The reply was as evasive as the 
 generality of royal answers to petitions were at 
 that period : " Soit use come ad este use devant 
 ces hures, issint que la Regalie du Roi soit 
 sauve. Et si ascun soi sente greve, monstre en 
 especial, et droit luy serra fait." 2 And by another 
 
 i Rot. Pari. 7 Ric. II. vol. iii. p. 162, 163. 
 -' Rot. Pari. 13 Ric. II. vol. iii. p. 266, 267.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 116 
 
 petition in the same year, " the Commons prayed 
 that none of the King's lieges be made to come 
 by writ Quibusdam certis de causis, nor by any 
 other such writ, to appear before the Chancellor 
 or the King's Council to answer any matter for 
 which remedy might be obtained at Common 
 Law, &c, on penalty to the Chancellor of one 
 hundred pounds, to be levied to the use of the 
 King, and the clerk who wrote the writ to lose 
 his office in the Chancery, and never to be 
 placed in any other office in the Chancery." 
 To which petition the King made answer, " Le 
 Roy voet sauver sa Regalie, come ses proge- 
 nitours ont faitz devant luy," J The answers were 
 doubtless equivalent to a negative, as no statute 
 was made thereupon ; and it is evident that the 
 Commons did not gain any thing by their peti- 
 tions, as appears by the act 17th Richard II. 
 cap. 6., which, reciting that people were com- 
 
 courts ok 
 Law. 
 
 Equitable 
 Jurisdiction, 
 
 1 In the 15th of Richard II. two petitions were ad- 
 dressed to the King and the Lords of parliament, the answer 
 to each of which was the same; " Soit ceste peticion 
 mandez en la Chancellerie, et le Chanceller par auctorite 
 du Parlement face venir les parties devant luy en la dite 
 Chancellerie, et illoeqez la matire en ceste peticion compris 
 dilitreaument vieue et examine, et oiez les resons dune 
 parte et dautre, outre soit fait par auctorite de Parlement 
 ce que droit et reson et bone foy et bone conscience de- 
 mandent en le cas." Hot. Pari. vol. iii. p. 297. From the 
 above words it is evident that the Chancellor exercised 
 equitable jurisdiction as well by Royal authority as by that 
 of the parliament. 
 
 I 2
 
 116 
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Courts of 
 Law. 
 
 Equitable 
 Jurisdiction. 
 
 pelled to come before the King's Council, or into 
 Chancery, by writs grounded on untrue sugges- 
 tions, enacts, that the Chancellor for the time 
 being, presently after such suggestions be duly 
 found and proved to be untrue, shall have power 
 to award and ordain damages, according to his 
 discretion, to him who is so unduly troubled as 
 aforesaid. This statute merely gives the Chan- 
 cellor power to award damages to such as were 
 compelled to come before him in Chancery by 
 writs grounded on untrue suggestions. The 
 untrue suggestions here mentioned, which seem 
 to have been the causes of so much animadver- 
 sion, were false allegations made by persons 
 applying to the Chancery for writs of subpoena, 
 upon which the Chancellor granted writs return- 
 able before himself, instead of making the same 
 returnable in the Courts of Common Law ; 
 " paront les loialx liges du Roialme sont tor- 
 cenousement travaillez et vexez, &c. sanz re- 
 coverir ent avoir de lour damages et coustages." 
 It has been suggested 1 that bills and petitions 
 addressed to the Chancellor 2 were first filed in 
 
 1 See Cooper on the Public Records, vol. i. p. 457. 
 
 2 Many valuable and curious specimens of ancient bills 
 and petitions addressed to the Chancellor during the reigns 
 of Richard , II., Henry V., Henry VI., Edward IV., and 
 Richard III., are prefixed to the first and second volumes 
 of the Calendars of Chancery proceedings in the reign of 
 Queen Elizabeth, published by direction of the Record 
 Commission.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 117 
 
 the seventeenth of Richard II., in consequence 
 of this statute. 
 
 The equitable jurisdiction of the Court of 
 Chancery made rapid advancement during the 
 reigns of Richard the Second and the three 
 succeeding Sovereigns, though many attempts 
 were made to subvert it, all of which, however, 
 proved ineffective. That portion of equitable 
 interference which appeared the most obnoxious 
 to the people, was the writ of subpoena, now 
 the leading and principal process of an Equity 
 Court. The general distaste exhibited by the 
 Commons in their petitions during several years 
 after the first use of this writ is remarkable, 
 and their feelings on the subject may be esti- 
 mated by the uncourteous way they speak of 
 the framer of the writ. " Item priont les Com- 
 munes que come plusours gentz de vostre 
 roialme soy sentent graundment grevez de ceo 
 que vos briefs appelles briefs sub pena, et certis 
 de causis, faitz et suez hors de vostre Chaun- 
 celerie et Escheqer, des matiers determinables 
 par vostre commune ley, que unques ne furent 
 grauntez ne usez devaunt le temps le darrein 
 Roy Richard, que Johan Waltham ' nadgairs 
 
 1 Though John de Waltham has been handed down 
 to posterity by the parliament of the 3d Hen. V. as the first 
 framer of the mueh-eondemned writ of subpoena, yet there 
 is reason to believe that it did not originate with him, but 
 
 I 3 
 
 Courts of 
 Law. 
 
 Equitable 
 Jurisdiction.
 
 118 
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Law. 
 
 Equitable 
 Jurisdiction. 
 
 Co t ^w ° F Evesque de Salesbirs, de sa subtiltee fist trover 
 et commencier tiel novelrie encountre la fourme 
 de la commune ley de vostre roialme, si bien 
 a tres graunde perde et arrerisment des profitz 
 que duissent sourder a vous soveraigne seigneur 
 en voz courtes, &c. Et en outre, que si bien 
 la peyne contenue en tieux briefs patentz, come 
 tout la proces d'ycelles, soient voidez et tenuz 
 pur null ; et si ascuns tieux briefs appellez sub 
 pe?ia, et certis de causis, et Quia datum est nobis 
 intelligi, soient suez hors de vos ditz courtz, 
 encontre cest ordinance en temps a venir, que 
 mesmes les briefs et tout la proces dependants 
 sur ycelles, soient tout outrement voidez et 
 tenuz pur null." The answer of the King was 
 " Le Roy soy avisera, 1 " which shows that the 
 
 that he merely modified and augmented a writ somewhat 
 similar in its effects, and which was very prevalent in the 
 reign of Edward III. Numerous entries on the Close Rolls 
 of the reign of that King are to be found, which show that 
 parties became surety, " sub poena centum librarum de terris 
 et catallis suis ad opus regis levandis," that defendants 
 should be in the Court of Chancery at a fixed day ; and 
 on the Close Roll of 37 Edw. III. it appears that, upon 
 petition exhibited, the defendants were commanded " quod 
 essent in Cancellaria Regis ad certum diem ubicumque tunc 
 foret ad ostendendum si quid pro se haberent vel dicere 
 scirent quare, &c. et ad faciendum ulterius quod curia con- 
 sideraret, &c. et quia praedicti defendentes qui de essendo in 
 Cancellaria praedicta ad diem prasdictum sufBcienter prae- 
 muniti fuerunt in eadem Cancellaria ad diem ilium solem- 
 niter vocati non venerunt," the sheriff was commanded to 
 levy distress on the land in dispute. 
 
 1 Rot. Pari. 3 Hen. V. vol. iv. p. 84.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 119 
 
 writ of subpoena was esteemed, by those who 
 knew its value, too efficacious a mode of effecting 
 justice, to be subverted without sufficient cause. 
 The Commons, however, presented another 
 petition on the subject, in the ninth of Henry 
 the Fifth, which was not more successful in its 
 results than the former one : " Soit il advisee 
 par le Roi. Et dureront tres toutz les ordinances 
 suisditz tanque a le Parlement proscheinement 
 a tenir, 1 " was the equivocal and unsatisfactory 
 answer. King Henry the Fifth did not, how- 
 ever, live to convoke another Parliament, nor 
 did the Commons rest satisfied, but they again 
 petitioned the Parliament, holden in the name 
 of the young King, to put a restriction on the 
 equitable jurisdiction of the Chancery. The 
 answer given to this petition was et soit l'estatut 
 ent fait Tan xvij. del regne du Roi Richard 
 Secounde gardez et mys en due execution." 
 Notwithstanding this positive answer of the Par- 
 liament, the Commons renewed their remon- 
 strances in the fifteenth of Henry the Sixth : 
 " Also prayen the Communes }>at for asmuche 
 as divers persones have been gretly vexed and 
 greved by writtes subpena purchased for maters 
 determinables be the commune lawe of this 
 lande, to ]?e grete harmes of the persones so 
 vexed, and in subversion and lettying of the 
 
 Courts of 
 Law. 
 
 E(]uitalle 
 Jurisdiction. 
 
 1 Rot. Pari. U Hun. V. vol.iv. p. 156. 
 I 4
 
 120 
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Courts of 
 Law. 
 
 Equitable 
 Jurisdiction. 
 
 saide commune lawe," &c. To this petition the 
 following answer was given, " J?e King will that 
 the statuits made J>erof be duely kept after the 
 forme and effect of J)e same ; and ty no writ of 
 sub pena be grauntid hereafter till seurtee be 
 founde to satisfie J)e partie so vexed and greved 
 for his damages and expenses, if it so be J>at the 
 matier may not be made goode which is con- 
 tenyd in the byll." ' It may be inferred that 
 this statute satisfied the Commons, or else they 
 found it useless to make further remonstrances 
 against the increasing power of equitable juris- 
 diction; and in the seventh of Edward IV., when 
 Robert Kirkham, Master of the Rolls, had the 
 Great Seal delivered to him by the King, the 
 following memorandum was entered on the Close 
 Roll 2 of that year : " And, over this, the King 
 willed and commanded there and thanne that all 
 manere of maters, to be examyned and discussed 
 in the Court of Chauncery, should be directed 
 and determined accordyng to eqtjite and con- 
 science, and to the old cours and laudable cus- 
 tume of the same Court, so that if in any such 
 maters any difficultie or question of lawe happen 
 to ryse, that he herein take th' advis and coun- 
 sel of sume of the Kynges justices, so that 
 right and justice may be duely ministred to every 
 man." 
 
 i Stat, of Realm, 15 Hen. VI. c. 4. 
 
 2 Rot. Claus. 7. Ed. IV. m. 12. in dorso.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 From this time the jurisdiction of the Court 
 of Equity went on smoothly, and the Chancellor 
 daily acquired additional power and importance, 
 transacting every thing vice nomine et loco Regis 1 , 
 and deciding causes by the rules of his own con- 
 science ; in fact, he had become sole judge in 
 matters of equity, and almost possessed potes- 
 tatem absolutam ; but Mr. Jeremy is of opinion 
 that the Chancellor's power in all its important 
 functions was not finally determined until the 
 reign of James I. 
 
 121 
 
 Courts of 
 Law. 
 
 Equitable 
 Jurisdiction- 
 
 LAWS. 
 
 Having attempted a brief description of 
 the early Courts of Law and Equity, it may be 
 necessary to show in what manner a reference 
 to the instruments in this Volume may be made 
 available in explaining and illustrating old laws 
 and law maxims, and for this purpose a few 
 subjects have been selected to draw attention 
 to the species of legal matter found in the Close 
 Rolls. 
 
 Laws. 
 
 1 The first occurrence of these words is in the patent 
 of the first of Henry VI., granted by the advice and assent 
 of the King's Council in Parliament, which created Thomas 
 bishop of Durham, Chancellor.
 
 122 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Laws. 
 
 Leprosy. — On the subject of this loath- 
 some disease, little has been stated either in our 
 histories, chronicles, or laws. Glanville makes 
 no mention of leprosy; and Theloall, in le Digest 
 des Briefs originals, lib. 1. cap. 9, says " Je ne 
 ay leu e ascun de nostres livres q leprosy serroit 
 ascun impediment pur home de user action, sinon 
 en Bracton, mes il sembleroit bone reason, q il 
 ne suyroit en propre person, eins touz foitz p 
 attorney, si come la ley est que il serra separee 
 a communione popul\ Les parols de Bracton 
 sont tiels ; lib. 5. tract. 5. cap. 20. 421 : Datur 
 etiam exceptio tenenti ex persona petentis 
 peremptoria propter morbum petentis incura- 
 bilem, et corporis deformitatem : ut si petens 
 leprosus fuerit, et tarn deformis quod aspectus 
 eum sustinere non possit, et ita quod a commu- 
 nione gentium sit separatus, talis quidem placi- 
 tare non potest, nee hsereditatem petere," &c. 
 
 Amongst the Normans, leprosy was an im- 
 pediment to succession ', when any person was 
 solemnly adjudged to be afflicted with that dis- 
 temper by sentence of the church 2 ; but Bracton 
 
 1 " Celuy qui est juge et separe pcur maladie de lepre 
 ne peut succeder, et neanmoins il retient l'heritage qu'il 
 avoit lors qu'il fut rendu, pour en jouyr par usufruit tant 
 qu'il est vivant, sans le pouvoir aliener." La Coustume d? 
 Normandie, Art. 274. 
 
 '-' La Coustume de Norm. p. 308.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 123 
 
 says, that with us in England, though it be an laws . 
 exception to a plaintiff, on account of the danger 
 of the disease being spread incurred by his ap- 
 pearance in the courts of law, yet it is not an 
 impediment to descent ; and my Lord Coke says, 
 (2 Inst.,) that " a leper may be heir to another." 
 Notwithstanding these high authorities, it may, 
 however, be inferred from an entry at page 1 of 
 this Volume, that according to the ancient law 
 of England, leprosy in England, as in France, 
 was an impediment to descent. It appears that 
 a grant made by a person after he fell sick of 
 the leprosy was void : " The King, &c. to the 
 sheriff of Somerset, greeting. We command 
 you to give to Geoffry de St. Martin seizin of 
 the lands which belonged to William of New- 
 march, in your bailiwick. For we have com- 
 mitted to him the custody thereof, so that he 
 answer for them to us at our exchequer ; and 
 if he (William of Newmarch) have given away 
 any of his lands after he fell sick of the leprosy, 
 cause the same to be restored to his barony. 
 Witness, &c." In the Abbreviatio Placilorum, 
 page 9, leprosy was pleaded and allowed, in the 
 reign of King John, and the land thereupon 
 adjudged from a leprous brother to the sister. 
 
 Breve de ventre inspiciendo. — The ear- 
 liest entry on this subject upon record occurs 
 in a document presented in this Volume at
 
 124 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Laws - page 435. The intent of this writ was to prevent 
 a supposititious heir from being set up to the 
 prejudice of the heir presumptive, and was 
 granted to such heir presumptive against the 
 widow of the deceased, through whom the pro- 
 perty descended, upon suspicion of her feign- 
 ing herself with child, according to the rule of 
 law set forth in the Registrum Brevium, made 
 for the benefit and safety of right heirs, contra 
 partus suppositos. 1 
 
 That the practice of the species of decep- 
 tion here alluded to was frequently attempted 
 in those times is evident from the numerous 
 regulations devised for the purpose of preventing 
 the success of such attempts ; and the seventh 
 
 1 The words are these : " Nota quod si quis habens 
 haereditatem duxerit aliquam in uxorem, et postea moriatur 
 ille sine haerede de corpore suo exeunte, per quod haereditas 
 ilia fratri ipsius defuncti descendere debeat, et uxor ilia 
 dicit se esse pregnantem de ipso defuncto cum non sit, 
 habeat frater et haeres ejus breve de ventre inspiciendo." 
 " It seemeth,'' says Lord Coke, page 8 b , by Bracton (lib. ii. 
 fo.69.) and Fleta (lib. i. c. 14.) " that this writ doth lie ' ubi 
 uxor alicujus in vita viri sui se pregnantem finxit cum non 
 sit, vel post mortem viri sui se pregnantem fecit, cum non 
 sit de viro suo mortuo, ad exhaeredationem veri haeredis &c. 
 ad querelam veri haeredis per praeceptum domini Regis, &c.' 
 which is to be understood according to the rule of the 
 Registr. ; when a man, having lands in fee simple, dieth, 
 and his wife soon after marrieth again, and feigns herself 
 with child by her former husband, in this case, though she 
 be married, the writ • de ventre inspiciendo' doth lie."
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 125 
 
 clause in Magna Charta, namely, il that the Laws . 
 widow should remain « in capitali mesuagio mariti 
 sui per quadraginta dies post obitum mariti sai,' " 
 though doubtless intended for the benefit of the 
 widow, yet, nevertheless, says Barrington, in 
 his observations on the statute, it was to prevent 
 a supposititious child ; and in the laws of Hoel 
 Dda (p. 164) it appears that the anxiety to pre- 
 vent this imposition was greater still : " Fcemina, 
 quae se pregnantem qffirmaverit tempore mortis 
 mariti sui, in domo ejus manebit, donee constiterit 
 utrnm pregnans fuerit vel non ; et tunc, si non 
 fuerit pregnans, mulctam solvat trium 'vaccarum, 
 et domum et fundum hceredi relinquat. ,y If the 
 widow, upon due examination, were, however 
 found to be enceinte, she was to be kept under 
 restraint until delivered ; but if not found to 
 be pregnant, then the presumptive heir was to 
 be forthwith admitted to the inheritance. Upon 
 comparison, the entry at page 435 of this Volume 
 will be found to agree in most particulars with 
 the writ in the Registrum Brevium. See also 
 the entry in the Abbreviatio Placitorum, 26th 
 Henry III. p. 119. 
 
 Adultery. — Being only an offence of spi- 
 ritual cognizance, it was never criminal in this 
 country, either by common or statute law, except 
 during the time of the Protectorate, when to 
 commit adultery and fornication w r as made
 
 126 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Laws. 
 
 felony, in both man and woman, without benefit 
 of clergy. 1 
 
 By the laws of Solon, if a man detected 
 another in the act of adultery with his wife, 
 he was allowed to kill him upon the spot ; so 
 likewise by the Roman law, when the adulterer 
 was found in the husband's own house : it was 
 also the same among the Goths. With us, how- 
 ever, such slaying is not ranked in the class of 
 justifiable homicide, as in cases of forcible 
 rape, but in that of manslaughter. 2 
 
 A curious case of adultery may be noticed 
 at page 126, whence it appears that the husband 
 inflicted summary punishment, for which offence 
 he was not held as cognizable at law, because he 
 had prohibited the adulterer from coming to his 
 house. 
 
 Original Writs. — It has been already 
 stated that one of the principal duties of the 
 
 1 This borders on the severity of a law in Sicily, that 
 " si quis cum volente et acquiesceute vidua stuprum commi- 
 serit, Jlammis ultricibus exureturT Vide Const. Sic. p. 251. 
 Concerning the punishment of women taken in adultery 
 in France, see some instances in La Coustume de Normandie, 
 p. 402. Also see the case of a woman banished out of the 
 town of Calais for adultery, by the law and custom of that 
 place, in the Registrum, p. 551. 
 
 2 Black. Com. vol. iv. p. 191.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 1^7 
 
 Chancellor was to frame original writs and man- Laws. 
 dates, according as the circumstances which the 
 cases submitted to him by the King demanded, 
 to relieve suitors who found the existing law, as 
 administered, oppressive ; or wherein the law 
 did not provide a proper or sufficient remedy. 1 
 In process of time, however, the framing of 
 writs became a matter of so much certainty that 
 hardly any case could arise for which an estab- 
 lished precedent could not be found to give the 
 specific redress required. From several instances 
 in this Volume it appears that new forms of 
 writs were frequently ordered to be used for 
 the future, without any reason assigned, as at 
 page 32, " Hoc breve de ccvtero erit de cursu." 
 Again, new forms were adopted, without any 
 remark, as at page 114, for in that entry letters 
 are substituted for the names of the parties. 
 New forms again occur, without any other notice 
 than the word forma, as at p. 210. These and 
 similar entries cannot, however, but be deemed 
 important, because they show that the Officina 
 brevium was at that time in existence. 2 The 
 
 1 On the subject of the Chancellor, John of Salishcry 
 says, in his Polycraticon, written about the year 1170, 
 
 " Hie est, qui leges regni cancellat iniquas, 
 Et mandata pii principis aequa facto." 
 
 2 It is evidently implied, by the statute of Westmin- 
 ster 2, 13 Edward I. c.24, that the Officina brevium had been 
 some time established, for in that statute it is provided that
 
 128 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Laws. entry at page 32 is an early specimen of those 
 writs intituled " de cursu" which were issued 
 out of Chancery upon the applicant finding 
 pledges, and swearing that he had a true cause 
 of action. It was in consequence of this assump- 
 tion of authority on the part of the Chancellor, 
 which was considered as exceeding the duties 
 of his office, that it was provided by the Council 
 at Oxford, in the year 1258, that the Chancellor 
 was not to have the power of issuing any other 
 
 " et quotienscumque decaetero evenerit in Cancellaria quod 
 in uno casu reperitur breve et in consimili casu cadente sub 
 eodem jure et simili indigente remedio concordent clerici 
 de Cancellaria in brevi faciendo vel atterminent quaerentes 
 in proximo parliamento et scribant casus in quibus concor- 
 dare non possunt et referant eos ad proximum parliamentum 
 et de consensu jurisperitorum fiat breve ne contingat de- 
 caetero quod curia diu deficiat quaerentibus in justitia per- 
 quirenda." Upon consulting the Registrum de Cancellaria, 
 better known as the Registrum Brevium, it will be found 
 that remedies were to be had for almost every species of 
 wrong that could be committed, by suing for a writ spe- 
 cially adapted to the case. Hence Blackstone argues, that 
 with a little accuracy on the part of the clerks of Chancery, 
 and a little liberality on that of the judges, by extending 
 rather than narrowing the remedial effects of the writ, the 
 provision of the statute of Westminster might have effec- 
 tually answered all the purposes of an equity court, except 
 that of obtaining a discovery by the oath of the defendant. 
 This was also the opinion of Fairfax, a very learned judge 
 in the time of Edward IV. " Le subpama " (says he) " ne 
 serroit my cy soventement use come il est ore, si nous attendo- 
 mons dels actions sur les cases, et mainteinoums la jurisdiction 
 de ceo court, et d'auter courts." Year Book, 21 Edward IV. 
 p. 23.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. I 1 *) 
 
 writs than such as were by the direct command laws 
 of the King or of his Council. 1 
 
 Falsifying. — The crime of falsifying- may 
 be divided into several species, as relating to 
 false charters, false measures, false money, and 
 others. 3 From instruments in pages 15 and 32 
 it appears that William Scrubz being convicted, 
 " per feloniam quam fecit de fals'ificatiorie sigilli 
 Regis" all his lands were escheated to the 
 Crown ; at page 367, that William Kocaine had 
 given security " quod stabit recto in curia Regis 
 de falsis cartis et falsis sigillis et aliis de quibus 
 rcttatusfuit et imprisonatus" 
 
 " It should be observed," says Glanville, 
 " that if a person be convicted of falsifying a 
 charter it becomes necessary to distinguish 
 whether it be a royal 4 or a private one ; be- 
 cause, when convicted of the offence, the party 
 shall, in the former case, be condemned as in 
 
 i Annal. Burt. 413. 
 
 2 Vide Bract. 1 19 b . Fleta, lib. i. c. 22. Britton. c. 4. 
 
 a Vide Glan. lib. xiv. c. 7. 
 
 4 Of the King's charters Bracton says, " neither the 
 justices nor private individuals can dispute nor inter- 
 pret them if a doubt arise, but recourse must be had to the 
 King himself; and if the charters be defective, through 
 rasure, or from a false seal being attached to them, it is 
 better and safer to decide the matter in the King's 
 presence." 
 
 K
 
 130 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 laws, t ] ie cr i me f i i eese Majesty ;' but in the latter 
 the convict is to be dealt with in a milder man- 
 ner." The case of Scrubz may be placed under 
 the first of these heads ; that of Kocaine under 
 the second. 
 
 Will and Testament. — Blackstone says, 
 that in England the power of bequeathing 
 is coeval with the first rudiments of law ', for 
 we have no traces or memorials of any time 
 when it did not exist. There seems to be no 
 doubt of lands having been devisable by will 
 before the Conquest 2 ; but upon the introduction 
 of military tenures a restraint upon devising 
 lands (except those holden in socage) took 
 place, as it was one of the qualities of feuds, 
 that the feudatory could not alien or dispose of 
 his feud ; neither could he devise it by will. 3 
 
 Since the Conquest the common law had 
 given to every one a right to dispose of personal 
 property, but no estate greater than for a term 
 of years could be disposed of by will. The 
 restraints upon alienation by will continued for 
 some centuries after the restraint on aliena- 
 tion by deed had been removed ; and it was 
 not till the reign of Henry VIII. that lands 
 
 i Vol. ii. p. 491. 
 
 2 Wright on Tenures, p. 172. 3 Ibid. p. 29.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 131 
 
 were permitted to be disposed of by will ' ; and Laws - 
 not till the Restoration, that the power of de- 
 vising real property became valid, which was 
 occasioned by the conversion of all lands (ex- 
 cept some copyholds) into socage tenure. 
 
 From a mandate in page 1 69 it appears that 
 a man could not devise land which he had of the 
 King's gift : by which it evidently is intended 
 to mean lands holden in capite, which before 
 the statute of Quia Emptores could not be de- 
 vised without the consent of the chief lord of 
 the fee. The words are these : " Rex domino 
 P. Winton' Episcopo Justiciario Anglice, 8$c t 
 Mandamus nobis quod tenerifaciatis test amentum 
 Adce de Gurdun quod fecit de rebus suis mo- 
 bilibus et omnibus aliis in Anglid secundum 
 dispositionem testamenti excepta terra quam de 
 dono nostro habuit." (Vide p. 169.) 
 
 Many other documents will be found eluci- 
 datory of testamentary laws and customs. 
 
 Ecclesiastical Law. — Instruments illus- 
 trative of matters and causes liable to eccle- 
 siastical cognizance are of frequent occurrence 
 in this Volume : the following is not unworthy 
 of attention, as being a curious instance of the 
 
 1 By 32 Hen. VIII. c. 1. all socage lands were made 
 devisable, and two thirds of land held by military tenure, 
 
 K 2
 
 132 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Laws. Ecclesiastical Court having exceeded its power, 
 in the 8th of Hen. III., by appealing to the 
 Court of Rome in a case of bastardy, and for 
 which it appears to have received a severe re- 
 buke from the King. 
 
 " The King to the Archbishop of Dublin, 
 Justiciary of Ireland, greeting. In reply to the 
 charge we lately gave you, to write to us again 
 in what manner you had proceeded in the cause 
 of Nicholas de Felda, who sued the abbot and 
 canons of St. Thomas at Dublin, before our 
 judges in our court, for two carucates of land, 
 with their appurtenances, in Kelredheri, by an 
 assize of mort d'ancestor, but against whom, 
 before the said judges, the bar of bastardy 
 having been objected, it was by the samejudges 
 referred to you in the Ecclesiastical Court to 
 pronounce upon his bastardy or legitimacy, — 
 you declare to us by your letters, that as he 
 sued for the said land in the Civil Court, by 
 our letters of mort d'ancestor, against the afore- 
 mentioned abbot and canons, and the bar of 
 bastardy having been objected to him, you 
 have therefore proceeded no further in that 
 court. And, moreover, that the afore-mentioned 
 Nicholas, by mandate from our judges, being 
 willing to prove his legitimacy before you in the 
 Ecclesiastical Court, produced his witnesses, 
 and their attestations being declared, after long-
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 133 
 
 continued controversies and altercations as well laws. 
 on the part of the abbot as of the same Nicholas, 
 when you were proceeding to give final judg- 
 ment, two girls appeared, who were in their 
 minority, and were the daughters of Richard 
 de la Feld, father of the aforesaid Nicholas, and 
 appealed to you not to proceed in giving judg- 
 ment, since this would manifestly be converted 
 to their prejudice, in as much as they would be 
 precluded from seeking elsewhere the inherit- 
 ance claimed, neither could they be relieved 
 by putting it in its former state. Whereupon, 
 deferring to that appeal, by the advice of pru- 
 dent men, as you say, you transmitted the cause 
 to the Pope, drawn out as it had been discussed 
 before you ; at which we are greatly astonished, 
 and not without just cause provoked, that, not- 
 withstanding the said Nicholas's legitimacy was 
 made fully evident to you by the production 
 of the witnesses and their declared attestations, 
 you should nevertheless, because of the appeal 
 of the girls aforesaid, who were in no wise con- 
 cerned nor even mentioned in the assize referred 
 to, nor was either of them a party to the suit, 
 have therefore put off pronouncing final judg- 
 ment, and improperly, as it were declining our 
 trial, have wished to refer to a foreign dignity 
 what was within our jurisdiction, and apper- 
 tained to our dignity alone to determine, thereby 
 setting a most pernicious precedent. And fur- 
 
 k 3
 
 134. GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Laws. £} ier> even if ^g aforesaid Nicholas had obtained 
 possession of the land aforesaid by the said 
 assize, the benefit of petition for the inheritance 
 was clearly open to the aforesaid girls, in our 
 court, by writ of right, especially as by our 
 letters of mort d'ancestor the question was of 
 the possession, and not of the property ; and 
 in the case offered for your consideration, 
 nothing more belonged to your authority than 
 to admit the proofs of the said Nicholas's legi- 
 timacy, and then to send him back to our judges, 
 with your letters testimonial. By the advice, 
 therefore, of our ' Magnates ' and * Fideles ' 
 assisting us, we command and firmly enjoin 
 you, notwithstanding the appeal premised, not 
 on that account to delay your judgment, remit- 
 ting him (the said Nicholas), with your letters 
 testimonial, to our judges, in order that they 
 may, in the imparlance to be argued before 
 them, be enabled to exhibit to him plenitude 
 of justice, according to the laws and customs 
 of our land of Ireland. Witness H. &c. (Hubert 
 de Burgh, Chief Justice of England) at 
 Gloucester, on the 10th day of November." 
 p. 629.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 135 
 
 Illustrations 
 
 of HlSTOnY. 
 
 ILLUSTRATIONS OF HISTORY. 
 
 Commencements of the Kings' Reigns. — 
 It does not appear to have been the ancient 
 practice of the English Constitution at the 
 decease of a Kin": to consider his successor as 
 King until he had been inaugurated : the modern 
 law maxim is that the King never dies, which 
 supposes that in England there can be no inter- 
 regnum l 3 the next heir succeeding as King im- 
 mediately upon the throne becoming vacant. 
 King John did not assume the regal dignity 
 and prerogatives until he had been crowned, 
 although his brother Richard had been dead 
 
 1 This is not in accordance with what is laid down as 
 law in Dyer and Anderson, which is " that the King, who 
 is heir or successor to the deceased King, may write him- 
 self as King and begin his reign the same day that his pro- 
 genitor or predecessor dies." Since the accession of 
 Edward I. there has been no interregnum. " The Crown 
 has always been claimed, though not constantly enjoyed, 
 by right of blood ;" and from the precedents adduced and 
 opinions taken at the accession of James I. it was declared 
 to be the law of England, " that there can be no inter- 
 regnum within the same.'' (HowelFs State Trials, vol. ii. 
 p. 626.) " It is now therefore an established maxim of 
 constitutional law, that immediately on the death of the 
 King the right of the Crown is vested in his heir, who com- 
 mences his reign from that moment." Allen on Prerogative, 
 p. 49. Black. Com. vol. i. p. 96. Tyrrell's Bibliotheca Poli- 
 tica, p. 169. 
 
 K 4
 
 lot) GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Illustrations upwards of seven weeks ' before the coronation 
 
 of History. 
 
 took place ; and the reign of Henry III., like 
 
 that of his father, was reckoned from the day 
 of his enthronement. 2 The accession of Ed- 
 ward I. was held to be upon the day of his 
 recognition, and not upon the day of his father's 
 demise, which happened four days previously. 3 
 The fact that all the Rolls of Chancery, namely, 
 
 i Richard I. died on the 6th of April 1199. King 
 John was crowned on the 27th of the following May, 
 which was Ascension Day, and his regnal year was com- 
 puted from one Ascension Day to the next ; consequently 
 some of the years of his reign exhibit an increase of seven 
 weeks more than others, owing to the day of his corona- 
 tion being that of a moveable feast, which of course some- 
 times fell earlier or later, as Easter happened. 
 
 2 Henry III. was not elected king till the feast of 
 Saint Simon and Saint Jude ; and his coronation took 
 place on the following day, though John had been then 
 dead since the eighteenth. " II est remarquable qu'on 
 ne commenca a dater du regne de ce prince que du jour 
 de son couronnement, comme il est marque dans le Livre 
 Rouge de l'Echiquier. ' Notandum ' y est-il dit, ' quod 
 data Regis Henrici filii Johannis mutavit* in festo Apostolo- 
 rum Simonis et Judae, videlicet, 28 a die mensis Octobris.'" 
 L Art de verifier les Dates. 
 
 3 " Anno Domini M°CC°LXXII mense Novembri obiit 
 dominus Henricus illustris Rex Anglise, anno vero regni 
 sui LVII , incepto in festo Apostolorum Symonis et Judae 
 proximo praecedente. 
 
 " Anno Domini M°CC°LXXII mense Novembri in 
 festo beati Edmundi incepit regnare Edwardus illustris Rex 
 Angliae post sepulturam Henrici patris sui," Ex vetusL 
 Mcmb. in Turr. Lond. 
 
 * This word in the original Record appears to be iniilavit for inUidvit.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 137 
 
 the Patent, Charter, Close, and Fine Rolls, illustrations 
 
 of History. 
 
 commence the regnal year of each King agree- 
 
 ably to this mode of computation supports this 
 hypothesis ; and, moreover, it does not appear 
 that any of the early English Monarchs exer- 
 cised any act of sovereign power, or disposed 
 of public affairs, till after their election or coro- 
 nation. These few examples appear to be un- 
 deniable proofs, that the fundamental laws and 
 constitutions of this kingdom, based on the 
 Anglo-Saxon custom, were, at that time, against 
 an hereditary succession, unless by common 
 consent of the whole realm : however, " the 
 Crown of England (says Allen l ) has been for 
 ages hereditary, and it has been long a settled 
 principle of English law, that on the death of 
 the King his royal dignity descends immediately 
 to his successor. That principle is not now to 
 be controverted. It has been sanctioned by the 
 practice of many centuries, and is become a 
 fundamental maxim of constitutional law." 
 
 The Close Rolls have been stated to abound 
 in information concerning the condition of 
 society ; it belongs, however, to the historian 
 to select and apply such instruments as may 
 correct the errors and prejudices of previous 
 writers. With the view of testing the integrity 
 and comparative merits of the elder historians 
 
 1 Inquiry into the Rise and Growth of the Royal 
 Prerogative in England, by John Allen, p. 46.
 
 138 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 illustrations anc ] chroniclers, a few entries, and those of 
 
 of History. ' 
 
 minor importance, have been selected from the 
 
 Close Rolls ; because, if it be shown that those 
 writers have detailed with exactness and accu- 
 racy trifling and unimportant events, they 
 become more entitled to confidence in their 
 narrations of matters of greater moment. 
 
 It is related by Matthew Paris, that " Eodem 
 anno (1222) sexto idus Februarii, audita sunt 
 tonitrua terribilia ; ex quorum collisione fulmen 
 exiliens," &c. Again, " in eodem anno in die 
 exaltationis Sanctas Crucis, per totam Angliam 
 mugierunt horrenda tonitrua; et sequuta est 
 inundatio pluviarum, cum turbine, et impetu 
 ventorum : quae tempestas, cum aeris intem- 
 perie, usque ad purificationem Beatag Marias 
 perseverans multis et maxime colonis, molesta 
 fuit." And again, " Eodem etiam anno (1222) 
 in festo Sancti Andreas Apostoli audita sunt 
 tonitrua per totam Angliam generalia ; quag 
 ecclesias et ecclesiarum turres, domos et asdificia, 
 castrorum muros, etpropugnacula subverterunt." 
 All of which is corroborated by the Close Roll 
 of the seventh year of King Henry III. which 
 contains numerous entries concerning the ravages 
 and destruction occasioned by tempests and 
 impetuous hurricanes, whereby houses and large 
 forest trees were blown to the ground. 
 
 Matthew Paris says, at page lGl, " Eodem 
 tempore (1211) Reginaldus Comes Bononiae vir
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 139 
 
 strenuus et in arte militari probatissimus a Phi- illustrations 
 
 * of History. 
 
 lippo Rege Francorum de comitatu suo injuste 
 
 expulsus et bonis omnibus privatus est, &c. 
 Comes vero Reginaldus in Angliam veniens, 
 a Rege Johanne honorifice susceptus est." This 
 statement is corroborated by three or four 
 entries ', which prove that Reginald Dammartin, 
 Count of Bologne, was in England at that 
 time, and did homage to King John at London 
 on Ascension Day, and that he had a grant of 
 several manors ; a fact which is ample evidence 
 of an honorable reception and of royal favor. 
 
 Most of the contemporary historians relate, 
 that King John, in the year 1202, during the 
 siege of Mirabel Castle in Poictou, made 
 prisoners of his nephew Arthur Duke of Brit- 
 tany and the Princess Elianor his sister, called 
 the " Beauty of Brittany." Arthur is sup- 
 posed to have been murdered by his uncle, and 
 of Elianor it is stated that she was imprisoned 
 in Bristol Castle for forty years ; the incarcera- 
 tion of that young and guiltless Princess is one 
 of the many actions of King John, for which 
 his memory has been deservedly stigmatized. 
 The entries on the Close Rolls relating to the 
 Princess Elianor confirm the narrations of the 
 monkish writers as to her imprisonment, though 
 
 i Vide pp. 116. 129. 130. 133.
 
 140 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Illustration* a fc £] ie same time they sllOW that she Was not ill 
 
 of History. J 
 
 want of the necessaries of life, as has been 
 
 alleged by some modern historians, but on the 
 contrary that she enjoyed many indulgences. 
 Elianor is said to have possessed a high and 
 invincible spirit, and to have constantly insisted 
 on her right to the Crown ! , which, perhaps, was 
 the reason of her being kept under restraint 
 during the whole of her life-time. If the Crown 
 of England was at that period considered as 
 hereditary, she had a priority of right to her 
 uncle, and consequently to King Henry; but 
 if it was an established law in England, as ap- 
 pears by the Close Roll 13th Henry III., that 
 " non est consuetudo vel lea: in terra nostra 
 Anglice quod Jilia jratris alicujus primogeniti 
 Jratrem juniorem patri suo succedentem hcere- 
 ditarie super hcereditate sua possit vel debeat 
 impetere 2 ," then it would seem that King Henry 
 need have had no apprehension of her being 
 able legally to deprive him of the Crown. A 
 few of the instruments relating to this illustrious 
 Prisoner are here inserted ; the others are, how- 
 ever, exceedingly interesting, and well worthy 
 of attention, not only as concerning a Princess 
 of whom little has been written, but as illus- 
 trative of the domestic economy of that period. 
 
 1 General History of England by James Tyrrell, esq., 
 vol. iii. p.915, Fol. 1700. 
 
 2 Hot. Claus. 13 Hen. III. m. 15. in dorso.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 141 
 
 The Mayor of Winchester is commanded I"-us™at.ons 
 
 J of History. 
 
 to send in haste to the King, for the use of his 
 
 niece Elianor and the two daughters of the 
 King of Scotland \ robes of dark green, namely, 
 tunics and supertunics, with capes of cambric, 
 and fur of miniver, and twenty-three yards of 
 good linen cloth ; also, for the use of the King's 
 niece, one good cap of dark brown, furred with 
 miniver, and one hood for rainy weather, for 
 the use of the same ; besides robes of bright 
 green for the use of her three waiting maids, 
 namely, tunics and supertunics, and cloaks, 
 with caps of miniver or rabbit skins, and furs 
 of lamb's-skin ; and thin shoes for the use of 
 the daughters of the King of Scotland, the 
 King's niece, and her three waiting maids ; and 
 also, for the use of the King's niece, one saddle 
 with gilded reins ; and the mayor is to come 
 himself, with all the above articles, to Corf 
 there to receive the money for the cost of the 
 same.— 6th July, 15 John. Page 144. 
 
 1 About the year 1209 King John marched toward 
 Scotland with a powerful army, but when the Scottish King 
 was informed of his approach, being aware of the cruelty 
 of John's disposition, he grpw alarmed, and made an ad- 
 vance to treat for peace ; by the mediation of friends of 
 both kingdoms this was at length effected upon these 
 terms ; namely, that the King of Scotland should pay to 
 the King of England 1,100 marks of silver, and moreover 
 that his two daughters should be delivered to him as hos- 
 tages, for the better securing of the peace. Math. Paris, 
 p. 158. Edit. Par.
 
 142 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 illustrations The m ayor and reeves of Winchester are 
 
 of History. j 
 
 ordered to send, without delay, to Corf con- 
 stabulary, for the use of the King's niece, a 
 beautiful saddle, with scarlet ornaments and 
 gilded reins. — 9th Aug.,15 John. Page 150. 
 
 The mayor and reeves of Winchester are 
 commanded to send to the Queen, the King's 
 niece, and the two daughters of the King of 
 Scotland, who are at Corf, certain robes, caps, 
 and other things necessary for their vestment, 
 as Robert de Vipont will inform them by his 
 letters patent. — 29th Jan., 15 John. Page 157. 
 
 Peter de Maulay is commanded to procure 
 for the King's niece, who is in the custody of 
 Robert de Vipont, one scarlet robe, namely, a 
 cloak, and a tunic with cendal, and another 
 for the wife of Robert de Vipont ; and also, 
 for the King's niece, some good and fine linen 
 cloth, enough to make four or five chemises 
 and four sheets, not, however, of the King's 
 finest cloth, but rather, if they have none suited 
 for this except the King's finest cloth, to pur- 
 chase it as good as they can with the King's 
 money ; and she is also to have two pair of 
 boots delivered to her by the messenger of 
 Robert de Vipont, the bearer of this order. — 
 15th July, 16 John. Page 168. 
 
 The barons of the Exchequer are ordered 
 to make allowance to Peter de Maulay of 7,000 
 marks, demanded of him as part of his fine
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 143 
 
 made with Kinc; John for having married Illustrations 
 
 ° ° OF IIlSTORV. 
 
 Isabella daughter and heiress of Robert de 
 
 Turneham, which he had laid out on the works 
 of Corf Castle, and in expenses consequent upon 
 the custody of Elianor the King's cousin, the 
 custody of the daughters of the King of Scot- 
 land, and the custody of Richard, the King's 
 brother ; and also in the expences incurred by 
 King John at divers times at Corf, after Louis, 
 the French King's son, had landed in England. 
 Witness Hubert de Burgh, &c. — 5 Hen. 3. 
 Page 466. 
 
 The treasurer and chamberlains are ordered 
 to pay to Andrew Bukerel .£6 145. 2d. which 
 he laid out, by the King's command, in the fol. 
 lowing articles ; namely, a silken couch, price 
 <j£l 10^. Id., and delivered to John de Cundi 
 for the use of Elianor the King's cousin, and 
 Isabella daughter of the King of Scotland ; 
 two coverlets of fine linen, price £ c 2 2s. Id., 
 likewise for their use ; and six yards and a half 
 of scarlet, price £\ 3s., to make two coverlets, 
 also for the use of the same ; and in six yards 
 and a half of dark green, price thirteen shillings, 
 to make a robe for the use of their waiting maid ; 
 one fur of lamb's-skin, price four shillings, for 
 the use of the same waiting maid ; and forty 
 yards of linen cloth, price twenty-one shillings, 
 for the use of the same Elianor and Isabella 
 —8th Dec, 6 Hen. 3. Page 483.
 
 144 
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 I of U h5to»t NS ^ ie treasurer and chamberlains are ordered 
 
 to pay out of the treasury to Master John 
 
 de Beauchamp, the physician who administered 
 medicine to the King's cousin Elianor when 
 sick, three marks, to purchase a palfrey in the 
 room of the palfrey which he had lost in re- 
 turning from Corf to London. — 13th June, 
 6 Hen. 3. Page 483. 
 
 The sheriff of Gloucester is ordered to 
 cause necessaries to be provided for the King's 
 cousin Elianor, and her two waiting maids, who 
 are staying by the King's order in Gloucester 
 Castle, and for Walter de St. Audoen, Richard 
 de Landa, and Gilbert de Greinville, the keepers 
 of the same Elianor, with their six horses and 
 eight men, together with the domestic establish- 
 ment of the same Elianor, as long as they stay 
 there by the King's order ; and the cost incurred 
 for this is to be accounted to him at the Exche- 
 quer. Gloucester, 7th Aug., 6 Hen. 3. Page 
 507- 
 
 The sheriffs of London are ordered to let 
 Ralph Musard have five ounces of silk for the 
 use of Elianor, the King's cousin. 19th Aug., 
 6 Hen. 3. Page 509. 
 
 The barons of the Exchequer are to allow 
 in the sheriff of Gloucester's account ^117? 
 which he laid out in the expences of the King's 
 cousin Elianor, staying in Gloucester Castle by
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 145 
 
 the King's order ; namely, ten shillings a day illustrations 
 
 ° 7 J ° J of History. 
 
 from the eve of St. Peter ad Vincula, in the 
 
 sixth year of the King's reign, until the feast of 
 St. Benedict next before the Annunciation of 
 the Blessed Mary, in the seventh year, both days 
 inclusive. Gloucester, 21st March, 7 Hen. 3. 
 Page 538. 
 
 Whilst Elianor was in Gloucester Castle, 
 one of her keepers, Walter de St. Audoen, was 
 taken dangerously ill, and thereupon the King 
 dispatched his beloved and faithful Robert 
 Lovel to assist the others, namely, Ralph Mu- 
 sard, Richard de Landa, and Matthew de 
 Wallop, assigned for her custody, commanding 
 them to admit him into the castle and tower, 
 so that he himself might have free ingress and 
 egress to and from the tower, but that his suite 
 should remain without in the castle, and to act 
 upon his advice in case of the death of the 
 said Walter, or in any other emergency. And 
 at the same time the King sent thither for the 
 garrison and safeguard of the said castle, ten 
 servants on horse and four crossbow-men on 
 foot, ordering such and so many of the cross- 
 bow-men as the said Robert should name to lie 
 every night within the two gates of the tower, 
 and the said servants to remain day and night 
 without in the castle. 15th May, 7 Hen. 3. 
 Page 54G.
 
 146 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 of History. 
 
 illustrations The barons of the Exchequer are ordered 
 
 to account to the sheriff of Gloucester certain 
 sums of money expended by him in gloves, 
 boots, silk, and other necessaries for the use 
 of Elianor, the King's cousin; and also £\% 
 which he laid out by the King's order, in the 
 expences of the same Elianor, during a period 
 of twenty-six days ; viz. from Sunday the morrow 
 of St. John the Baptist, in the seventh year of 
 the King's reign, until Thursday the feast of 
 St. Margaret, both days inclusive. — Cirencester, 
 23d July, 7 Hen. 3. Page 555. 
 
 The King to Peter de Orivall, greeting. 
 We command you to let William our tailor 
 have of our money, which is in your custody, 
 i£10 to discharge the expences of our cousin 
 Elianor at Marlborough ; let him also have 
 two marks for the use of four foot servants 
 staying in our castle at Marlborough, for the 
 custody of the same Elianor. — 20th Aug., 
 7 Hen. 3. Page 560. 
 
 The treasurer and chamberlains are to pay 
 out of the treasury to Robert Lovel, the bearer 
 of the order, .§£10 to defray the expences of the 
 King's cousin Elianor. — 13th Nov., 8 Hen. 3. 
 Page 575. 
 
 The sheriffs of London are ordered to let 
 Robert Lovel have one frail of figs, and an- 
 other of almonds, for the use of the King's
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 14*7 
 
 ;in Elia 
 ^75. 
 
 cousin Elianor.— 13th Nov., 8 Hen. 3. Page ***nm*no** 
 
 ° of History. 
 
 Matthew Paris has noticed in his Chronicle 
 one Master Alexander, who had been a cele- 
 brated expounder of divinity at Paris, and whose 
 adulatory sermons had been greatly instrumental 
 in moving the King to cruelty. By endeavour- 
 ing to prove that it did not belong to the Pope 
 to interfere with the secular power of Princes, 
 and other such discourses, Master Alexander 
 succeeded in insinuating himself into especial 
 grace and favour with the King, and obtained 
 many rich benefices : upon this being made 
 known to the Pope, and after reconciliation 
 had taken place between King John and his 
 Holiness, Master Alexander was turned out of 
 his livings. Whether Matthew Paris's narration 
 of this be correct it is difficult to determine ; 
 but that the Pope had been exasperated against 
 Master Alexander, and that an attempt to de- 
 precate his wrath was made by King John, is 
 evident by the following letter : 
 
 To the Most Holy Lord and Father Inno- 
 cent, High Priest by God's grace, John, by 
 the same grace, King, &c. Be it known unto 
 your Holiness, that the lies which were put 
 upon Master Alexander of Saint Albans, our 
 clerk, were circulated only by the breath of 
 envy ; wherefore it may be aptly said, without 
 
 l 2
 
 148 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 illustrations L } ie cloak of falsity, that, as much was inflicted 
 
 of History. j 
 
 upon Isaiah by the Jewish people, upon Moses 
 
 for the Ethiopian woman ', and Paul for the 
 Seven Churches 2 , so was no less inflicted upon 
 Master Alexander by the slanderous rabble. 
 And it is for this we devoutly supplicate you, 
 Holy Father, if the same Master Alexander 
 should chance to present himself at the feet of 
 your Holiness, to vouchsafe, for God's sake and 
 ours, to shew him all humanity, according to 
 the manifoldness of your mercy. — From the 
 New Temple, London, 23d of April, 16th John, 
 A.D. 1215. 
 
 The following account given by Matthew 
 Paris of an enormous fish washed upon the 
 Norfolk coast, in the year 1255, is corroborated 
 by an entry on the Close Rolls. 
 
 1 " And Miriam and Aaron spake against Moses, be- 
 cause of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married ; for 
 he had married an Ethiopian woman." Numbers, chap. xii. 
 
 2 The allusion to St. Paul suffering persecution for the 
 Seven Churches is evidently the blunder of some monkish 
 writer, not so well acquainted with Scripture history as with 
 the traditions of his church. The apostle had no other con- 
 nection with the Seven Churches than as having been the 
 founder of some of them. It was John the apostle who, 
 particularly in the last year of his long life, had the general 
 superintendance of the Seven Churches of the Lesser Asia; 
 and who, during that superintendance, was banished to Pat- 
 mos, and from thence addressed to them the short epistles 
 in the Kevelations.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 149 
 
 In the same year, from the feast of St. Va- illustrations 
 
 J of History. 
 
 lentine until the following month, the winds 
 
 continued to rage most violently, accompanied 
 by torrents of rain day and night, without ces- 
 sation, raising such a tempest both by sea and 
 land as had never been known before ; and at 
 the same time there was thrown up by the rage 
 and turbulence of the waves an enormous sea- 
 monster, which was washed on shore within the 
 diocese of Norwich, and killed, as it was ima- 
 gined, by the violence of the motion. It was 
 in size much larger than a whale, and yet it was 
 not supposed to be a whale ; however, the fat 
 from the belly of this monster enriched the whole 
 neighbourhood round. Matth. Paris, p. 606. 
 
 The sheriff of Norfolk is commanded to 
 cause to be sold at the best price he can get, 
 by the- view and testimony of honest and lawful 
 men, the great and monstrous fish which was 
 lately caught upon the land of a certain boy, 
 who is a ward of the bishop of Norwich, as it 
 is reputed, and which the same bishop claims 
 as his wreck by reason of the wardship of the 
 same, and safely to keep the money received 
 therefrom, that he may have it at Westminster 
 before the King and his council in three weeks 
 of Easter, in order that what of right ought to 
 be done herein be then done. Witness the 
 King at Westminster, 19th Feb. — Hot. Claus. 
 39 Hen. III. m. 16. 
 
 l 3
 
 150 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Illustrations fr nas been remarked by all writers that 
 
 of History. -' 
 
 the venality and misuse of the great offices of 
 
 state are to be reckoned among the faults of 
 policy in the early periods of our history. The 
 following instruments relating to the first judicial 
 appointments in the realm evince the truth of 
 such observations, and they at the same time 
 show the determination of the King to afford 
 redress to the aggrieved in flagrant cases of 
 injustice. The firm and complacent letter to 
 the Chancellor, who was also lord palatine of 
 Durham, proves that Henry was not destitute 
 of good counsellors, who were willing to use 
 mild means before they proceeded to coercive 
 measures. In the letter to the Justiciary of 
 Ireland the King expresses his astonishment 
 and incredulity at the grievous complaints urged 
 against the Justiciary, and his determination to 
 take matters seriously in hand, unless the Jus- 
 ticiary desist from his illegal attempts. In that 
 addressed to Hubert de Burgh, the Chief Jus- 
 ticiary of England, the King appeals to his 
 justice and honour, but does not accuse him of 
 any malversation. 
 
 The King to the bishop of Durham, his 
 Chancellor l , greeting. We some time since 
 wrote to you respecting the prior of Durham^ 
 
 1 Richard de Marisco, consecrated 2 July 1217. "
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 151 
 
 commanding you to restore to him the cart- Illustrations 
 
 * of History. 
 
 liorses upon his lands, and his servants also, 
 
 whom you have caused to be taken ; and 
 although in the aforesaid mandate it was in- 
 serted, that unless you obeyed it, we could by 
 no means fail to render justice to him, yet has 
 the same prior again returned to us, grievously 
 complaining that you refuse to do any thing 
 for him in that respect. Howbeit, for the espe- 
 cial and loving favour in which you stand with 
 us, we have been again induced to exhort your 
 discretion, as effectually as we are able, com- 
 manding you to deliver his men and cattle 
 aforesaid within a month from St. Michael's 
 day, and in the interval to suspend all dispute 
 and quarrels which have arisen and grown up 
 between you on this subject ; for, as he has 
 offered us security in our court to prosecute 
 his imparlance against you upon the wrongful 
 capture and detention of his men and cattle 
 aforesaid, we have appointed him that day in 
 our court, as in justice we are compelled to 
 do ; nor can we further pass it over, if at this 
 our repeated command you refuse to deliver 
 his men and cattle aforesaid, but we must ex- 
 tend our hands on this occasion to your lands 
 and effects out of Haliwaresok, much as it will 
 grieve and trouble us. Witness Hubert de 
 Burgh, our Justiciary, at Cirencester, on the 
 22d of July, 7 Hen. 3. Page 56<J. 
 
 l4
 
 152 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Illustrations The Kill£ to the arcllbisllOD of Dublin, 
 
 of History. a 
 
 Justiciary of Ireland, greeting. We have been 
 
 informed by the representation of our good men 
 of Dublin of certain things respecting you, at 
 which we are much astonished, and indeed they 
 seem so strange and surpassing all belief, that 
 as yet we are unwilling to give credit to them ; 
 namely, that you are endeavouring to acquire 
 for your people exemption from talliages and 
 aids, notwithstanding that they are partakers of 
 the liberties which our citizens of Dublin enjoy, 
 and share in common with them the advantages 
 of a reciprocal commerce : also, that your clergy 
 shall have their pleas relating to the lay fees, 
 which they have purchased within the bounds 
 of the city aforesaid, tried in the ecclesiastical 
 court : also, that if any servant of the clergy, 
 even though he be a layman, have any com- 
 plaint against one of our citizens, such citizen 
 is thereupon drawn into plea in that court to 
 answer and obey the law ; and on the contrary, 
 if one of your people, being a layman, has in 
 aught transgressed against any of our citizens, 
 that such citizen shall come into your court, 
 there to seek and accept of justice : also, if any 
 baker dwelling in your land be attached for 
 making bread of false weight, or any other per- 
 son for a similar trespass, and be even con- 
 victed thereof before our bailiffs, you thereupon 
 seek to have redress in your court, and demand
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 153 
 
 the same trespasser, free and discharged from lLLUST1 
 
 1 ' to of Hi 
 
 the hands of our bailiffs, and to be dealt with 
 according to your pleasure : also, that you have 
 caused a certain pillory to be erected on our 
 highway, drawing within your fee and jurisdic- 
 tion that which is known to appertain to us, 
 contrary to our royal dignity, to which such 
 jurisdiction, as well in our cities and towns of 
 England as of Ireland, is acknowledged to be- 
 long : also, that religious houses shall plead in 
 the court christian concerning lands given, sold, 
 or delegated to them : also, that you pass over, 
 without correction, the encroachments which 
 religious houses make upon the city aforesaid : 
 Now all these things are indeed manifestly re- 
 pugnant to our right and dignity, and are con- 
 trary to the custom anciently enjoyed in all 
 cities, towns, and places throughout our realm ; 
 and they are so much the more grievous and 
 offensive to us, and cast the greater blemish 
 on your fame, in proportion to the extent of 
 power we have reposed in you as our repre- 
 sentative in our kingdom of Ireland, to main- 
 tain our rights and deal out justice to others; 
 so much so, that had any other person attempted 
 the like, it would have fallen to you yourself) 
 by the power confided to you, to have imposed 
 a severe punishment upon him : We therefore 
 firmly and strictly command you to let your 
 loyalty to us, and your regard for your own 
 
 STRATIONS 
 STORY.
 
 154> GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Illustrations honour, restrain you in future from the like, 
 
 of History. 
 
 neither making such attempts yourself, nor suf- 
 fering them to be made by others against us ; 
 or else be assured that we shall take the affair 
 seriously in hand, being in no wise inclined to 
 allow such things to gain strength against us. 
 Witness Hubert de Burgh, &c. at the Tower 
 of London, 8th of August, 7 Hen. 3. Page 
 570. 
 
 Henry, by the grace of God, King of Eng- 
 land, Lord of Ireland, Duke of Normandy and 
 Aquitain, Earl of Anjou, to Hubert de Burgh, 
 Justiciary of England, greeting. We remember 
 having given an order ! that such seizin should 
 be given you of the marsh between Wiggenholt 
 and Wells and Hakebech and Tilney and Ter- 
 rington, as you had when last you sailed for 
 Poictou in the service of King John our father j 
 but because we are given to understand for 
 certain that Eustace, formerly bishop of Ely, 
 was seized of the aforesaid marsh on the day of 
 his death 2 , and that the church of Ely has 
 always since been seized thereof; and as it there- 
 fore seems to our Council that the form of our 
 aforesaid order was unreasonable, we command 
 you, as our justiciary, to restore without delay 
 to the church of Ely seizin of the marsh in 
 
 1 2Q December 1217. 2 Died 16 John.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 155 
 
 question, notwithstanding our said order by lLLUS1 
 which you entered upon the seizin thereof; 
 and since to you especially it belongs to main- 
 tain and cherish justice, do you so demean 
 yourself in this behalf that you may not set 
 an example, or be yourself the occasion, of 
 injuring others. Witness the Earl of Pembroke, 
 at Worcester, 14th March, 2 Hen. 3, A.D. 1218. 
 Page 378. 
 
 There has prevailed among historians a dif- 
 ference of opinion as to the probability of Prince 
 Louis having received from our government a 
 sum of money for restoring the hostages he had 
 taken from the barons, upon the treaty of peace 
 being concluded in the September of the year 
 1218. The French historians relate that a large 
 sum of money was secured to him on that occa- 
 sion, " which," says Tyrrell, " is certainly false, 
 " for Louis was so far from standing upon terms, 
 " that he was glad to agree upon any condi- 
 " tions ; and as for hostages, there could be 
 " nothing due from the King on that account, 
 " but from the barons, his enemies, whose rela- 
 " tions they were ; but our writers do not men- 
 " tion any money paid for them, and therefore 
 " it is most likely they were delivered gratis, 
 " though they are not particularly mentioned." 
 The following instrument seems corroborative 
 of the statement of the French writers, which, 
 
 USTRATIONS 
 ISTORY.
 
 156 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Illustrations if Tyrrell had been aware of, he would perhaps 
 
 of History. *■ 
 
 have formed a different opinion. 
 
 The King to Geoffry de Mariscis, Justiciary 
 of Ireland, greeting. Whereas we before com- 
 manded you to come to us into England to do 
 homage to us, and certify us respecting the state 
 of our land of Ireland, we are greatly astonished 
 that you have not yet come ; and therefore we 
 command you a second time, all delay and ex- 
 cuses set aside, to come to us into England be- 
 fore the approaching Easter, in the second year 
 of our reign, to do your homage to us, and to 
 treat with us, through our t( fideles " of our 
 Council, respecting the state of our land afore- 
 said. And since we owe a heavy debt to Louis, 
 the French King's son, by agreement made be- 
 tween us, that he would depart out of our realm, 
 which at length the Lord hath marvellously 
 and mercifully procured ; and are moreover 
 indebted to his Holiness the Pope in an annual 
 tribute of 300 marks, due to him from our king- 
 dom of Ireland, which yet remains to be paid 
 for the last two years ; it would greatly relieve 
 us, and much advance the tranquillity of our 
 realm, if our faithful people and bailiffs would 
 afford all the assistance they were able to pro- 
 vide us with money ; and therefore we command 
 and entreat you to come, as aforesaid, and bring 
 with you as much money as you can, so demean- 
 ing yourself in this respect that we may have
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 157 
 
 cause to commend your honesty and zeal ; for illustrations 
 
 •r- iiii-ii i 0F History. 
 
 it you should be induced to act otherwise, con- 
 
 siderable loss and grievance might accrue to us 
 and our realm on this account. Witness the Earl 
 of Pembroke, at Exeter, 12th Feb., 2 Hen. 3. 
 Page 376. see also page 465. 
 
 Immediately after Louis's departure the 
 Legate dispatched inquisitors over every part 
 of England to suspend all ecclesiastics whom 
 they found to have been in the slightest degree 
 favourable to the cause of Louis, of whatever 
 rank or dignity they might be ; and after de- 
 priving them of all their benefices, he distributed 
 the same among his own clerks. The bishop of 
 Lincoln, upon his return to England, paid 1000 
 marks to the Pope, and 100 more to the Legate, 
 for the recovery of his bishoprick ; and many 
 other bishops, and the rest of the clergy, fol- 
 lowing his example, were compelled to purchase 
 the Legate's favour by the payment of large 
 sums of money. It seems, however, from the 
 following proclamation, which is not noticed in 
 any of the contemporary chronicles, that several 
 of the clergy, being perhaps unwilling to submit 
 to this species of imposition, chose rather to 
 remain in excommunication than to purchase 
 absolution on such degrading terms. 
 
 The King to the sheriffs of Kent [and 
 of Essex], greeting. We order you, without
 
 158 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 illustrations delay, to cause proclamation to be made through- 
 
 OF History. •/*■*. o 
 
 out your bailiwick, that all the clergy who were 
 
 excommunicated because thev were adherents to 
 Louis or his favourers, and have not yet received 
 absolution, shall depart our realm before Midlent 
 next, in the second year of our reign ; and that 
 all who are found in England after the aforesaid 
 term shall be taken ; and whomsoever of the 
 clergy that you shall find in your bailiwick after 
 that term abiding in excommunication on the 
 account aforesaid, do you take and safely keep 
 until we give you further order thereupon. — 
 18th Feb., 2 Hen. 3. Page 377. 
 
 The order of knighthood was a dignity 
 which formerly added a lustre to the highest 
 degree of nobility, and was esteemed even by 
 Princes and Kings themselves. The ceremony 
 of creating a knight was generally performed in 
 the royal palace, and robes of different colours 
 were given to the intended objects of that royal 
 mark of distinction. The following entry gives 
 an account of the robes presented to a knight 
 on his receiving the order : 
 
 The King to the sheriff of Southampton, 
 greeting. We order you to allow Thomas Es- 
 turmy, our valet, a scarlet robe ', with a cloak 
 
 1 William of Malmsbury, in his account of Athelstan's 
 being knighted by King Alfred, his grandfather, mentions
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 159 
 
 of fine linen, and another robe of green or Illustrations 
 
 ° of History. 
 
 brown, and a saddle, and a pair of reins, and a 
 
 cloak for wet weather, and a couch ', and a pair 
 of linen sheets, as he is to be made a knight. 
 
 The robes and other knightly insignia pre- 
 sented by King Henry III. to Alexander the 
 young King of Scotland, when he knighted him 
 at York' 2 , in the year 1251, is thus described 
 on the Close Roll of that year ; 3 
 
 Edward of Westminster is commanded to 
 procure immediately a handsome sword, and 
 scabbard of silk, the hilt to be of silver and 
 well ornamented, and also a handsome belt, on 
 which to hang the same ; the sword is to be sent 
 to York by Christmas-day, that the King may 
 decorate Alexander the illustrious King of Scot- 
 land therewith, in his belt of knighthood 4 , &c. 
 
 the giving him a sword and a rich belt, with a crimson or 
 scarlet robe, as the ensigns of knighthood. Malmsb. de 
 Gestit, Reg. Angl. 1. ii. c. 6. 
 
 1 It was usual for the person who was to be knighted 
 to watch all the previous night in the church, and the 
 couch was given for him to rest on. 
 
 2 ' ; Anno Domini MCClii. qui est annus regni domini 
 Regis Henrici trigesimus quintus, fuit idem dominus Rex 
 ad Natale Domini apud Eboracum, ut filia sua Margareta, 
 aetatc jam, Alexandro Regi Scotiae matrimonio copularctur, 
 et nuptiae, ut inter tantas personas decuit, celebrarentur." 
 Matt. Par. 554. Paris Edit. 
 
 3 Claus. 36 Hen. 3. 
 
 4 " Die igitur Natalis Domini, dominus Rex Angliaj 
 baltheo apud Eboracum donavit militari Regem Scotiae et
 
 160 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 illustrations j onn j e Summercotes and the Kind's tailor 
 
 of History. ° 
 
 are commanded to make, without delay, a costly 
 
 couch, and to send it to the King at York, to 
 present to the illustrious King of Scotland on 
 Christmas-day : 
 
 And, Edward of Westminster is com- 
 manded to procure immediately a pair of silver 
 gilt spurs, with fastenings of silk, and to let the 
 King have them at York on Christmas-day, for 
 the use of Alexander King of Scotland, &c. 
 
 The orders for the dresses worn by the 
 King and Queen of England at the marriage 
 ceremony of the Princess Margaret with the 
 King of Scotland, the day after he was knighted, 
 are as follows : 
 
 "Concerning Robes for ^ I. de Sumercote and Roger 
 the use of the King >the tailor are commanded 
 and Queen. J to get made, without delay, 
 
 four robes of the best brocade which they can 
 procure, namely, two for the King's use, and 
 two for the Queen's, with orfraies, and gems 
 of various colours ; the tunics are to be of softer 
 brocade than the mantles and the supertunics ; 
 and the mantles are to be furred with ermine, 
 
 cum eo tyrones fecit viginti. Qui omnes vestibus preciosis 
 et excogitatis, sicut in tam celebri tyrocinio decuit, orna- 
 bantur :" and see Rot. Pat. 36 Hen. III. m. 13. and Fcedera, 
 New Ed. vol. i. part 1. p. 279.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. l6l 
 
 and the supertunics with miniver : the Kins; re- Illustrations 
 
 ok History. 
 
 quires that the aforesaid robes, elegantly made, 
 
 should be at York by Christmas." 
 
 The same are commanded to get, besides 
 the two robes which the King ordered for his own 
 use, three robes with " Queyntisis " {devices) 
 made for the Queen's use, namely, one robe of 
 the best violet-coloured brocade they can pro- 
 cure, with three small leopards in the front, and 
 three others behind ; and two robes of other 
 cloth, the best that can be procured. And these, 
 seemly and elegantly made, are to be at York by 
 Christmas. 
 
 The instruments on the Close Rolls respect- 
 ing maritime affairs are very numerous, and 
 exhibit many interesting particulars of the naval 
 force kept for the defence of the realm and for 
 the security of the British seas. At page S3 
 the number of ships attached to each of the 
 principal ports is stated, together with the names 
 of their commanders ; and there are several 
 notices confirmatory of the fact, that the Cinque 
 Ports were obliged to find fifty-two ships for 
 fifteen days, at their own charge, for the ser- 
 vice of the state. The materials used for ship- 
 building, and the tonnage and dimensions of 
 ships and galleys, are described, some as being 
 capable of carrying eight or ten horses, and 
 
 M
 
 162 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 illustrations others of a different description, large enough 
 
 of History. l C7 
 
 to admit of twenty oars. From an instrument 
 
 at page 117 it may be inferred that the first 
 establishment of a dock-yard at Portsmouth took 
 place in the reign of King John ; viz. 
 
 The King to the sheriff of Southampton, 
 &c. We order you, without delay, by the view 
 of lawful men, to cause our docks ' at Ports- 
 mouth to be inclosed with a good and strong 
 wall, in such manner as our beloved and faith- 
 ful William archdeacon of Taunton will tell you, 
 for the preservation of our ships and galleys ; 
 and likewise to cause penthouses to be made to 
 the same walls, as the same archdeacon will also 
 tell you, in which all our ships' tackle may 
 be safely kept : and use as much dispatch as 
 you can, in order that the same may be com- 
 pleted this summer, lest in the ensuing winter 
 our ships and galleys and their rigging should 
 incur any damage by your default. And when 
 we know the cost, it shall be accounted to you. 
 —20th May, 14 John, A.D. 1212. Page 117 
 
 The King to Geoffry de Nevill/and the 
 mayor of Angouleme, and Ralph de Fay, and 
 
 1 " Exclusa. Locus in flumine saepe coarctatus pisca- 
 tionis gratia; alias wera alias clausura dictus. Et etiam 
 exclusa, id quo in stagnis et fossatis aquas retinentur et 
 emittuntur, Anglice, ' a sluice ;' exclusae practerea dicuntur 
 aditus in Italiam per angustias Alpium." Spelm.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 163 
 
 all the soldiers and mariners of their company, Illustrations 
 
 r J ' of History. 
 
 &c. We command you, together with Geoffry 
 
 de Lucy and William de Wika, and our sailors, 
 to arrest and take into our hands all ships coming 
 from Poictou, which you may fall in with in your 
 voyage, and send them safely to us in England, 
 with all the chattels found in them ; and take 
 such counsel for guarding them that we may 
 in nowise be deceived. — 20th May, 14 John. 
 Page 117. 
 
 The archdeacon of Taunton is ordered to 
 send immediately to the King, at the Tower of 
 London, all the cloth which came to Portsmouth 
 in the three ships which were captured by the 
 King's sailors in the port of Barfleur, and sent 
 to Portsmouth. 
 
 The King to William archdeacon of Taun- 
 ton, &c. Know ye that we have given to our 
 dear brother William earl of Salisbury the ship 
 called the Countess, which was captured by our 
 sailors. And therefore we command you to let 
 him have the same. — 20th May, 14 John. Page 
 117. 
 
 The King to William archdeacon of Taun- 
 ton, &c. Know ye that we have given to our 
 beloved R. de Mariscis, archdeacon of Northum- 
 berland, and W. Briwer, two of the ships, with 
 all their apparel, which our sailors captured. 
 And therefore we command you to retain to 
 
 m 2
 
 164- 
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Illustrations our use f-] ie }j est Q f those ships, and ffive the 
 of History. * 7 ~ 
 
 second best to Richard de Mariscis, and the 
 
 third best to W. Briwer, with all their apparel. 
 —2d June, 14 John. Page 118. 
 
 The King to William archdeacon of Taun- 
 ton. Know ye that we have given to our beloved 
 and faithful E. archdeacon of Durham, and 
 Philip de Ulcot, one good ship of those which 
 were captured by our sailors off the coast of 
 Normandy. And therefore we command you 
 to let them have that ship. — 9th July, 14 John, 
 A.D. 1212. Page 120. 
 
 Peter ', &c. to the sheriff of Norfolk and 
 Nicholas de Thorp, greeting. We order you 
 to cause a hundred men of Dunwich to be 
 chosen, fit to guard the sea-coast, and to per- 
 form this business with such secrecy, discretion, 
 and prudence, that the lord the King and ourself 
 may be enabled with good reason to commend 
 your labour. And the expence which you incur 
 for this shall be accounted to you at the Ex- 
 chequer. Witness ourself at Dunton, on the 
 5th of Sept., 16 John. Page 211. 
 
 Matthew Paris relates, that about the year 
 1237 the King's anger was again inflamed against 
 
 1 Peter de Rupibus, bishop of Winchester, lieutenant 
 of the kingdom while the King was abroad.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 165 
 
 Hubert de Burgh the earl of Kent, because illustrations 
 
 # of History. 
 
 Richard earl of Gloucester, while he was yet 
 
 in his minority and a ward of the King, had 
 privately espoused Earl Hubert's daughter Mar- 
 garet, without the King's licence or consent ; 
 for it was reported that Henry had sought a 
 matrimonial alliance with the young Earl of 
 Gloucester for a near relative of William elect 
 of Valentia, a Provencois by birth. At length, 
 however, Earl Hubert having asserted that lie 
 had no knowledge of the affair, and that he 
 was guiltless of any participation in the act, a 
 reconciliation was effected, after much inter- 
 cession, and the royal indignation appeased by 
 the promise of a sum of money. Matth. Paris, 
 p. 299. 
 
 The following account of the transaction 
 occurs on the Close Roll of the 22d Hen. III. : 
 
 On Tuesday, the morrow of St. Michael, 
 Hubert de Burgh earl of Kent came to Eckles, 
 by the King's command ; and the King, ad- 
 dressing him, demanded if he were then willing 
 to resign to him the marriage of Richard de 
 Clare, according to the promise he made at 
 Gloucester, when the King admitted him to his 
 peace, on his giving up all claim to the said 
 marriage ; but Hubert, on being called upon by 
 the King to fulfil his part of the agreement, 
 replied, that as he had not his counsel there 
 m 3
 
 166 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 illustrations present he could not well make answer there- 
 
 of History. a 
 
 unto ; and, after some delays, the Earl at length 
 
 came to Kennington, and there acknowledged, 
 that, after the reconciliation had taken place 
 at Gloucester, the King sent for him in the 
 evening, and leading him up to the altar, said 
 that he wished him to swear thereon never again 
 to mention the subject of Richard de Clare, 
 and this he swore, nor ever after either spoke 
 thereof, or took any further measures respect- 
 ing it. But some of the nobles speaking with 
 him on the subject of his daughter's marriage, 
 said, that as it had proceeded so far she ought 
 to be affianced ; and then came the Countess 
 his wife, and fell at his feet, saying, that her 
 daughter had so far committed herself to Richard 
 de Clare that she could not be wedded to 
 another, and that her daughter could not, there- 
 fore, be married then : however, from his wife's 
 speech he could not be certain whether a mar- 
 riage had taken place between the said Richard 
 and his daughter ; and he said that his wife 
 told him that a marriage had been celebrated 
 between them at St. Edmonds whilst the Earl 
 was besieged at Merton ; and on being asked 
 how he interpreted the oath, he replied, that 
 the King understood it as meaning to resign 
 to him all claim to the marriage, and he un- 
 derstood it so too. And the Earl further ac- 
 knowledged that the King told him when he
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 167 
 
 made the Oath that he should not have his Illustrations 
 
 of History. 
 
 favour unless he did so. And the Earl after- 
 
 wards came and asked for a further day to cer- 
 tify himself fully, in order that on such day he 
 might positively resign the marriage if he could, 
 and if he were not able to do so, he would 
 make amends according to the judgment of his 
 peers ; and a day was appointed him, on a pro- 
 mise not to ask for farther delay. 
 
 Peter de Colechurch, the celebrated archi- 
 tect of the first London Bridge built with stone, 
 is stated, in the Annals of Waverly, to have died 
 in the year 1205, and to have been buried on 
 the bridge. 1 At page 49 of this Volume is an 
 entry, from which it may be inferred that Peter 
 de Colechurch was, at that time, just deceased. 
 
 A few of the numerous entries relating to 
 the royal diversions are selected, as showing the 
 partiality of our early monarchs to hawking and 
 the sports of the field. 
 
 1 During the demolition of old London bridge in the 
 year 1832, the remains of a body were discovered in clear- 
 ing away the chapel pier, and were probably those of Peter 
 de Colechurch, the original architect of the bridge, who 
 was here interred : the supposition is strengthened by the 
 fact that the place in which they were found was under 
 the lower floor of the chapel, in an inclosure built up in 
 small courses of free stone. 
 
 M 4
 
 168 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 illustrations The King to his beloved friend Walde- 
 
 of History. ° 
 
 mer, by the grace of God, the illustrious King 
 
 of the Danes and Sclavonians, and duke and 
 lord of Holsace, sends greeting, and the affec- 
 tion of sincere love. We send into your land 
 our faithful Brien Hostiarius to purchase birds 
 for our use, and we most anxiously entreat your 
 love to be pleased to maintain him and those 
 who shall accompany him for that purpose, and 
 to suffer them to be under your safe conduct 
 and protection, so that we may be indebted to 
 you for this favour. And the ships which shall 
 convey our birds may come in security to Eng- 
 land to negotiate, according to the form of the 
 letters patent which we have caused to be made 
 thereupon. 
 
 In the same form a letter was addressed to 
 Absalon earl of Zealand, with this addition, that 
 if the same Brien should stand in need of money, 
 to let him have it, and the lord the King will 
 transmit to him by his messenger such money, 
 when he pleases. Witness Peter lord bishop of 
 Winchester, at Lambeth, 2d Oct., 14th John.— 
 Page 132. 
 
 The King to John Fitz Hugh, &c. We 
 send to you, by William de Merc and R. de 
 Erleham, three girefalcons, and Gibbun the 
 girefalcon, than which we do not possess a 
 better, and one falcon gentle, commanding you
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 169 
 
 to receive them, and place them in the mewes, illustrations 
 
 * 'of History. 
 
 and provide for their food plump goats, and 
 
 sometimes good hens ; and once every week let 
 them have the flesh of hares, and procure good 
 mastiffs to guard the mewes. And the cost 
 which you incur in keeping those falcons, and 
 the expences of Spark, the man of W. de Merc, 
 who will attend them, with one man and one 
 horse, shall be accounted to you at the Ex- 
 chequer. — 21st March, 16 John. Page 192. 
 
 The King to the sheriff of Dorsetshire, 
 &c. We send to you our three girefalcons to 
 be mewed at Dorchester, commanding you to 
 find whatever is required by Robin de Hauville, 
 their keeper, with his horse and man, and pro- 
 cure for him, for the food of the said girefalcons, 
 young pigeons and swine's flesh, and once a 
 week the flesh of fowl. And the cost, &c. shall 
 be accounted to you at the Exchequer. — 
 12th May, 14 John. Page 118. 
 
 The King to Philip Marc, sheriff of Not- 
 tingham, greeting. We send to you Thomas de 
 Weston, with our two girefalcons, namely, Blake- 
 man and the foolish falcon, and with three grey- 
 hounds, and Haukinus de Hauvill with le Refuse 
 our girefalcon, and two greyhounds, command- 
 ing you to let our aforesaid girefalcons be mewed 
 and well kept, and to find necessaries for the 
 aforesaid Thomas, with one horse and his groom,
 
 170 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 illustrations an( j the aforesaid Haukinus, with one horse and 
 
 of History. , . 
 
 his groom, during their stay with you ; and it 
 
 shall be accounted to you at the Exchequer. — 
 16th Feb., 4 Hen. 3. Page 412. 
 
 The King to the sheriff of Nottingham, 
 greeting. We command you to find necessaries 
 for our beloved and faithful Walter de Hauvill 
 during his stay with you at Northampton, to 
 ensaim Blakeman our girefalcon, and to make 
 him fly three or four times ; and it shall be 
 accounted to you at the Exchequer. — 21st Sept., 
 3 Hen. 3. Page 400. 
 
 Gilbert de Hauvill is commanded to let 
 Refuse, the King's girefalcon, which is under 
 the care of Ralph de Hauvill, fly with Blakeman, 
 the King's girefalcon, which is under his care,, 
 and to pay such diligent attention thereto as to 
 merit the King's thanks. — 10th Oct., 3 Hen. 3. 
 Page 401. 
 
 The King to Philip Marc, greeting. We 
 command you, upon sight hereof, to send to 
 us, in Gloucestershire, Gilbert de Hauvill, with 
 Blakeman our girefalcon, which he has had to 
 mew, and find him his reasonable expences in 
 going thither to us ; also discharge for him the 
 expences which he has incurred since his gire- 
 falcon began to fly after its moulting ; and it 
 shall be accounted to you at the Exchequer. — 
 5th Nov., 4 Hen. 3. Page 407-
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 171 
 
 The King to William de Pratell, and the illustrations 
 
 of History. 
 
 bailiffs of Falk de Breaut of the Isle of Ely, 
 
 greeting. We command you to find, out of the 
 issues of the see of Ely, necessaries for Richard 
 the huntsman, who was with the Bishop of Ely, 
 and for his two horses and four grooms ; also 
 find for his fifteen greyhounds and twenty-one 
 hounds de mota their allowance of bread or 
 paste, as they may require it, and let them hunt 
 sometimes in the Bishop's chase for the flesh 
 upon which they are fed. — 13th March, 17 John. 
 Page 253. 
 
 The King to Thomas de Samford, greeting. 
 We send to you Robert de Halingee, com- 
 manding you to find for him and Nicholas his 
 companion, with eight of our greyhounds, which 
 they have under their care, such necessaries as 
 they shall in reason require. — 13th March, 
 17 John. Page 253. 
 
 The seneschal of Angoulesme is commanded 
 to defray the reasonable expences of the King's 
 huntsmen, " valtrarii," and dogs and their keep- 
 ers ; and if they should take any fat stag, the 
 flitch or sides, haunches and flank are to be re- 
 served for the King's use ; and the tongue and 
 the lard are to be sent to the Queen. — 1214. 
 Page 169. 
 
 Prices, Wages, and Household Matters. 
 — It would seem, from the numerous payments
 
 17^ GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 I «t D w.^] r I?' s ordered to be made, and the innumerable man- 
 
 Or Xi ISTOR i . J 
 
 dates for provisions, dresses, and other domestic 
 
 necessaries, that the whole of the civil and privy 
 purse expenditure must have passed through 
 the Chancery, as the most minute expences and 
 allowances were never satisfied until the order 
 for payment had issued under the Great Seal. 
 In process of time, however, when the business 
 transacted by the Chancery Court became more 
 important and defined in its nature, the exe- 
 cution of this species of business was transferred 
 to other departments. 
 
 From the account given in Fleta, (lib. 2. 
 cap. 14.) the author of which treatise was con- 
 temporary with Edward I., it appears that all 
 the civil, military, and domestic expences of 
 the Crown were liquidated in the department 
 called the Wardrobe. The description ' of the 
 
 1 " Thesaurario [garderobae] cura expensarum Regis 
 et familiae suae committitur, qui cum clerico provido sibi 
 associato pro contrarotulatore recordum habet, ut in hiis 
 quae officium suum contingunt. Officium autem thesaurarii 
 garderobae est pecuniam, jocalia, et exenia Regi facta reci- 
 pere, recepta que Regis secreta custodire, et de receptis 
 expensas facere rationabiles, expensarumque particulas in- 
 breviare, et de particulis compotum reddere ad scaccarium 
 singulis annis in festo Sanctae Margaretae, absque sacramento 
 praestando, eo quod de concilio Regis est juratus, et unde 
 post debent distincte et aperte compotum reddere de om- 
 nibus receptis separatim per se in uno rotulo ; in alio autem 
 rotulo de expensis quotidianis de quibus senescallus audi-
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 173 
 
 office of Treasurer of the Wardrobe fully proves Illustrations 
 
 J r of History. 
 
 that all the expenditure which, up to this period, 
 
 had passed through the Chancery, now devolved 
 upon the Wardrobe. The separation, it is con- 
 jectured, took place about the latter part of 
 the reign of Henry III., which may be inferred 
 from the omission (though not entirely so) of 
 similar entries to those which occur in the early 
 part of his reign, as also in that of his pre- 
 decessor. 
 
 Prices, &c. — The prices of most commodi- 
 ties then in use may here be ascertained, and the 
 following are a few illustrative extracts. 
 
 Wine 1 . — Cost of 50 tuns, 125 marks. Some- 
 
 verit compotum simul cum thesaurario et consocio suo ; 
 item de necessariis expensis, in quibus emptiones equorum, 
 cariagia, et plura alia continentur ; item de donis, item de 
 eleemosynis et oblationibus ; item de vadiis militum, item 
 de vadiis balistariorum, item de feodis forinsecis, item dc 
 praestitis vel accommodationibus. Item de expensis garde- 
 robae, in quibus emptiones pannorum, pelurae, cerse, specie- 
 rum, telse et hujusmodi comprehenduntur, item de jocalibus, 
 item de expensis forinsecis, in quibus diversis onerantur in 
 compoto reddendo ; item de nunciis ; item de falconariis." 
 (Fleta, lib. ii. cap. 1 14. p. 78, of Selderis Edition.) 
 
 1 Hoveden relates, (pp. 796, 797,) that King John, on 
 his return to England in October 1200, ordered that wine 
 of Poictou should not be sold in this country for more than 
 20*. per tun ; wine of Anjou for not more than 24*. per 
 tun; and French wine for not more than 25s. per tun. By 
 retail, that Poictou wine should not be sold at above 4c?. per 
 quart, and White wi?ie not above 6d. per quart. But this
 
 174" GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Illustrations times ^7^ ^{ n Q f GaSCOnV, 30s. per tllll. 
 
 of History. j r 
 
 Wine of Aucerne, 2 and 3£ marks per tun. 
 
 French wine, 2^ marks per tun. 
 
 Horses. — The prices of these animals vary 
 from d J l4> to £50 Anjou. 
 
 Fat Hogs. (Bacones.) — Prices, from 2s. to 4s. 
 each. 
 
 Wool. — Price, £Q 15 s. per sack. Taking the 
 bad with the good, 6 marks per sack. 
 
 Salt. — Price, 10s. 4<d. per 8 quarters and 1 
 bushel : occasionally varying from 2s. to 3s. 
 per quarter. 
 
 Wax. — Price, from 5d. to Jd. per lb. Occa- 
 sionally 8d. 
 
 Corn. — Price, varying according to its quality ; 
 generally fetching a high price ; propor- 
 tionably increased by hard winters, or the 
 excessive drought of summers. It is some- 
 times problematical as to which corn is 
 meant, Bladum and Frumentum appearing 
 to have been used synonimously, though 
 
 order, being found too strict, was afterwards mitigated, 
 and Red wine was allowed to be sold at 6d. per quart, 
 White wine at 8c?. (Ann. Burton, p. 257.) In the year 1207 
 an order was sent to the Barons of the Exchequer (vide 
 p. 88 of this Work) to account to Regin. de Cornhill for 
 ten tuns of wine " de Regula," at 335. per tun ; three tuns 
 of wine of Aucerne, at 5 marks per tun ; eighteen tuns of 
 French wine at 33s. 4d. per tun ; eight tuns of French wine 
 at 30s. per tun. French wine reckoned at 2\d. per gallon ; 
 Red wine at 2d. per gallon.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 175 
 
 not so in reality. From what can be col- illustrations 
 
 J of History. 
 
 lected on this subject it, however, seems 
 
 that Wheat varied from 2s. to 9s. per quar- 
 ter ; Flour, from 5s. to 8s. ; Barley, from 
 3s. 4>d. to 5s. per quarter. 
 
 A mow of Oats, £4> 13s. 4<d. Oats, 12d. 
 
 per quarter. 
 A mow of Corn, £6 13s. 4<d. 
 A sack of Demesne Flour contained 1 
 quarter. 
 
 Prices of divers articles, too numerous for 
 mention here, may be seen at pp. 153. 156. 157- 
 160. 384. 391. 412. 424, and elsewhere, in many 
 places. 
 
 Particulars regarding the economy of the 
 
 King's household as occur scattered through 
 
 various parts of this Work ; and the sums of 
 
 money paid to artizans and workmen employed 
 
 in the King's business, as well as those to every 
 
 individual in office, from the Chancellor to 
 
 the cook and scullion, are here most minutely 
 
 recorded. 
 
 s. d. 
 Of the King's Knights, " Milites Re- 
 
 eris," each received 2 i ier 
 
 ° diein. 
 
 " Servientes ad binos equos" 
 
 each 1 — 
 
 " Servientes ad tres equos" 
 
 each 1 3 —
 
 176 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Illustrations 
 
 of History. o • • i i 
 
 " servientes eqmtum ad duos 
 
 s. 
 
 equos" - - each 1 2 £ 
 sometimes 1 3 — 
 " Arbalisters," or Crossbow- ^0 3^ 
 men, when on foot, each < to > — 
 from - - - - lo 6J 
 " Arbalisters, " with two 
 
 horses - - each 13 — 
 with one horse 7j — 
 " Servientes pedites" each 3 — 
 (as appears at page 250. " Sci- 
 entes quod tat est consuetudo 
 curie nre quod servientes 
 pedites non percipiant per 
 diem nisi tres denar") 
 Sappers and Miners each 
 Sailors - each 
 
 The Esterman (Steersman ?) 
 Notices of wages due and payments made 
 to nuncios and messengers, sent with letters or 
 messages on the affairs of the King, are also very 
 numerous. 
 
 Messengers going from place to place in 
 England received 3d. per diem. 
 
 Persons employed upon missions out of the 
 country were paid accordingly. One who went 
 into Gascony had three shillings for his expences; 
 another, for going into Germany, had four 
 marks. 
 
 
 
 6 
 
 — 
 
 
 
 3 
 
 — 
 
 
 
 7 
 
 —
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 177 
 
 Some of the foregoing entries are curious, Illustrations 
 
 ° of History. 
 
 as showing the intercourse and constant com- 
 
 munication then existing between this and 
 foreign countries, and may at the same time 
 lead to the elucidation of many points in history 
 relative to our connexion with the Continent. 
 
 Arts. — One or two items relating to the 
 arts in general will be here sufficient to excite 
 attention to numerous similar entries with which 
 the Rolls abound. At page 381 is a writ of 
 liberate, whereby the Treasurer of the Ex- 
 chequer was commanded to reimburse Walter, 
 the goldsmith who made the King's seal, the 
 five marks of silver used in making the same ; 
 he is also to have, for the workmanship, what 
 will content him ; and, at page 383, we find 
 that the said Walter, whose surname appears to 
 have been " de Ripa" was content to receive 
 405. for the labour he had bestowed on that 
 work. The beauty and elegance of the seal 
 here alluded to still excites great admiration, on 
 account of the perfection of which it is a proof 
 the graphic art had attained in an age which has 
 been called barbarous. 1 
 
 The low rate of remuneration which is said 
 to have contented Walter, the goldsmith, when 
 
 1 An engraving of this seal may he seen in the first 
 volume of the late edition of Rvmer's Fcedera. 
 
 '
 
 178 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 illustrations brought into contrast with modern charges for 
 
 of History. ° ° 
 
 similar works, leads us to reflect on the com- 
 parative value of labour in that age as op- 
 posed to the present ; but, in so doing, we must 
 not forget that money then bore a value, ac- 
 cording to the best calculations, about fifteen 
 times greater than it does at present. The shil- 
 lings of that day were three times the weight 
 they are now ; and yet a modern shilling would 
 at that time have bought about five times as 
 much as it will at present ; consequently, one 
 shilling of the coin of Henry III. would pro- 
 duce fifteen times as much as one of William IV. 1 
 Allowing this mode of computation to be just, 
 if the 42s. received by Walter de Ripa be 
 multiplied by the number 3, to make up for the 
 difference in the weight of silver, and then 
 by 5, for the difference in the value of money 
 at the two periods, the whole will amount 
 to j£3L 10s. of modern English money, as the 
 sum charged for such elaborate work, when 
 artists were scarce, and no competition going 
 on. The same mode of computation is appli- 
 
 1 Silver was then twenty pence per ounce. Twelve 
 ounces, or a pound of silver, constituted a pound sterling. 
 A pound of silver in weight now makes three pounds ster- 
 ling ; and consequently as every shilling of that time was 
 in weight the twentieth part of a pound, it must have been 
 equal in value to three shillings of this. Matt. Paris, 
 p. 208.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 170 
 
 cable to the other prices of different articles Illustrations 
 
 r of History. 
 
 mentioned in this Work. 
 
 It appears by various entries on the Close 
 Rolls of the reign of King Henry III. that this 
 monarch was a great encourager of the arts, 
 and of painting in particular. 
 
 The Master of the Knights Templars is 
 commanded to allow Henry of the Wardrobe, 
 the bearer of these letters, to have for the 
 Queen's use a certain great book which is in 
 the house of his order in London, written in 
 the French dialect, wherein are contained the 
 exploits of Antioch ! , and of the Kings and 
 others.— 17th May, 34 Hen. 3. And the fol- 
 lowing instrument probably explains for what 
 reason this book was wanted : 
 
 Edward of Westminster is commanded to 
 cause the History of Antioch to be painted 
 in the King's chamber in the Tower of London, 
 as Thomas Espernir shall direct him, and the 
 King will allow him the cost incurred therein. 
 — 5th June, 35 Henry 3. 
 
 1 Joseph of Exeter, called Josephus Iscanus, a Latin 
 poet of some note, wrote an heroic poem called the War of 
 Antioch, or the Third Crusade under King Richard. It 
 was probably a French translation of this poem that is here 
 alluded to. 
 
 N 2
 
 180 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Illustrations r f lie Subject of the History of Atltioch ap- 
 
 of History. ° J 
 
 pears to have been a favourite one with King 
 
 Henry, for in the twenty-first year of his reign 
 he ordered the History of Antioch, with King 
 Richard's single combat, to be painted in a 
 chamber at his palace of Clarendon. 
 
 The King, in presence of Master William 
 the painter, a monk of Westminster, lately at 
 Winchester, contrived and gave orders for a 
 certain picture to be made at Westminster, in 
 the wardrobe where he was accustomed to wash 
 his face, representing the King who was rescued 
 by his dogs from the seditions which were plotted 
 against that King by his subjects ; respecting 
 which same picture the King addressed other 
 letters to you, Edward of Westminster ; and the 
 King commands Philip Luvel his treasurer, and 
 the aforesaid Edward of Westminster, to cause 
 the same Master William to have his costs and 
 charges for painting the aforesaid picture, with- 
 out delay ; and when he shall know the cost, he 
 will give them a writ of Liberate therefor. 
 Witness the King at Winchester, on the 30th 
 June.— 40 Hen. 3. 
 
 Otho the goldsmith is commanded, with- 
 out delay, to put aside the picture which was 
 begun to be painted in the King's great chamber 
 at Westminster, beneath the large historical
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 181 
 
 painting: of the same chamber, with the scrolls illustrations 
 
 L ° of History. 
 
 containing the figures and representations of 
 
 lions, birds, and other beasts, and to paint it 
 green, after the fashion of a curtain or hang- 
 ing, so that the effect of the great history may 
 be kept unimpaired. Witness the King at 
 Windsor, on 24th August. — 34 Hen. 3. m. J. 
 
 Edward of Westminster is commanded to 
 cause effigies of the apostles to be painted round 
 St. Stephen's Chapel, and the judgment-day on 
 the western side ; and in like manner to cause 
 the figure of the blessed Virgin Mary to be 
 painted on a tablet ; so that these may be ready 
 at the King's coming here. Witness the King 
 at Bridgwater, — 14th August, 34 Hen. 3. 
 
 Edward of Westminster is commanded to 
 order a banner to be made of white silk, and in 
 the centre of the banner there is to be a repre- 
 sentation of the crucifixion, with the effigies of 
 the blessed Mary and St. John, embroidered in 
 orfraies, and on the top a star and a new moon 
 crescent ; and the said banner is to be got 
 ready by Easter. Also to search for a large 
 bough, if it can be procured, for the shrine of 
 St. Edward. — 11th March. Claus. 85 Hen. 3. 
 m. 17. 
 
 Edward Fitz Otho is commanded to order 
 a bell to be made out of the metal which is 
 
 n 3
 
 182 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Illustrations 
 of History. 
 
 in his custody, larger than those which were 
 made under his direction the year before ; and 
 if that metal be not sufficient to make it, to buy 
 in London or elsewhere as much metal as shall 
 be wanting, because the King does not wish any 
 of the old bells to be broken up on account of 
 any deficiency of metal ; and he is also to take 
 care that the bell be completed before St. Ed- 
 ward's day. — Claus. 34 Hen. 3. m. 8. 
 
 Edward of Westminster is again com- 
 manded to get a bell made by the advice of 
 the founder, which, though not so large as the 
 great bell at Westminster, may nevertheless cor- 
 respond therewith in tone. Also to have a 
 large cross placed in the nave of the church 
 at Westminster, and to buy two angels, repre- 
 senting the cherubim, to stand on each side of 
 the cross. — Claus. 35 Hen. 3. m. 19. 
 
 Miscellanea. — Pensions and Presents to 
 the Nurses of the Royal Family. — The King 
 to his Barons of the Exchequer, greeting. 
 Know ye that we have granted to William Mer- 
 chant, falconer, the Rent of j£7 in Chippeham, 
 which Hodierna, the nurse of the lord King 
 Richard our uncle, had, to support himself 
 during our pleasure ; and therefore we command 
 you to allow the same William so to have that 
 rent of £7, charged in the account of the
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 183 
 
 ok History. 
 
 sheriff of Wiltshire. — 26th April, 4 Hen. 3. illustrations 
 Page 416 b. A similar order to the sheriff of 
 Wiltshire. 
 
 The King to the sheriff of Gloucester, 
 greeting. We order you, as we have elsewhere 
 ordered you, without let or difficulty, to pay to 
 our beloved Elena, our nurse, the alms which 
 the lord King John our father gave to her, to be 
 received out of your county, to wit, two-pence a 
 day ; and render to her without delay the 
 arrears thereof which are due to her, namely, 
 for three terms ; and you shall have it accounted 
 to you at the Exchequer. — 24th January, 
 2 Henry 3. Page 349. 
 
 The King to his barons of the Exchequer 
 greeting. We command you, upon inspection 
 of our rolls of our Exchequer, to allow Eva, the 
 nurse of Richard our brother, to have the pay- 
 ments which you shall find by the inrolment that 
 she had by the hands of the sheriffs of Surrey* 
 Hertford, and London, by gift of the lord King 
 John our father, before the war raised between 
 the aforesaid King John our father and his 
 batons of England ; and likewise to pay her the 
 arrears which are due to her from the day on 
 which peace was concluded between us and 
 Louis. — 26th March, 2 Hen. 3. Page 356. 
 
 n 4
 
 184 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 illustrations The mayor and reeves of AVinchester are 
 
 of History. j 
 
 commanded to cause Christiana de Rumes, 
 
 nurse to the King's daughter Joane, to have 
 every day two-pence to support herself. — 
 9th Aug. 15 John. Page 150. 
 
 The King to his barons of the Exchequer, 
 greeting. Know ye that we have given to 
 Margaret, the nurse of Isabella our sister, one 
 penny a day, to be received of our alms by the 
 hands of the sheriff of Hereford, as Roesia la 
 Custurere, deceased, was accustomed to receive 
 it by the hands of the same sheriff; and there- 
 fore we command you to allow the aforesaid 
 Margaret to have the same alms of one penny 
 a day, as is aforesaid.; — 19th June, 3 Hen. 3. 
 Page 393. 
 
 The keepers of the King's wines at 
 Waltham are commanded to allow Alice, the 
 nurse of Edward the King's son, to have half a 
 cask of wine out of the King's wines which are 
 in their custody, as a present from the King. 
 Witness the King at Winchester, on the 12th July. 
 — 34 Henry 3. 
 
 Treatment of Prisoners. — The constable 
 of Bristol is commanded to mitigate the duresse 
 of Hugh Poinz, who is under his custody, still
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 185 
 
 taking care that his ffuard be ^ood ; and to illustrations 
 
 ° ° ° of History. 
 
 allow his friends to bring him what succour - — 
 they please in food and clothing, so that he 
 be safely guarded. Witness the King at Ayles- 
 bury.— 1 6th Sept., 18 John. Page 288. 
 
 The King to the sheriff of Oxford, greet- 
 ing. We order you to guard safely Gilbert de 
 Stanford, who is in our prison, so that he incur 
 no risk of his life ; and allow Amicia, the wife 
 of the same Gilbert, to have, without trouble, 
 his land of Ricot, with its appurtenances, to 
 support herself and her children therewith whilst 
 the said Gilbert is in our prison. Witness 
 Hubert de Burgh, the Justiciary, at Westminster. 
 —23d July, 3 Hen. 3. Page 397- 
 
 Prisoners allowed to go out of custody 
 to practice fencing, preparatory to a wager of 
 battle. 
 
 The King to the sheriff of Lincoln, greet- 
 ing. We order you, that if Walter de Stiveton, 
 taken and imprisoned at the Tower of London 
 for the death of William de Tillebroc, where- 
 upon duel is waged between the same Walter 
 and Roger de Chelvestun, who offers him chal- 
 lenge on this occasion, shall find you four and 
 twenty good and lawful men of your county, 
 who will undertake to have him before our 
 justices at Westminster, in eight days of
 
 186 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 illustrations St. Michael, to fight that duel with him, then 
 
 of History. 
 
 . to accept for this such four and twenty good 
 
 and lawful men, and signify the same by your 
 letters to the constable of the Tower of Lon- 
 don, making known to him their names ; and 
 we have commanded him, upon your signifying 
 this to him, to deliver from prison the aforesaid 
 Walter on the bail of the aforesaid lawful men, 
 in manner aforesaid. And the said constable is 
 commanded, upon receipt of the sheriff's in- 
 structions by letter, informing him of his having 
 done as has been said, immediately to deliver 
 the aforesaid Walter from prison in the manner 
 prescribed ; and in the meantime to keep the 
 same Walter in free prison, so that he may 
 live on his own resources, and learn to fence. 
 — 25th July, 4 Hen. 3. Page 424. 
 
 The King to the constable of Winchester, 
 &c. We command you to permit Sir Jordan 
 de Bianney, knight, whom you have in our 
 prison, to go out of custody twice a day, or 
 oftener, to fence, and in his place retain in 
 prison Oliver de Vaux until his return ; and 
 when he returns then permit the same Oliver to 
 depart and go where he will ; and as you love 
 all you possess, and your own body, do you 
 see that the same Jordan be safely kept. Wit- 
 ness ourself at Brockenborough. — 22d July, 
 9 John. Page 88.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 187 
 
 Erection of Gibbets. — Henry, by the grace ^ummmm 
 
 u j j OF History. 
 
 of God, &c., to the sheriff of Middlesex, 
 
 greeting. We order you to cause to be made, 
 without any delay, in the place where the 
 gallows were formerly erected, that is to say, 
 at the Elms, (ad Ulmellos,) two good gibbets 
 of strong and excellent timber, for hanging 
 robbers and other malefactors ; and the cost 
 which you may incur for this shall be accounted 
 to you, by the view and testimony of lawful 
 men, at the Exchequer. Witness Hubert de 
 Burgh, our Justiciary, at St. Albans. — 22d May, 
 4 Hen. 3. Page 419. 
 
 Political Economy. — The King to Thomas 
 Fitz Anthony, greeting. We command you 
 not to suffer the men of Waterford, or any 
 other persons of our dominion, to prevent 
 Geoffry de Campvill, or our other barons of 
 England, from bringing freely and without let 
 into England their stock as well of corn as 
 other things, for the improvement of our realm 
 of England.— 25th April, 2 Hen. 3. Page 359. 
 
 Articles ordered by the King. — The King 
 to Hubert de Burgh, &c. We command you 
 to send to us immediately, upon the sight of 
 these letters, of sulphur, of tallow, of gum, and 
 of pitch, each ten pounds, and four pounds of 
 quicksilver; and if we stand in need of more
 
 188 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 illustrations to p rov ide us therewith. Witness ourself at 
 
 of History. l 
 
 Roche-aux-Moines. — 23d July, 16th John. 
 
 Page 167. 
 
 Secrecy observed in moving the King's trea- 
 sure. — The sheriff of Devon is ordered to find 
 a good and secure ship for the King's messen- 
 gers, whom he is sending to Poictou, to convey 
 his treasure thither, and to take care that such 
 ship be the first that goes, lest rumours be 
 divulged of the King's treasure before it arrives 
 in Poictou ; and the cost will be allowed at 
 the Exchequer. — 25th July, 9 John. And on 
 the 30th of July following the same sheriff is 
 ordered to procure such ship at the lowest 
 possible price. Page 89. 
 
 Persecution of the Jews. — The sheriff of 
 Norfolk and Suffolk is commanded to make 
 proclamation in the city of Norwich, and in 
 all the good towns of those counties, that no 
 christian woman shall henceforth serve the Jews 
 in nursing their young children, or in any other 
 office. Witness the King at Westminster. — 
 20th Nov. 19 Hen. 3. 
 
 Attendance on the Queen at dinner. — The 
 King to Ralph de Ralegh and Geoffry de 
 Martigny. We send to you the two sons of 
 Richard de Umframville, namely, Odinell and
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 189 
 
 Robert, and command you to let them wait daily illustrations 
 
 " •'of History. 
 
 before the Queen at dinner. But their pre- 
 
 ceptor is not to come before the Queen. Let 
 them also sleep at night in the hall, and see 
 that they be honourably attended to. Witness 
 the King at Durham. — 3d Sept. 14< John. 
 A.D. 1212. Page 123. 
 
 Co stly Drinks prepared for* the King. — The 
 keepers of the King's wines at Winchester are 
 commanded to deliver to Robert de Monte 
 Passalano any quantity and quality of wine that 
 he may choose to have, to make therewith costly 
 and delicate drinks for the King. Witness the 
 King at Ludgershall.-—26th Nov. 34 Hen. 3. 
 
 Some of the entries relative to the build- 
 ing and repairing of the King's palaces, castles, 
 and houses, are extremely curious. In one, at 
 page 52, Ralph de Neville is there ordered to 
 have the King's kitchen at Clarendon covered 
 with shingles l , and the King's houses there to 
 
 1 Cindula in orig., for Scindula or Scandula, ' a lath or 
 shingle.' " Scindula est latus asser quo domus cooperitur." 
 Ducange. " Tenuis lamina ex ligno fissili ad varios usus, et 
 praesertim ad tecta domorum, a sca?idendo, quia in tectis ita 
 disponuntur scandulae ut alia aliam scandat. Sunt qui putant 
 non a scandendo, sed a scindendo duci, et scindula scribi 
 jubent." Facciolati. See also An Account of a survey of 
 the manor and forest of Clarendon, 1 Ed. I. 1272, in the 
 Archaeologia, vol. xxv.
 
 190 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Illustrations be properly repaired ; also to procure two new 
 
 kitchens to be built for cooking the King's 
 
 dinner, one at Marlborough, and another at 
 Ludgershall ; and in each kitchen to cause a 
 furnace to be erected large enough to cook two 
 or three oocen. 
 
 Godfrey de Lyston, the keeper of the 
 King's forest of Windsor, is commanded to give 
 from out of that forest to Gilbert the King's 
 carpenter at Windsor, as much timber as he 
 will require to repair the hall and chambers 
 in the upper castle of Windsor, where the 
 King's children were nursed. — 22d Jan., 
 40 Hen. 3. 
 
 At page 95 is an entry which touches upon 
 a domestic custom, then, and long afterwards, 
 practised in this country. The Barons of the 
 Exchequer are ordered to account with Robert 
 de Leveland for what he had expended in 
 straw, and for the laying Jlne sand in the King's 
 houses at Westminster, when the King slept 
 there on the Friday \ Saturday, and Sunday 
 next before the feast of All Saints, in the ninth 
 year of his reign. 
 
 1 The King was at Westminster on the 26th, 27th, and 
 28th of October 1207, the days here mentioned.
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 1£)1 
 
 The Editor cannot close this Introduction 
 without acknowledging with thanks the zeal 
 and talent evinced by His Majesty's Printers 
 during the progress of this Work through the 
 press. 
 
 Thomas Duffus Hardy. 
 
 Record Office Tower, 
 18th April 183.1. 
 
 London: Printed by George Eyri and Amhmw Spottiswoode, 
 
 Pi inters to the King's most Excellent Majesty. 1833.
 
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