William, by the grace of God king of the English, to R. Bainard, and G. de Magneville, and Peter de Valoines, and all my liege men of Essex, Hertfordshire and Middlesex greeting. Know ye and all my liege men resident in England, that I have by common council, and by the advise of the archbishops, bishops, abbots and chief men of my realm, determined that the episcopal laws be mended as not having been kept properly nor according to the decrees of the sacred canons throughout the realm of England, even to my own times. Accordingly I command and charge you by royal authority that no bishop nor archdeacon do hereafter hold pleas of episcopal laws in the Hundred, nor bring a cause to the judgment of secular men which concerns the rule of souls. But whoever shall be impleaded by the episcopal laws for any cause or crime, let him come to the place which the bishop shall choose and name for this purpose, and there answer for his cause or crime, and not according to the Hundred but according to the canons and episcopal laws, and let him do right to God and his bishop. But if any one, being lifted up with pride, refuse to come to the bishop's court, let him be summoned three several times, and if by this means, even, he come not to obedience, let the authority and justice of the king or sheriff be exerted; and he who refuses to come to the bishop's judgment shall make good the bishop's law for every summons. This too I absolutely forbid that any sheriff, reeve, or king's minister, or any other layman, do in any wise concern himself with the laws which belong to the bishop, or bring another man to judgment save in the bishop's court. And let judgment be nowhere undergone but in the bishop's see or in that place which the bishop appoints for this purpose. (Ancient Laws and Institutes of England, I, 213.) 53. First Charter of the City of London Historical Charters This, the first charter granted to the City of London, although of great brevity, is of importance because of its recognition of the rights possessed by the citizens of that place. William the king friendly salutes William the bishop, and Godfrey the portreve, and all the burgesses within London, both French and English: And I declare, that I grant you to be all law-worthy, as you were in the days of King Edward; and I grant that every child shall be his father's heir, after his father's days; and I will not suffer any person to do you wrong. God keep you. (Historical Charters and Constitutional Documents of the City of London, p. I. Lond. 1884.) 54. Exactions of William Rufas Ordericus Vitalis The striking contrast between the administration of William the Conqueror and that of his son, William Rufas, is clearly shown in the following quotation from the contemporary chronicler ORDERICUS VITALIS. While these events were occurring in Normandy, beyond sea, and enormous sums were prodigally spent in useless armaments, Ranulph Flambard, now made bishop of Durham, and the other minions and officers of the king, were robbing England, and, worse than thieves, pillaged without mercy the granaries of the farmers and the stores of the merchants, not even restraining their bloody hands from plundering the church. On the death of the prelates, they immediately intruded themselves into their places by a violent exercise of the royal authority, and seized without decency whatever they found in their treasuries. They took into the king's hands the domains of the monasteries and the revenues of the bishoprics, and exacted from the abbots or bishops who still survived enormous sums of money. Thus amassing, by fair means or foul, an immense amount of contributions, they remitted it to the king beyond sea, to be employed on his own occasions whether good or bad. Vast sums, accumulated by these taxes, were presented to the king who used them ostentatiously to enrich foreigners. But the native inhabitants, unjustly spoiled of their goods, were in great distress and cried lamentably to God, who delivered Israel from the hand of Moab, when Eglon the corpulent king was slain by Aoth, the left-handed. (Ordericus Vitalis, book X, c. 8, ed. cited.) 55. The Charter of Liberties of Henry I. Ancient Laws and Institutes of England William Rufas was succeeded by Henry, the third son of William the Conqueror. Henry's first public act was to issue a charter of liberties. This important charter was not only of great value to Henry's subjects, but a century later it was to form the basis of the demands which led King John to grant the Magna Charta (No. 80). The two documents should be studied together. In the year of the incarnation of the Lord, 1101, Henry, son of King William, after the death of his brother William, by the grace of God, king of the English, to all faithful, greeting: 1. Know that by the mercy of God, and by the common counsel of the barons of the whole kingdom of England, I have been crowned king of the same kingdom; and because the kingdom has been oppressed by unjust exactions, I, from regard to God, and from the love which I have toward you, in the first place make the holy church of God free, so that I will neither sell nor place at rent, nor, when archbishop, or bishop, or abbot is dead, will I take anything from the domain of the church, or from its men, until a successor is installed into it. And all the evil customs by which the realm of England was unjustly oppressed will I take away, which evil customs I partly set down here. 2. If any one of my barons, or earls, or others who hold from me shall have died, his heir shall not redeem his land as he did in the time of my brother, but shall relieve it by a just and legitimate relief. Similarly also the men of my barons shall relieve their lands from their lords by a just and legitimate relief. 3. And if any one of the barons or other men of mine wishes to give his daughter in marriage, or his sister or niece or relation, he must speak with me about it, but I will neither take anything from him for this permission, nor forbid him to give her in marriage, unless he should wish to join her to my enemy. And if when a baron or other man of mine is dead, a daughter remains as his heir, I will give her in marriage according to the judgment of my barons, along with her land. And if when a man is dead his wife remains, and is without children, she shall have her dowry and right of marriage, and I will not give her to a husband except to her will. 4. And if a wife has survived with children, she shall have her dowry and right of marriage, so long as she shall have kept her body legitimately, and I will not give her in marriage, except according to her will. And the guardian. of the land and children shall be either the wife or another one of the relatives as shall seem to be most just. And I require that my barons should deal similarly with the sons and daughters or wives of their men. 5. The common tax on money which used to be taken through the cities and counties, which was not taken in the time of King Edward, I now forbid altogether henceforth to be taken. If any one shall have been seized, whether a moneyer or any other, with false money, strict justice shall be done for it. 6. All fines and all debts which were owed to my brother, I remit, except my rightful rents, and except those payments which had been agreed upon for the inheritances of others or for those things which more justly affected others. And if any one for his own inheritance has stipulated anything, this I remit, and all reliefs which had been agreed upon for rightful inheritances. 7. And if any one of my barons or men shall become feeble, however he himself shall give or arrange to give his money, I grant that it shall be so given. Moreover, if he himself, prevented by arms, or by weakness, shall not have bestowed his money, or arranged to bestow it, his wife or his children or his parents, and his legitimate men shall divide it for his soul, as to them shall seem best. 8. If any of my barons or men shall have commited an offence he shall not give security to the extent of forfeiture of his money, as he did in the time of my father, or of my brother, but according to the measure of the offence so shall he pay, as he would have paid from the time of my father backward, in the time of my other predecessors; so that if he shall have been convicted of treachery or of crime, he shall pay as is just. 9. All murders moreover before that day in which I was crowned king, I pardon; and those which shall be done henceforth shall be punished justly according to the law of King Edward. 10. The forests, by the common agreement of my barons, I have retained in my own hand, as my father held them. II. To those knights who hold their land by the cuirass, I yield of my own gift the lands of their demesne ploughs free from all payments and from all labor, so that as they have thus been favoured by such a great alleviation, so they may readily provide themselves with horses and arms for my service and for the defence of my kingdom. 12. A firm peace in my whole kingdom I establish and require to be kept from henceforth. 13. The law of King Edward I give to you again with those changes with which my father changed it by the counsel of his barons. 14. If any one has taken anything from my possessions since the death of King William, my brother, or from the possessions of any one, let the whole be immediately returned without alteration, and if any one shall have retained anything thence, he upon whom it is found will pay it heavily to me. Witnesses Maurice, bishop of London, and Gundulf, bishop, and William, bishop-elect, and Henry, earl, and Simon, earl, and Walter Giffard, and Robert de Montfort, and Roger Bigod, and Henry de Port, at London, when I was crowned. (Translations and Reprints. Published by the Department of History, University of Pennsylvania. Reprinted by permission.) 56. Charter of the City of London (From HENRY I.) Historical Charters The City of London was the recipient of many charters, the first being that granted by William I. (No. 53). That granted by Henry I. is, however, the first in which is given an account of the municipal government. A comparative study of these charters is of great value to those interested in municipal development. Henry, by the grace of God, king of England, to the archbishop of Canterbury, and to the bishops and abbots, earls. and barons, justices and sheriffs, and to all his faithful subjects of England, French and English, greeting. Know ye that I have granted to my citizens of London, to hold Middlesex to farm for three hundred pounds, upon accompt to them and their heirs; so that the said citizens shall place as sheriff whom they will of themselves; and shall place whomsoever, or such a one as they will of themselves, for keeping of the pleas of the crown, and of the pleadings of the same, and none other shall be justice over the same men of London; and the citizens of London shall not plead without the walls of London for any plea. And be they free from scot and lot and danegeld, and of all murder; and none of them shall wage battle. And if any one of the citizens shall be impleaded concerning the pleas of the crown, the man of London shall discharge himself by his oath, which shall be adjudged within the city; and none shall lodge within the walls, neither of my household, nor any other, nor lodging delivered by force. And all the men of London shall be quit and free, and all their goods, throughout England, and the ports of the sea, of and from all toll and passage and lestage, and all other customs; and the churches and barons and citizens |