Gurdon, in his _History of Parliament_, says--"This parliament was
summoned in the reign of Henry the Sixth, to meet at Leicester; and orders
were sent to the members that they should not wear swords; so they came to
parliament (like modern butchers) with long staves, from whence the
parliament got the name of _The Parliament of Batts_; and when the
batts were prohibited, the members had recourse to stones and leaden
bullets. This parliament was opened with the Confirmation of Liberties."