oral exam. Required reading in 1340 for the Bachelor's Degree was the
new logic of Aristotle ("Prior and Posterior Analytics" e.g. on
syllogistic logic and deduction, the "Topics", or the "Sophistical
Refutations", e.g. logical fallacies such as from 'All A are B' to 'All
B are A'), and a selection from these Aristotle works on physics: "Of
Heaven and Earth", "On the Soul", "Of meteors", "Of Birth and Decay", or
"Of Feeling and What is Felt" with "Of Memory and Recollection" and "Of
Sleep and Waking", or "Of the Movement of Animals" with "Of Minor Points
in Natural History".
A Master of Arts degree could be awarded after three more years of
study and teaching. A Doctorate degrees in theology required ten more
years of study. A Doctorate in civil or canon law required eight more
years. A man with a degree in canon law who wanted to practice in a
certain bishop's court had to first satisfy this bishop of his
competence.
Another source of legal learning was in London, where the guilds gave
rise to the Inns of Court. They used the Register of Writs, the case law
of the Year Books, and disputation to teach their students.
For a doctorate in medicine from Oxford or Cambridge, five more years
plus two years of practice were required. Surgery was not taught because
it was considered manual labor, and there was some feeling that it was a
sacrilege and dishonorable. Urinalysis and pulse beat were used for
diagnosis. Epilepsy and apoplexy were understood as spasms inside the
head. It was known what substances served as laxatives and diuretics.
Teeth were extracted, eye cataracts were removed with a silver needle,
and skin from the arm was grafted onto a mutilated face.
Englishmen who had collected books on philosophy, medicine, astronomy,
and history and literature books from the continent gave their
collections to the universities, which started their libraries. Paper
supplemented parchment, so there were more books.
England was still an agricultural rather than a manufacturing country.
Imported were cloth, silks, linen, velvets, furs, glass, wines, candles,
millstones, amber, iron, and mercury. Exported were wool, leather, lead,
tin, and alabaster for sculpturing. Merchant adventurers came to
manufacture cloth good enough for export and began to buy up raw wool in
such quantity that its export declined. They took their cloth abroad to
sell, personally or by agents.
An Oxford theologian and preacher, John Wyclif, voiced the popular
resentment of the materialism of the church, benefit of clergy,
immorality of priests, and the selling of indulgences and pardons.
Encouraged by the king, he argued against the supremacy of the papal law
over the King's courts and against payments to the papacy. He opined
that the church had no power to excommunicate. The friars had become
mere beggars and the church was still wealthy. He proposed that all
goods should be held in common by the righteous and that the church
should hold no property but be entirely spiritual. He believed that
people should rely on their individual consciences. He thought that the
Bible should be available to people who could read English so that the
people could have a direct access to God without priests or the pope.
Towards this end, he translated it from Latin into English in 1384. His
preachers spread his views throughout the country. The church then
possessed about one-third of the land of the nation.
Parliament met about twice a year and lasted from two weeks to several
months. There was a well-defined group of about fifty barons and a few
spiritual peers who were always summoned to Parliament and who composed
a House of Lords. "Peer" now meant a member of the House of Lords. All
peers had the right to approach the king with advice. The baron peers
reasoned that the custom of regular attendance was a right that should
be inherited by the eldest son, or by a female heir, if there were no
male heirs. However, the theory of nobility by blood as conveying
political privilege had no legal recognition. No female could attend
Parliament; the husband of a baroness attended Parliament in her stead.
Edward III and Richard II created new peers with various titles of
dignity, such as duke and marquess, which were above barons and earls.
The dukes and marquesses were identified with a territorial designation
such as an English county or county town. Whenever a Parliament was
assembled the commons were present. The commons was composed of
representatives from 100 boroughs and 37 counties. Each new Parliament
required an election of representatives. The members of the commons were
generally the most prominent and powerful economic and political figures
of the county and were repeatedly reelected. The electors were usually
influenced by the sheriff or a powerful lord who suggested suitable men.
The wealthy merchants typically represented the boroughs and paid much
of the taxes. Under Edward III, the commons took a leading part in the
granting of taxes and the presentation of petitions and became a
permanent and distinct body, the House of Commons, with a spokesman or
"speaker", chosen by the Crown, and a clerk. The speaker came to be an
intermediary between the Commons and the king and between the Commons
and the Lords. A clerk of Parliament registered its acts and sat with
the Lords. A clerk of the Crown superintended the issue of writs and the
receipt of the returns and attested the signature of the king on
statutes. It became a regular practice for the Chancellor to open
Parliament with an opportunity to present petitions after his opening
speech. The king then referred them to certain peers and justices, who
decided to which court, or Parliament, they should be sent. During the
1300s, the number of barons going to Parliament gradually decreased.
At the 1376 Parliament, ("the Good Parliament") the Commons, which
formerly had only consented to taxes, took political action by
complaining that the King's councilors had grown rich by war
profiteering at the cost of impoverishing the nation and the people were
too poor to endure any more taxation for the war and held a hearing on
financial malfeasance and dishonesty of two ministers. The chamberlain
had extorted enormous sums, had intercepted fines meant for the king's
treasury, and had sold a castle to the enemy. The steward had bought
debts of the king's. The House of Lords, the High Court of Parliament,
found the charges proved and dismissed them permanently from office.
This established the constitutional means for impeachment and
prosecution by the Commons and removal by the House of Lords of
ministers. By this process, there could be no royal intimidation, as
there could be in the ordinary courts. The Commons demanded that its
members be elected by county citizens rather than appointed by the
sheriff.
The roles of Parliament and the King's council are starting to
differentiate into legislative and executive, respectively. The
legislative function is lawmaking, and the executive is
regulation-making that refines and effectuates the laws of Parliament.
But the legislative, executive, and judicial authorities have not as yet
become so completely separated that they cannot on occasion work
together.
Sheriffs dealt directly with the king instead of through an earl.
From 1150 to 1400, resistance was an ordinary remedy for political
disagreements. If a popular leader raised his standard in a popular
cause, an irregular army could be assembled in a day. (There was no
regular army, since England was protected by the sea from invasion.) So
misgovernment by a king would be quickly restrained. Society recovered
quickly from conflict and civil war because the national wealth
consisted chiefly in flocks and herds and in the simple buildings
inhabited by the people. In a week after armed resistance, the
agricultural worker was driving his team. There was little furniture,
stock of shops, manufactured goods, or machinery that could be
destroyed.
To support a war with France, the staple was reinstated by statute of
1353 after an experiment without it in which profits of a staple went to
staples outside the nation. Wool exports were inspected for quality and
taxed through his officials only at the designated staple ports. These
officials included collectors, controllers, searchers [inspectors],
surveyors, clerks, weighers, and crane-keepers. Wool, woolfells,
leather, and lead sold for export had to go through the staple town. The
penalty was forfeiture of lands, tenements, goods, and chattel. The
mayor and constables of the staple were elected annually by the native
and foreign merchants of the place. The mayor gave validity to contracts
for a set fee, by seal of his office. He and the constables had
jurisdiction over all persons and things touching the staple, which was
regulated by the Law Merchant in all matters of contract, covenant,
debt, and felonies against foreign merchants. A hue and cry was required
to be raised and followed for anyone taking a cart of merchandise or
slaying a merchant, denizen [resident alien] or alien, or the town would
answer for the robbery and damage done. In 1363, Calais, a continental
town held by the English, became the staple town for lead, tin, cloth,
and wool and was placed under a group of London capitalists: the
Merchants of the Staple. All exports of these had to pass through
Calais, where customs tax was collected. The staple statute remained
basically unchanged for the next 200 years.
Guns and cannon were common by 1372. In the 1300s and 1400s, the king
relied on mercenaries hired directly or by contract with his great
nobles for foreign wars. The King reimbursed the contractors with the
profits of war, such as the ransoms paid by the families of rich
prisoners. The fighting men supplemented their pay by plunder.
Featherbeds and blooded horses were favorite spoils of war brought back
to England from the continent. As new techniques with footmen came into
being, the footmen became the core of the army and the knightly
abilities of the feudal tenants-in-chief became less valuable.
Many lords got men to fight with them by livery and maintenance
employment agreements such as this one of 1374: "Bordeaux, February 15.
This indenture, made between our lord King John [of Gaunt, of Castile,
etc.] of the one part and Symkyn Molyneux, esquire, of the other part,
witnesses that the said Symkyn is retained and will remain with our said
lord for peace and for war for the term of his life, as follows: that is
to say, the said Symkyn shall be bound to serve our said lord as well in
time of peace as of war in whatsoever parts it shall please our said
lord, well and fitly arrayed. And he shall be boarded as well in time of
peace as of war. And he shall take for his fees by the year, as well in
time of peace as of war, ten marks sterling [133s.] from the issues of
the Duchy of Lancaster by the hands of the receiver there who now is or
shall be in time to come, at the terms of Easter and Michaelmas by even
portions yearly for the whole of his life. And, moreover, our lord has
granted to him by the year in time of war five marks sterling [67s.] by
the hands of the treasurer of war for the time being. And his year of
war shall begin the day when he shall move from his inn towards our said
lord by letters which shall be sent to him thereof, and thenceforward he
shall take wages coming and returning by reasonable daily [payments] and
he shall have fitting freightage for him, his men, horses, and other
harness within reason, and in respect of his war horses taken and lost
in the service of our said lord, and also in respect to prisoners and
other profits of war taken or gained by him or any of his men, the said
our lord will do to him as to other squires of his rank."
Forecastles and stern castles on ships were lower and broader.
Underneath them were cabins. The English ship was still single masted
with a single square sail. A fleet was formed with over 200 ships
selected by the English admirals acting for the king at the ports. Men
were seized and pressed into service and criminals were pardoned from
crimes to become sailors in the fleet, which was led by the King's ship.
They used the superior longbow against the French sailor's crossbow. In
1372, the Tower of London had four mounted fortress cannon and the port
of Dover had six.
The war's disruption of shipping caused trade to decline. But the
better policing of the narrow seas made piracy almost disappear.
English merchants may carry their merchandise in foreign ships if there
are no English ships available.
Anyone may ship or carry grain out of the nation, except to enemies,
after paying duties. But the council may restrain this passage when
necessary for the good of the nation. Any merchant, privy or stranger,
who was robbed of goods on the sea or lost his ship by tempest or other
misfortune on the sea banks, his goods coming to shore could not be
declared Wreck, but were to be delivered to the merchant after he proves
ownership in court by his marks on the goods or by good and lawful
merchants.
All stakes and obstacles set up in rivers impeding the passage of boats
shall be removed.
Waterpower was replacing foot power in driving the mills where cloth
was cleaned and fulled.
A boundary dispute between two barons resulted in the first true survey
map. Nine cow pastures were divided by a boundary marked by a shield on
a pole which the commission of true and sworn men had set up.
King Richard II, an irresponsible sovereign, asserted an absolute
supremacy of the king over Parliament and declared certain statutes
which he claimed to have been forced on him to be revoked. He interfered
with county elections of knights to Parliament by directing sheriffs to
return certain named persons. He wanted to dispense altogether with
Parliament and instead have a committee of representatives. He claimed
that the goods of his subjects were his own and illegally taxed the
counties. There were many disputes as to who should be his ministers.
High treason was extended to include making a riot and rumor, compassing
or purposing to depose the King, revoking one's homage or liege to the
King, or attempting to repeal a statute. When Henry Bolingbroke reported
to Parliament that another lord had cast doubt on the king's
trustworthiness, a duel between them was arranged. But Richard, probably
fearing the gain of power of the lord who won, instead exiled the two
lords. He took possession of the Lancaster estates to which Bolingbroke
was heir and forbade this inheritance. This made all propertied men
anxious and they united behind Bolingbroke in taking up arms against
Richard. Richard was not a warrior king and offered to resign the crown.
The "Merciless Parliament" of 1388 swept out Richard's friends.
Parliament deposed and imprisoned Richard. It revoked the extensions to
the definition of high treason. It elected Bolingbroke, who claimed to
be a descendant of Henry III, to be King Henry IV. This action
established clearly that royal decrees were subordinate to parliamentary
statutes, that Parliament was the ultimate legal arbiter of the realm,
and that the consent of Parliament was necessary in determining
kingship. The House of Commons became very powerful. It was responsible
for the major part of legislation. It's members began to assert the
privilege of free speech. That is, they wanted to discuss other matters
than what was on the king's agenda and they opposed punishment for what
they said unless it was treasonable. Henry IV agreed to their request
not to consider reports of proceedings unless they came to him through
official channels.
- The Law -
High treason was defined by statute in 1352 as levying war against the
King, aiding the King's enemies, compassing or imagining the death of
the King, Queen, or their eldest son and heir, or violating the Queen or
the eldest unmarried daughter or the wife of the King's eldest son and
heir; making or knowingly using counterfeits of the King's great or
privy seal or coinage; or slaying the Chancellor, Treasurer, or any
justice in the exercise of their duty. The penalty was forfeit of life
and lands.
Petit treason was defined by statute and included a servant slaying his
master, a wife her husband, or a man his lord, to whom was owed faith
and obedience.
No one shall tell false news or lies about prelates, dukes, earls,
barons, and other nobles and great men or the Chancellor, Treasurer, a
Justice, Clerk of the Privy Seal, Steward of the King's house whereby
debates and discords might arise between these lords or between the
lords and the commons. Cases shall be tried by the King's Council, which
included the Chancellor, Treasurer, and chief justices.
Preachers drawing crowds by ingenious sermons and inciting them to riot
shall be arrested by sheriffs and tried by the ecclesiastical court.
Any stranger passing at night of whom any have suspicion shall be
arrested and taken to the Sheriff.
No man shall ride with a spear, upon pain of forfeiting it.
No servant of agriculture or laborer shall carry any sword or dagger,
or else forfeit it, except in time of war in defense of the nation. He
may carry bow and arrow [for practice] on Sundays and holy days, when he
should not play games such as tennis, football, or dice.
No one may enter another's land and tenements by strong hand nor with a
mob, upon pain of imprisonment and ransom at the King's will.
Charters, releases, obligations, quitclaim deeds and other deeds burnt
or destroyed in uprisings shall be reissued without fee, after trial by
the king and his council. Manumissions, obligations, releases and other
bonds and feoffments in land made by force, coercion or duress during
mob uprisings are void.
Men who rape and women consenting after a rape shall lose their
inheritance and dower and joint feoffments. The husbands, or father or
next of kin of such women may sue the rapist by inquisition, but not by
trial by combat. The penalty is loss of life and member.
The Statute of Laborers of 1351 required all workers, from tailors to
ploughmen, to work only at pre-plague wage rates and forced the vagrant
peasant to work for anyone who claimed him or her. It also encouraged
longer terms of employment as in the past rather than for a day at a
time. Statutory price controls on food limited profits to reasonable
ones according to the distance of the supply. Later, wages were
determined in each county by Justices of the Peace according to the
dearth of victuals while allowing a victualer a reasonable profit and a
penalty was specified as paying the value of the excess wages given or
received for the first offense, double this for the second offense, and
treble this or forty days imprisonment for the third offense.
A fugitive laborer will be outlawed, and when found, shall be burnt in
the forehead with the letter "F" for falsity.
Children who labored at the plough and cart or other agriculture shall
continue in that labor and may not go into a craft.
A statute of 1363 designed to stop hoarding various types of
merchandise until a type became scarce so to sell it at high prices,
required merchants to deal in only one type of merchandise. It also
required craftsmen to work in only one craft as before (except women who
traditionally did several types of handiwork). This was repealed a year
later.
Where scarcity has made the price of poultry high, it shall be lowered
to 8d. for a young capon, 7d. for an old capon or a goose, 9d. for a
hen, and 10d. for a pullet.
The fares for passage on boats on fresh waters and from Dover to the
continent shall remain at their old rate.
Any merchant selling at a fair after it has ended will forfeit to the
king twice the value of that sold.
Anyone finding and proving cloth contrary to the assize of cloth shall
have one-third of it for his labor.
No shoemaker nor cordwainer shall tan their leather and no tanner shall
make shoes, in order that tanning not be false or poorly done.
All denizen [foreigner permitted to reside in the realm with certain
rights and privileges] and alien merchants may buy and sell goods and
merchandise, in gross, in any part of the country, despite town charters
or franchises, to anyone except an enemy of the King. They may also sell
small wares: victuals, fur, silk, coverchiefs [an item of woman's
apparel], silver wire, and gold wire in retail, but not cloth or wine.
They must sell their goods within three months of arrival. Any alien
bringing goods to the nation to sell must buy goods of the nation to the
value of at least one-half that of his merchandise sold. These merchants
must engage in no collusion to lower the price of merchandise bought,
take merchandise bought to the staple, and promise to hold no staple
beyond the sea for the same merchandise. An amendment disallowed
denizens from taking wools, leather, woolfells, or lead for export, but
only strangers.
Towns failing to bring disturbers of this right to justice shall
forfeit their franchise to the king and pay double damages to the
merchant. The disturber shall be imprisoned for a year.
Cloth may not be tacked nor folded for sale to merchants unless they
are opened to the buyers for inspection, for instance for concealed
inferior wool. Workers, weavers, and fullers shall put their seals to
every cloth. Anyone may bring his own wools, woolfells, leather, and
lead to the staple to sell without being compelled to sell them in the
country. Special streets or warehouses were appointed with warehouse
rent fixed by the mayor and constables with four of the principal
inhabitants. Customs duties were regulated and machinery provided for
their collection. No one may forestall or regrate, that is, buy at one
price and sell at a higher price in the same locale. Forestallers were
those who bought raw material on its way to market. Regrators were those
who tried to create a "corner" in the article in the market itself.
Imported cloth shall be inspected by the King's officials for non-
standard measurements or defects [despite town franchises].
No one shall leave the nation except at designated ports, on pain of
one year's imprisonment.
Social distinctions by attire were mandated by statute of 1363. A
servant, his wife, son, or daughter, shall only wear cloth worth no more
than 27s. and shall not have more than one dish of meat or fish a day.
Carters, ploughmen, drivers of the plough, oxherds, cowherds, shepherds,
and all other people owning less than 40s. of goods and chattels shall
only wear blanket and russet worth no more than 12d. and girdles of
linen according to their estate. Craftsmen and free peasants shall only
wear cloth worth no more than 40s. Esquires and gentlemen below the rank
of knight with no land nor rent over 2,000s. a year shall only wear
cloth worth no more than 60s., no gold, silver, stone, fur, or the color
purple. Esquires with land up to 2,667s. per year may wear 67s. cloth,
cloth of silk and silver, miniver [grey squirrel] fur and stones, except
stones on the head. Merchants, citizens, burgesses, artificers, and
people of handicraft having goods and chattels worth 10,000s. shall wear
cloth the same value as that worn by esquires and gentlemen with land or
rent within 2,000s. per year. The same merchants and burgesses with
goods and chattels worth 13,333s. and esquires and gentlemen with land
or rent within 400s. per year may not wear gold cloth, miniver fur,
ermine [white] fur, or embroidered stones. A knight with land or rents
within 2,667s. yearly are limited to cloth of 80s., but his wife may
wear a stone on her head. Knights and ladies with land or rents within
8,000s. to 20,000s. yearly may not wear fur of ermine or of letuse, but
may wear gold, and such ladies may wear pearls as well as stones on
their heads. The penalty is forfeiture of such apparel. This statute is
necessary because of "outrageous and excessive apparel of diverse
persons against their estate and degree, to the great destruction and
impoverishment of all the land".