Our Legal Heritage: King AEthelbert - King George III, 600 A.D. - 1776Reilly, S. A.
History
Our Legal Heritage: King AEthelbert - King George III, 600 A.D. - 1776
Reilly, S. A.
Law -- England -- History
fitz William v. Amice et al. (1200, king's court): The assize comes to
recognize if Amice who was the wife of Richard earl of Clare and Hugh
of Ceriton, John of Cornherd, William of Wattevill, Alexander son of
Gilbert, Alexander son of Matthew, Bartholomew son of Alexander, Robert
of Cornherd, and Geoffrey son of Leveric unjustly and without judgment
disseised Richard son of William of Sudbury of his free tenement in
Sudbury after the feast of St Michael next before the coronation of the
lord king. The countess says that, when she was separated by papal
order from the earl of Clare her husband by reason of consanguinity, to
which husband the vill of Sudbury had been given with her as marriage
portion, she came to Sudbury and convoked her court and made the same
Richard to be summoned to come to show by what warrant he held her
land. He willingly entered into the plea and vouched the earl of Clare
her former husband to warrant and at the day given him to have [his
warrantor] he did not have him. And thus by consideration of her court
she seised her land and holds it. Which court she produced and which
attests this. Richard comes and denies that he was ever summoned or
came into her court by summons or vouched to warranty or so lost seisin
by consideration of the court of the countess. And this he offers [to
prove]. It is considered that he defend himself 12-handed that he did
not willingly enter into the plea and vouch to warranty. Let him wage
his law [prove by the 12-handed oath, thus, by compurgation]. Pledges
of the law: Hugh son of Hugh, Wido of Sudbury. Day is given them at the
quindene of St. John.
This is the suit of Richard of Sudbury: [there follow the
names, but only of 10 men] against the countess Amice who was the
countess of Clare, concerning whom he had complained concerning a novel
disseisin of his free tenement in Sudbury. She said that by judgment of
her court for default of warranty which he had vouched did she make the
[dis]seisin and thereof did she produce suit. And he denied against her
and against the suit, and law was adjudged. And he comes with his law
and makes it with the abovesaid suit. Therefore it is considered that
he recover thereof his seisin; let the countess be in mercy for unjust
disseisin and also her men, of whom the same Richard has complained.
And let the same countess return to him the damages done thereof by a
jury of law-worthy men of the vicinity. The names of the men of the
countess are in the writ.
A sample of crown pleas in several hundreds or wapentakes
[Danish name for a hundred] from 1201 to 1203 are:
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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