Our Legal Heritage: The First Thousand Years: 600 - 1600: King Aethelbert - Queen ElizabethReilly, S. A.
History
Our Legal Heritage: The First Thousand Years: 600 - 1600: King Aethelbert - Queen Elizabeth
Reilly, S. A.
Law -- England -- History
Before Henry's reign, the church had become more powerful and
asserted more authority. Henry tried to return to the concept of
the King being appointed by God and as he head of the church as
well as of the state, as in Henry I's time. Toward this end, he
published the Constitutions of Clarendon. But the Archbishop of
Canterbury, Thomas Becket, refused to agree to them. The
disageement came to a head in Henry's attempt to establish the
principle of "one law to all" by having church clerics punished
by the civil courts as before, instead of having "benefit of
clergy" to be tried only in ecclesiastical courts, even for
secular crimes. Clerics composed about one-sixth the population.
The church courts had characteristically punished with a fine or
a penance, and at most defrocking, and never imposed a death
penalty, even for murder. When Archbishop Becket was murdered
and became a martyr, "benefit of clergy" became a standard right.
Appeals could be made to the Pope without the King's permission.
The King could take a criminal cleric's chattels, but not his
life. However, though theoretically the bishops were elective,
as a practical matter, the King appointed the bishops and the
abbots.
Henry and Eleanor spoke many languages and liked discussing law,
philosophy, and history. So they gathered wise and learned man
about them, who became known as courtiers, rather than people of
social rank. They lived in the great and strong Tower of London,
which had been extended as had other castles, so that the whole
castle and grounds were defended instead of just the main
building. On the west were two strongly fortified castles
surrounded by a high and deeply entrenched wall, which had seven
double gates. Towers were spaced along the north wall and the
Thames River flowed below the south wall. To the west was the
city, where royal friends had residences with adjoining gardens
near the royal palace at Westminster. The court was a center of
culture as well as of government. The game of backgammon was
played. People wore belts with buckles, usually brass, instead
of knotting their belts.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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