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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A91237	The opening of the great seale of England. Containing certain brief historicall and legall observations, touching the originall, antiquity, progresse, vse, necessity of the great seal of the kings and kingdoms, of England, in respect of charters, patents, writs, commissions, and other processe. Together with the kings, kingdoms, Parliaments severall interests in, and power over the same, and over the Lord Chancellour, and the lords and keepers of it, both in regard of its new-making, custody, admi nistration [sic] for the better execution of publike justice, the republique necessary safety, and vtility. Occasioned by the over-rash censures of such who inveigh against the Parliament, for ordering a new great seale to be engraven, to supply the wilfull absence, defects, abuses of the old, unduely withdrawne and detained from them. / By William Prynne, Utter-Barrester of Lincolns Inne. ...	Prynne, William, 1600-1669.	1643 (1643)	Wing P4026; Thomason E251_2; ESTC R234376	44,104	39

THE OPENING OF The Great Seale OF ENGLAND Containing certain Brief Historicall and Legall Observations touching the Originall Antiquity Progresse Vse Necessity of the Great Seal of the Kings and Kingdoms of England in respect of Charters Patents Writs Commissions and other Processe Together with the Kings Kingdoms Parliaments severall Interests in and Power over the same and over the Lord Chancellour and the Lords and Keepers of it both in regard of its New-making Custody Administration for the better Execution of Publike Justice the Republique necessary Safety andVtility Occasioned by the Over-rash Censures of such who inveigh against the Parliament for Ordering a new Great Seale to be Engraven to supply the wilfull absence defects abuses of the Old unduely withdrawne and detained from them By WILLIAM PRYNNE Utter-Barrester of Lincolns Inne Esther 8. Write ye also for the Jews as liketh you in the Kings name AND SEAL IT WITH THE KINGS RING for the Writing which is written in the Rings name AND SEALED WITH THE KINGS RING may no man reverse It is this fifteenth day of September Anno Dom. 1643. Ordered by the Committee of the House of Commons concerning Printing that this Treatise intituled The Opening of the Great Seale of England be forthwith Printed by Michael Sparke Senior JOHN WHITE LONDON Printed for MICHAEL SPARK Senior 1643. TO THE READER COurteous Reader having copiously answered refuted all Royalilists Malignants Papists clamorous Objections and Primitive Exceptions against the Proceedings of this present Parliament in FOUR severall Treatises lately published concerning The Soveraigne Power of Parliaments and Kingdoms which have given good satisfaction to many and silenced the Penns the Tongues of most Anti-Parliamenteers who have bin so ingenuous as seriously to peruse them I yet finde a New grand Objection lately started up and much insisted on among these Opposites by reason of the Commons late Order for making a New Great Seal now almost finished to supply the wilfull absence defects abuses of the old to the extraordinary prejudice dammage danger of the Houses Kingdom and delay of publike Justice which though sufficiently answered in the generall by sundry passages and Histories scattered in the former Treatises yet because not so particularly or fully debated as the consequence of this extraordinary weighty Act and the querelousnesse of the clamorous Opposites require I have therefore upon the motion of some friends to stop up this New-Breach and Clamour speedily collected and published by Authority these ensuing Historicall and Legall Observations concerning the Originall Antiquitie Progresse Use Necessity of the Great Seal of the Kings and Kingdome of England with reference to Sealing of Charters Patents Writs Commissions other Processe and given thee a summary account of the Kings Kingdoms Parliaments severall Interests in and Power over the Great Seal and the Lords Keepers of it too both in respect of its New-making Custody Administration for the better execution of publike Iustice the Republike necessary safety and utility clearing all contrary Objections of moment which I here submit to thy charitable Censure and Acceptation imploring thy Pardon and Direction in case I have casually erred out of Ignorance or Humane Frailty in tracing this Untrodden dangerous narrow Path wherein I finde no Footsteps or onely very obscure ones to direct my course Farewell THE OPENING OF The Great Seale OF ENGLAND NOt to enter into any impetinent tedious Discourse of the Antiquitie or use of Seales in generall which were very anciently used both by the Nations and Kings of the Jewes Persians Medes Babilonians and others as is manifest by a sundry Texts of Scripture to omit prophane Stories it is a question much debated among Antiquaries Historians Lawyers How ancient the use of Seales hath beene among the Kings of England in what age upon what occasion by what degrees they grew to be absolutely requisite for the ratification of Charters Patents Writs Commissions and other Processes The first originall Antiquitie of Seals among our Kings is very uncertain for it is apparent past all contradiction b that our ancientest Kings Charters Patents had no Seals at all annexed to them being ratified onely with the Signe of the Crosse oft-times in golden Characters the subscription of our Kings names with the names of divers Bishops Abbots Nobles Clerks and others under them as Witnesses who all made the signe of the Crosse before or after their subscriptions as is most evident by sundry ancient Charters of our English Saxon Kings yet extant in old Leger Books of Abbeys in Sir Robert Cottons Library and by the printed Copies of them in the Histories of Ingulphus M●lmesbury Hoveden Matthew Paris Matth. Westminster Holinshed Mr. Fox Mr Cambdens Britannia M. Seldens Titles of Honour History of Tythes Notes to Eadmerus Sir Henry Spelmans Councils and Glossary Sir Edward Cooks Preface to his 4 and 6 Reports his Institutions on Littleton and Magna Charta Joannis Pitseus Relatio Histor. de rebus Angl. Cl. Reynerus Apostolatus Benedictinorum in Anglia M. Lambard his Perambulation of Kent and Archaion Bishop Vshers Britannicarum Ecclesiarum Antiquitates with others which Charters though without a Seale have c ever been reputed as valid firme in point of Law from time to time and so admitted by our Judges Kings Parliaments as any punier Charters sealed with our Kings Great Seals To give you some few instances of the ancientest Charters of our Kings before the Conquest which I finde not sealed but thus subscribed King d Aethelbert Anno 605. made two Charters the first to the Church of Saint Pancras the other to the Monastery of Peter and Paul to be erected at Canterbury which are thus confirmed with the Signe of the Crosse not sealed ✚ Ego Aethelredus Rex Anglorum hanc donationem meam Signo sanctae Crucis propria manu confirmavi After which follow divers other witnesses who confirm it with the same signe There is extant a Bull of Augustine the first Bishop of Canterbury of an exemption granted by him to this Monastery with a Leaden Seale annexed to it the forme whereof you may view in e Sir Henry Spelman who suspects both these Charters with Augustines Bull and Seale the sealing of Buls being not so ancient and Leaden Buls being first brought in by Pope Adrian about the year of our Lord 774. as Polydor and others observe to be meer Counterfeits upon good grounds There is another Charter of the same King of Lands given to the same Monastery dated Ar. 610. subscribed as the former The next ancient Charter I finde is that of f Withred King of Kent dated An. Dom. 695. who the same year confirmed the great Councell of Beca 〈◊〉 with the signe of the Crosse such subscriptions as are aforesaid To these I shall adde the suspected Charter of g King Kenred and Offa. Anno 709. with the Charters of Egwin Bishop of Worcester Anno 709. The Charter of h King Eth Ibald An 718.

French then to provide for the safety of those in the East in proper person Which I onely note in the by having omitted it in its due place First to manifest what high esteem our Kings have had of the resolutions and advise of their Parliaments to which they wholly submitted their owne judgements acquiescing in their resolves Secondly to evidence the Soveveraigne power of Parliaments over our Kings then who might not desert the Realme not take any new honour or dominion upon them without their previous consents and advice Thirdly to shew the dutie of Kings to their Subjects and Kingdomes King Richard the first succeeding his Father Henry the second rather by Election then Succession and d not stiled a King by our ancient Writers before his Coronation was the first of all our Kings as Our e Writers accord who sealed with a Seale of Armes all our former Kings seales being but the Picture of the King sitting in a Throne on the one side of the seale and on horse-backe on the other side in divers Formes with various inscriptions of their Names and stiles which you may view in Speed But this King bare two Lions Rampant combatant in a shield in his first and three Lions passant in his latter Seale borne ever after by our Kings as the Royall Armes of England His first f Chancellour was William Longchamp Bishop of Ely Legate to the Pope whom hee made his Vice-Roy and Iusticiar of England when hee went to the Holy Land against the Saracens committing the Kingdome to his Government chiefely who infinitely oppressed and tyrannized over it as all our Historians evidence g Matthew Paris give this Character of him Erat idem CANCELI ARIVS MAXIMVS inter omnes occidentales REX ET SACERDOS in Anglia qui omnia pro nihilo ducebat cum Episcopali tantum dignitate non contentus nimis alta se sperare denotavit In prima namque Literarum suarum fronte vanitatem elationem expressit cum dixit Willielmus DEI GRATIA commonly used before in and since that age by and to Bishops Popes Abbots in publique Writs as well as Kings as the h Marginall Authors manifest Eliensis Episcopus DOMINI REGIS CANCELLARIUS totius Angliae Iustitiarius Apostolicae sedis Legatus c. Has autem dignitates quos pretio obtinuerat immoderato excessu exercuit volens locellos quas in earum impetratione evacuerat reficere c. This Chancellour as is probable had the custody of one part of the Seale in this Kings absence for the better administration of justice though the King carried the other part of the great Seale with him into the warres pretended to be there lost as you shall presently heare I finde divers of this Kings Charters Letters Writs before and after his voyage to the holy-Holy-land recited in i Hoveden These Charters which questionlesse were sealed with his Seale were subscribed by sundry witnesses the Writs and Charters concluding with a Teste meipso apud Chinonem c. The Charter of the Manor of Sadburgh to Hugh Bishop of Durham is thus dated Datum anno primo regni nostri 18 die Septembris apud Eatingat per manum Willielmi de longo campo CANCELLARII NOSTRI During this King Richards imprisonment in Germany Henry the Emperour sent Letters to the Nobles of England for this King by William Longchamp his Chauncellour AUREA BULLA IMBULLATAS in hac forma sealed with a golden Bull in this forme And soone after this k Chancellor William Briwere and others concluding a peace betweene this King and Phillip King of France authorized thereto by the Kings Letters Patents these Commissioners not onely sware to but sealed the Articles of this truce as this close of it manifests Quae omnia praedicta ut rata permaneant inconcussa ego Willielmus de Rupibus ego Joannes de Pratellis ego Willielmus Briwere per praeceptum Regis Angliae Domini nostri SIGILLORUM NOSTRORUM ATTESTATIONE ROBORAVIMUS Actum Meduneae Anno ab incarnatione Domini 1193. octav● Idus Julii And the very next yeere the l Letters and instrument of the truce made between these two Kings by Drogo and Anselme and sworne by them in the French Kings behalfe have this conclusion Et nos ut omnia praedicta firma sint stabilita universa praedicta SIGILLIS NOSTRIS ROBORAVIMUS Actum inter Vernelium Thilers Anno incarnati verbi 1194. 23 die Iulii King Richard being released this very yeere which was the sixt of his raigne out of prison and new crowned among other oppressve projects to raise moneys to maintaine his warres which made him an extraordinary oppressiour of his people m caused a NEW BROADE SEALE TO BE MADE the portrayture whereof you may view in Speed pretending that the old was lost when Roger his VICE-CHANCELLOR was drowned before Cyprus and that his CHANCELLOR during his imprisonment had abused THIS SEALE whereupon he tooke it from him requiring and cōmanding that all persons as well Clergy men as Lay men who had Charters or confirmations UNDER HIS OLD SEALE should bring them in to be renued UNDER HIS NEW SEALE and unlesse they did so that nothing which had beene passed BY HIS OLD SEALE should be ratified or held good in Law By which device he drew a great masse of Money to his Treasury subscribing his new-Sealed Charters thus This was the tenor of our Charter under our first Seale which because it was lost and at the time of our being captive in Almayne in the power of another WE CAUSED TO BE CHANGED c. Which n Hoveden thus relates Et imputans Cancellario suo hoc per ipsum fuisse factum ABSTULIT AB EO SIGILLUM SUUM facit sib NOVUM SIGILLUM FIERI tum quia CANCELLARIUS ille operatus fuerat inde minus discrete quàm esset necesse tum quia SIGILLUM ILLUD perditum erat quando Rogerus malus catul●o VICE-CANCELLARIUS SUUS submersus erat in maeri ante insulam de Cypro praecepit Rex quod OMNES tam clerici quam laici qui Chartas habebant venirent AD NOVUM SIGILLUM SUUM ad Chartas suas renovandas nisi fecerint NIHIL quod actum fuerat PER SIGILLUM SUUM VETUS RATUM HABERETUR Praterea Rex statuit torniamenta fieri in Anglia Chartasua confirmavit c. making them also a money matter By which passages it is apparent First that all these Kings Patents Charters were sealed with his great Seale Secondly that the abuse losse or absence of the great Seale is a sufficient cause to make a new one Thirdly that the profit made by the great Seale and project of raising moneys by new Charters sealed with it was the true originall cause all sealing of Charters and VVrits with his Seale and making it simply necessary in Law there being no publique resolution or

made to Saint Guthlar and the Abbey of Croyland with his Generall Charter of Priviledges granted to all Churches and Monasteries dated Anno 749. The Charter of i King Ina granted to the Abbey of Glasterbury supposed to be spurious Anno 725. Of k King Offa to the Abbey of Croyland Anno 793. The l Decree of Adardus Archbishop of Canterbury and the Councell of Clovesho An. 803. The Charter of m King Kenulphus to the Abbey of Croyland Anno 8●6 The n Decrees of the Synod of Clevesh● under King Beornwulfe Anno 824. and of the Council of London under King Egbert Anno 833. The Charter of o Witlasius King of M●rcia to the Abbey or Croyland Anno 833. The Charter of King Bertulphus to the same Abbey An. 851. with the p Canons of the Councell of Kingesbury confirmed and subscribed by this King and others the same year with the signe of the Crosse The Charters of q Aeth Iwulphus to the Abbey of Croyland Anno 855. and to all Churches and Monasteries which he offered up to God upon the Altar of Saint Peter t Winchester where the Bshop received it and sent it to all Churches to be published The Charter of r B●orredus King of Merciae to the Abbey of Croyland Anno 860. of * Queen Aethelsw●th to Cuthwulfe An. 868. of king ſ Edmund to the Abbey of Glastenbury An. 944. of t king ●●dred to the Abbey of Croyland An. 948. the charters of u king Edgar to the Abbey of Croyland An. 966. 970. 974. to the x Abbey of Glastenbury An. 965. 971. and to the Abbey of Malmesbury An. 974. his charter of Oswelds Lawes An. 964. his charter to his new Monestery of Winchester An. 966. and another charter Ar. 964. the charter of y King Aeth●lred An. 995. to Vlfric with z his charter of priviledges granted to the Church of Canterbury An. 1006. the a charter of king Knute or Canutus to the Church of our Saviour at Canterbury An. 1018. and to the Abbey b of Croyland An. 1032. of Thorold to the Abbey of Croyland An. 1051. and of King Edward the Confessor to the same Abbey about the yeare 1050. All these ancient Charters of our Kings before the Conquest had no seales at all annexed to them but were only ratified with the signe of the Crosse subscribed by the Kings themselves and these who made them together with their names and with the names and crosses of the witnesses And it is observable that all or most of these ancient charters of our kings which granted any lands or priviledges to Abbeys or Churches were made in full Councels and Parliaments with the unanimous consent and approbation of the Bishops Prelates Abbots Dukes Earls Lords and great men therein present who commonly subscribed them the reason was because none of our ancient kings as I have proved had any power to grant or alien the lands of the Crown which they enjoyed only in the kingdoms right and for its use to any without the consent of their Nobles and people in full Parliament and in most of these Charters Abbeys and church-Church-lands were exempted from all taxes tallages and temporall services whatsoever except the repairing of high wayes bridges and castles for the common good and c thereby were anciently exempted from Danegeld as I have elsewhere manifested Which of our kings first used a seale is not certainly determined Sir Edward Cook in his Institutes on Littleton fol. 7. a. records that the charter of King Offa whereby he granted Peter-pence doth yet remaine under his seale Now this charter as d Sir Henry Spelman and our e Historians generally in his life record was dated in the yeare of our Lord 793. or 794. and is the first charter scaled if true by any of our kings There is another f Charter of King Edwin of certaine land called Iecklea in the Is●le of Ely bearing date Anno 956. sealed with his owne seale and with the seale of Elfwin Bishop of Winchester I read in Francis Thinne his Catalogue of Chancellours and in Sir Henry Spelman his Glossary fol. 126. 132. that our Saxon kings Aethelstan Edmund Edred Edgar and Aethelred had their severall Chancellors but whether they had any seales or not is uncertaine if they had any it is certaine writes g Sir Henry Spelman that they scarce used them at all or very rarely most of their charters having no seales at all but only crosses or subscriptions of these Kings names and witnesses The very h first of all our Kings who used a large br●ad seale was Edward the confessor who being brought up in Normandy introduced that with some other of the Normans Guises with him and had three Chancellors Vnder this i seal he granted a Charter of sundry liberties and priviledges to the Church of Saint Peters in Westminster Anno Dom. 1066. which was sealed by his Chancellor Reynbaldus as is evident by this his subscription to that deed Ego Reynbaldus Regis CANCELLARIVS relegi SIGILLAVI This is the first Charter for ought appears that ever was sealed with a Royall broa● Seale or by a Chancellor But that all this good Kings charters or any of his writs or commissions were thus sealed by this great scale or that the Chancellor then had the custody of the seale which the Chancellors in the reigne of Charles the great and Ludovicus Pius had not in France as Sir Henry Spelman proves in his Glossary p. 127. out of Capit. l. 2. c. 24. and Eg●lismensis in vita Caroli p 15. and the passage of Ingulphus concerning the office of the Chancellor in his time cited in Spelman seemes to disprove is a non liquet unto me The exact forme of this Kings great seale you may behold in * Iohn Speed together with the various effigies of all our succeeding Kings broad seales prefixed by him before their severall lives Two things there are which in this enquiry after the originall use of our Kings great seales seeme somewhat dubious unto me First when how and by what law or meanes it came to passe that our Kings Charters and Patents ought of necessity to be sealed with the great seale contrary to the primitive usage in former ages or else to be reputed invalid and meere nullities in law Secondly when and by what law or grounds and in what Kings reigne Writs Commissions and other Processe of law began to be issued out under the great seale or else to be disallowed as illegall it being evident unto me that Charters and Patents were usually sealed by some of our Kings before any of their writs commissions or legall processe issued under their seales These two doubts I confesse are beyond my skill exactly to assoile yet this I conjecture as most consonant to truth That k Edward the Confessor being trained up in Normandy and addicted to the customes of the

publike ends alone I humbly conceive the Parliament both lawfully may cause a new Great Seale of England to be engraven constitute a Chan●ellour to keepe it and seale Writs for new Elections Writs of Errour in Parliament with other necessary Writs and Commissions with it for the publike administration expedition of Justice the better transaction of all Parliamentary State affaires now obstructed to which the great Seale is requisite This I shall endeavour to make good by Presidents by reasons of Law and State-policy beginning with the new making and then proceeding to the keeping and ordering of the Seale during the present differences and necessity First there are two memorable Presidents in our Histories and Records of making a new great Seale by the Lords and Commons in Parliament without the Kings actuall assent which will over-rule our present case I shall begin with the ancientest of them * King Henry the third departing this life whiles his sonne Prince Edward was militating in the Holy Land against Christs enemies hereupon the Nobles and States assembled at the new Temple in London the day after the Kings funerall proclaimed Prince Edward his sonne King ordained him successor of his Fathers honours though they knew not whether he were living ET FACTO SIGILLO NOVO writes Matthew Westminster And CAUSING A NEW SEALE TO BE MADE so Daniel they appointed faithfull Ministers and KEEPERS for the faithfull custody both of the Seal Kings Treasure and Kingdoms peace Loe here a new great Seale made by the Lords and States in the Kings absence without his privity for the necessary execution of justice either in an assembly out of Parliament as some suppose this meeting was or at least wise in a Parliament assembled held yea ordaining a new great Seale new Officers of King and State without the Kings presence or privity and then it is our present case in effect For if this Assembly of the States even out of or in Parliament in this case of necessity during the Kings inevitable absence might lawfully make both a new great Seale Chancellour Treasurer Judges Justices of peace and other Officers of King and State as they did and conceived they might justly doe none then or since disavowing or censuring this Act of theirs for ought I reade but all approving applauding it as legall then certainly this Parliament assembled and ratified by the King himselfe being the greatest soveraigne power and having farre more Jurisdiction then any Councell or Assembly of Lords out of Parliament may much more justly and loyally cause a new great Seale to be engraven and appoint a Keeper of it during the wilfull absence both of the King Keeper and old great Seale from Parliament contrary to all Law and former Presidents for the better expedition of Justice and transaction of the affairs of the Parliament being the Parliaments proper Seale and anciently appointed by it as Hornes * preceding words import The second president is that of King Henry the 6 his reigne who being but an * infant of 9. moneths age when the Crown descended to him there * issued forth a Commission in this Babes name to Humfry Duke of Gloucester his Uncle then Protector to summon and hold a Parliament in his name which being assembled Num. 14. The Bishop of Durham Lord Chaeuncellor to Henry the 5th resigned up the old Seale of England to King Henry the 6. in the presence of divars credible witnesses and the Bishop of London Chancellor of the Dutchy of Normandy resigned up also the seale of that Dukedom to him After which Num. 15. It was enacted and provided by the Lord Protector Lords and Commons in that Parliament That for as much as the inheritance of the Kingdomes and Crownes of France England and Ireland were now lawfully descended to the King which Title was not expressed in the Kings SEALES whereby great peril might accrue to the King if the said Inscriptions were not reformed according to his Title of inheritance that therefore IN ALL THE KINGS SEALS as wel in ENGLAND as in IRELAND GVYEN and WALES this New Stile should be engraven Henricus Dei Gratia Rex Franciae et Augliae et Dominus Hibemiae according to the effect of his Inheritances blotting out whatsoever was formerly in them superfluous or contrary to the said stile And that COMMAND should be given to All the Keepers of the said Seales of the King to REFORME them WITHOVT DELAY according to the FORME AND EFFECT OF THE NEW SEALE aforesaid Num. 16. The Lords and Commons in this Parliament constitute and ordaine a new LORD CHANCELOVR OF ENGLAND Lord Treasurer and KEEPER OF THE PRIVY SEALE granting them saverall Letters Patents of these Offices in Parliament in the Kings name And Num 17. The Liberties Annuities and Offices granted by King Henry the 5. and his Ancestors to Souldiers in foreigne parts were confirmed in Parliament and their Parents ordered TO BE SEALED WITH THE KINGS NEW SEALES with our paying any Fee Here we have not onely the Great but Privy Seal yea all the Kings Seales in England Ireland France Wales Resigned Altered Ordered to be new made and the Chancellours and Keepers of them expresly Created by the Lords and Commons in Parliament without any Personal actual consent of the King then an Infant for the necessary administration of Iustice and great Affaires of the Realme No man ever questioning much lesse censuring this Act of theirs as illegall or treasonable within the Statute of 25. E. 3. of counterfeiting the Kings Seale but all approoving it as just and necessary Therefore doubtlesse the present Parliament may doe the like in this unparallel'd case both of the Kings L. Keepers the great and privy Seales wilfull absence and substraction from the Parliament of purpose to obstruct all proceedings in Parliament and the course of common Iustice These two famous Presidents are not singular but backed with the Authority of Iudge Horne fore-cited p. 15. and many other of like nature and reason even in printed Statutes The Statute of Acton Burnel made in the 13. yeare of King Edward the first for the more speedy recovery of the Merchants Debts gives the Mayors of London Yorke and Bristall authority to take Recognisances of Debts before them to be made by the Clerke appointed for that purpose whereunto the SEALE of the Debtor shall be put with THE KINGS SEALE THAT SHALL BE PROVIDED FOR THAT PVRPOSE the which SEALE SHALL REMAINE IN THE KEEPING OF THE MAIOR and CLERKE A FORE-SAID And THE KINGS SEALE shall be put unto the sale and delivery of the goods devisable for a perpetuall witnesse Wee have here a New Seal of the Kings with speciall keepers of it appointed for Recognisances and the uses thereof limited by a speciall Act of Parliament confirmed in another Parliament touching Statute Merchants made the same yeare 13. E. 1. which further enacts That ANOTHER SEALE SHALL BE PROVIDED that shall serve for Faires And that the same