his Heir and adopted me to Rule over this Nation In his Charter dated 1088. of the Liberties of St. Martins the Great in the Manuscript thereof are these words In Example of Moses who built the Tabernable and of Solomon who built the Temple Ego Guilielmus Dei dispositione consanguinitatis Haereditate Anglorum Basileus c. The Charter of Hen. 1. his Son to this Abby in honour of Edward my Kinsman who adopted my Father and his Children to be Heirs to this Kingdom c. In another Charter of Hen. 1. in the Book of Ely he calls himself the Son of King William the Great who by Hereditary Right succeeded King Edward It is true as to his pretence of Title by the Will of the Confessor Mathew Paris objecteth That the Devise was void being without the consent of the Barons To which may be answered That probably the Law might be so in Hen. 3. Time when Paris wrote and was so taken to be in the Statute of Carlisle and in the Case of King John. But at the time of Duke William's Invasion the Law was taken to be That a Kingdom might be transferred by Will. So was that of Sixtus Rufus and Asia came to the Romans by the Will of King Attalus the words by Annaeus Florus are Populus Romanus Bonorum meorum HAERES esto Bithinia came to the Romans by the last Will of their King Nicomedes which is remembred by Vtropius together with that of Libia Cicero in his Oration tells us That the Kingdom of Alexandria by the last Will of their King was devolved to Rome And Prasutagus Rex Icenorum in England upon his Death-bed gave his Kingdom to the Emperor Nero. As to Examples in this Point at Home This King William the first by his Will gave England to his younger Son William Rufus King Stephen claimed by the Will of Henry the first King Henry the eight had Power by Act of Parliament to order the Succession of the Crown as he pleased by Will. And the Lords of the Council in Queen Mary's Time wrote to her That the Lady Iane's Title to the Crown was by the Will and Letters of Edward the sixth As the case of Hen. 8. was by Act of Parliament so Duke William after he had conquered Harold was by the general consent of the Barons and People of England accepted for their King and so his Title by Will confirmed And he both claimed and governned the Kingdom as an Heir and Successor confirmed their Antient Laws and ruled according to them This appears by Chronica Chronicorum speaking of William the Bastard King of England and Duke of Normandy he saith That whereas as St. Edward had no Heir of England William having conquered Harold the Vsurper obtained the Crown under this Condition That he should inviolably observe those Laws given by the said Edward It is testified likewise by many of our Historians That the Ancient Laws of England were confirmed by Duke VVilliam Jornalensis saith That out of the Merchen-Lage West-Saxon-Lage and Dane-Lage the Confessor composed the Common Law which remains to this day Malmesbury who lived in Duke William's Time saith That the Kings were sworn to observe the Laws of the Confessor so called saith he because he observed them most religiously But to make this Point clear out of Ingulphus he saith in the end of his Chronicle I Ingulphus brought with me from London into my Monastery Crowland the Laws of the most Righteous King Edward which my Lord King William did command by his Proclamation to be Authentick and Perpetual and to be observed throughout the whole Kingdom of England upon pain of most heinous punishment The Lieger-Book of the Abby of Waltham commends Duke William for restoring the Laws of the English-men out of the Customs of their Country Radburn follows this Opinion and these Laws of Edward the Confessor are the same in part which are continued in our GREAT CHARTER of LIBERTIES A Manuscript entituled De Gestis Anglorum saith That at a Parliament at London 4. W. 1. the Lawyers also present that the King might hear their Laws he established Saint Edward's Laws they being formerly used in King Edgar's Time. There is also mention of the twelve Men out of every County to deliver truly the Estate of their Laws The same is remembred by Selden's History of Tythes and Titles of Honour and in a Manuscript Chronicle bound with the Book of Ely in Cotton's Library One of the worthy Gentlemen from whom I differ in Opinion was pleased to say That if William the Conqueror did not introduce the Laws of Normandy into England yet he conceives our Laws to be brought out of France hither in the time of some other of our Kings who had large Territories in France and brought in their Laws hither else he wonders how our Laws should be in French. Sir I shall endeavour to satisfy his Wonder therein by and by but first with your leave I shall offer to you some Probabilities out of the History That the Laws of England were by some of those Kings carried into France rather than the Laws of France brought hither This is expresly affirmed by Paulus Jovius who writes That when the English Kings reigned in a great part of France they taught the French their Laws Sabellicus a Venetian Historian writes That the Normans in their Manners and Customs and Laws followed the English Polydore Virgil contradicting himself in another place than before cited relates That in our King Hen. 6. Time the Duke of Bedford called together the Chief Men of all the Cities in Normandy and delivered in his Oration to them the many Benefits that the English afforded them especially in that the English gave to them their Customs and Laws By the Chronicle of Eltham H. 5. sent to Cane in Normandy not only Divines but English Common Lawyers by the agreement at Troys So there is much more probability that the Laws of England were introduced into France and Normandy than that the Laws of Normandy or any other part of France were introduced into England If the Normans had been Conquerors of England as they were not but their Duke was only a Conqueror of Harold and received as Hereditary King of England yet is it not probable they would have changed our Laws and have introduced theirs because they did not use to do so upon other Conquests The Normans conquered the Isles of Guernsey and Jersey yet altered not their Laws which in their local Customs are like unto ours The like they did in Sicily Naples and Apulia where they were Conquerors yet the Ancient Laws of those Countries were continued I hope Mr. Speaker I have by this time given some satisfaction to the Worthy Gentlemen who differed from me that the Laws of England were not imposed upon us by the Conqueror nor brought over hither either out of Normandy or any other part of France but are our Ancient Native Laws I must now come to indeavour
perusal of another Learned and Modest Book written by an Anonymous Author entituled Patriarcha non Monarcha Authors for whose Names Posterity will have a greater respect than we at present have and that for their discovery of Truth and refuting so many Vulgar Errors I am SIR Your most Faithful Servant c. FINIS The Appendix ABbas de Middleton tenet in Capite de Domino Rege Mannerium de Middleton c. ex Feoffamenti Regis Aethelstani nullum servitium fecit nisi Orationes In Rotulo de Inquisitionibus Dominicorum Dorsetshire Ano. 4to R. H. Fil. R. I. Here we see that King Aethelstan who reigned above 740 Years agoe infeoffed the Abbey of Middleton of the Mannor of Middleton and that by virtue thereof the Abbot held it in Capite 4. H. 3. and did no Service for it but only to pray for the Souls of him and other succeeding Kings and all this you see found by Inquisition in the Fourth Year of Hen. 3. Rot. Cartar 19. H. 6. Nu. 16. m. 27. per Inspex Pro Decano Capitulo Sancti Martini Magni London per Inspeximus Inspeximus Cartam quam celebris Memoriae Dominus Willielmus quondam Rex Angl. progenitor ' nostri fecit Deo Ecclesiae Sancti Martini Magni London in hec verba QUia inter multa bona opera quae fideles Christi pro animarum suarum salute operantur hoc precipun estimatur tenetur Quod institution edification Sanctae Matris Eccle devota mente impenditur in qua suorum Dei supplicationibus peccata a pio Deo diluuntur quod Moises in mystici Tabernaculi constructione pmonstravit quod etiam Salomonis industria pfiguravit dum Templum Dno Artificiosum honorabile edificaret futuram significans Eccleam summo a fidelibus debere honore decorari quorum vidlt exemplo in nomine Dm nri Iesu Christi Ego Willus Dei dispositione consanguinitatis haereditate Anglorum Basileus Normannorumque Dux Rector cujusdam fidelis mei Ingelrici scilicet petitioni acquiescens Archiepiscoporum Episcoporum Abbatuum Comitum Vniversorum procerum meorum Sacro Consilio parens omnes possessiones terrarum quas tempore venâ—rabilis ac dilectissimi cognati predecessoris mei Regis Edwardi Idem Ingelricus acquisierat ê™ ipsius insignissimi Regis Animae Salute necnon peccatorum meorum Remissione concedo Regia auctoritate imê‘pm corroboro confirmo Deo Eccle Beati Martini quam infra muros London sitam pfatus Ingelricus Erardus Frat ejus de propriis suis Redditibus in delictorum suorum Remedin honorabiliter ad Dei laudem Canonicalem Regulam imê‘pm servand tenend construxerunt Sunt igitur haec terrarum nomina c. Et si quas alias libtates vel consuetudines aliqua Ecclearum Regni mei Angl meliores het si quis vero hoc in aliud quam concessimus transferre psumpserit cum Juda Proditore Dei haeredibas luat penas Scripta est haec Chartula An ab Incarnatione Dm M. LX. VIII scilicet secundo Anno Regni mei ê‘acta vero est haec Donatio die Nataliâ— Dm postmodum in die Pentecost confirmat quando Matil conjux mea in Basilica Sancti Petri Westm in Reginam divino nutu est consccrata c. Ego Willus Rex Anglorum Dux Normannorum sub Sigillo Sancte ✚ quas indeclinabiliter consensi atque ✚ roloravi Ego Matil Regina consensum prebui Ego Ricus Regis Fil annui Ego Stigandus Archiepiscopus subscripsi Ego Aldredus Archiepiscopus confirmavi Ego Willus Lond Episcopus infra cujus muros pfatum Monasterium situm est signaculo Sancte Crucis subarravi libtatem omnimodam quantumcumque mee ê‘tinet possibilitati concessi Ego Odo Baiocensis Episcopus concessi Ego Hugo Luxoniensis Episcopus interfui Ego Goiffridus Episcopus corroboravi Ego Hermannus Episcopus concessi Ego Leouricus Episcopus concessi Ego Giso Episcopus concessi Ego Edwious Abbas Ego Wolwaldus Abbas Ego Baldwinus Abbas Ego Agelsinus Abbas Ego Turstinus Abbas Ego Brand Abbas Ego Alswinus Abbas Ego Sithricus Abbas Ego Wills Fil Osbti Comes Ego Robtus Frat Regis Comes Ego Edwinus Comes Ego Robtus Comes Ego Marchere Comes Ego Waldeof Comes Ego Rogerus de Monte Goverii Comes Ego Ricus Fil Gislebti Princeps Ego Wills Malet Princeps Ego Arfastus Regis Cancellarius Ego Michael Regis Capellanus Ego Gislbtus Capellanus Ego Osbinus Capellanus Ego Wills Capellanus Ego Thomas Capellanus Ego Bernardus Capellanus Ego Walterus Capellanus Ego Robtus Capellanus Ego Johes Sancte Romane Ecclie Cardinalis Presbit per Gallias Angl concedente Papa Alexandro vices Apostolicas gerens huic constitutioni interfui quantum Apostolice ✚ Sedi ê‘tinuit libtatem Ecclie psenti Signo confirmavi Ego Petrus Sancte Romane Ecclie similit Cardinalis Presbit Cancellarius ab eodem Papa in Angl elegatus ✚ huic Constitutioni acquiescens propria Manu subscripsi I give you this Charter Sir as a further Proof and Evidence for me in these Particulars viz. 1. You may observe by these words Consanguinitatiâ— haereditate Anglorum Basileus that here King William made an absolute disclaimer of Conquest in the second Year of his Reign and only insisted on what he knew full well was his surer hold his claim by Hereditary Right 2. And this is so much the more considerable as it was done in his Great Council of Arch-bishops Bishops Abbots Earls Vniversorum procerum suorum a word of a large signification as well in Historians as in Ancient Records for under the word Proceres were comprehended Principes Civium vel Civitatis And the former Instances I have given you of other General Councils and the Parts thereof in this King's Reign fully agree with this Interpretation 3. The Claim and Protestation of the Rot. Parl. 2. H. 5. Pars secunda N. 10. Commons made the Parl. 2d H. 5. which says That so as hit hath ever be their Liberte and Freedom that thar should no Statute ne Law be made of lasse then they yaffe thereto their assent considering that the Commune of your Lond the which that is and ever hath be a Membre of your Parliament been as well Assentirs as Petitioners And which was ratified and confirmed by the King and Lords and so became an Act of Parliament was but an Affirmation and Declaration of the Ancient Law of the Land And the same Right cannot be denied by any Man to the Lords 4. And that he confirmed as the Custom of succeeding Kings have done to this day all the Possessions of those Lands to the Church of St. Martins le Grand which they had in the Time of EDWARD the CONFESSOR Now if this fond Notion of William's Absolute Conquest be true then either the Arch-bishops Bishops Abbots Priors Earls Barons and Commons in Parl. 15. R. 2. knew it or they
trickt him and set the Crown on his own Head he sends over several Ambassadors with Commission to require him to remember the Oath he had formerly made to the said William in the time of his Extremity when he was his Prisoner in Normandy Which was That he the said Harold should assist him in the obtaining of the Crown of England if ever Edward died without Issue 3. And receiving but unkind Returns from Harold by way of Answer to his Demands which thus the Historian relates De Regno addebat praesumptuosum Wil. Mâ—lmesb lib. 3. fol. 56. l. 25. fuisse quòd absque Generali Senatus Populi conventu Edicto alienam illi haereditatem juraverit That as for him to take an Oath to deliver up the Inheritance of any Realm without the general consentand allowance * That is without the assent of the Wittenagemot Mycel Synod or Parâ—iament of the Senate and People could not but be a great piece of presumption yea altho' he might have just title so to do †Praeterea iniquum postulat ut imperio decedat quod tanto favore civium regendum susceperit Malmsb. l. 3. f. 56. l. 30. wherefore it was an unreasonable Request of the Duke now to require him to renounce the Kingdom in which he was so well setled to the good liking and content of his People This Norman Duke not to be his own Judg refers himself to the Pope then Alexander the second to decide the Matter and so resolved that the infallible Chair should determine who had the Justest Title to the Crown and Kingdom Harold or Himself And the good old Gentleman who would not be behind-hand with him in civility for so great a kindness as was the Appealing to him and so flattering him with a Judicatory Power over Princes easily was induced to pronounce sentence on William's behalf But all these blustering Pretences of nearness in Blood which it seems his Son Henry thought to be the best flower in his Garland when he * In his Charter whereby he advanced the Abby of Ely into the degree of a Bishoprick calls himself the Son of William the Great pray Sir be pleased to observe it is not of William the Conqueror Seldeni ad Eadmerum Notae Spicileg fol. 211. lin 39. Qui Edwardo Regi Haereditario Jure successit in Regnum Who succeeded to King Edward in the Kingdom by Right of Inheritance or the Confessor's bequest of the Crown to him Or lastly the Pope's definitive Sentence in William's favour All these blustering Pretences of his I say availed but little with Harold and therefore you must think it could not but incense the Duke of Normandy very greatly so that he had now a just cause of open quarrel against Harold for the Reasons you have heard And thereupon convening his Parliament or Assembly of three Estates which consisted Nobility is taken in France for Gentlemen as well as for Earls or persons of like dignity of the Clergie Nobility and Commons the Nobility in fine promised to serve him Verstegan ' s restitution of decayed Intelligence in Antiquities dedicated to King James pag. 173. and the Clergie and People to aid him with Mony according to their several Abilities and such offers as they made were forthwith set down in writing by a Secretary there present So that being thus supplied and assisted with several other of his Friends he makes for England and was no sooner arrived at a place in Sussex called Pevenessey now Pemsey and got well on Land but by his Proclamation he declared upon what Occasions he thus entred the Realm and so preparing to give Harold Battle he hereby seemed as if he would have all the World to know his Quarrel was more Personal than National But this I will speak more particularly and largely to when I come to mention some of the Charters he made after he was established King. And as Perjury seldom or never escapes unpunished so here was a visible Instance of the Divine Justice upon Harold for his breach of Oath and Covenant to the Duke for in the Battle of Hastings he met with his Reward losing both his Crown and his Life at once and leaving William to finish the day with Victory over those that were yet resolved to dispute the Cause with him And now being rid of his stubborn Enemy and in the heat of the Chase got to London he possessed himself of that Kingdom which he pretended was his own by Right before from the Titles we have already mentioned Yet however it was in no such haughty and insulting way as many boast of and would gladly have their unwary Readers to believe upon their bare Credit and Testimony but he chose the more grateful and complying Artifices of a Courtier and setled himself in it by a kind of mutual Agreement and express compact as now I hope will be clearly demonstrated by what I shall offer to you after this his pretended absolute Conquest For 1. Tho' he was victorious over his great Adversary Harold yet if he had been an absolute Conqueror as hath been of late so vigorously asserted by our Modern Writers what urgent necessity was there for him or how did it stand him in such mighty stead still to keep himself armed with the aforesaid Titles that so he might have the more colourable pretence of Right and Justice on his side in laying a legal Claim to this Imperial Crown For me-thinks if he had a full possession upon such a forcible entry as is pretended this had been a stronger Title than any thing else he could have alledged for how could or durst a vanquished enslaved Nation dispute with him when he rode triumphing on their Backs and had lashed them into an entire submission of vassalage But 2. Let us see the manner of this first King William's Coronation and whether or no he did not take an Oath at the same time which was in sence and substance if not just in the words themselves the very same with that which the Ancient Saxon Kings used likewise to take upon their Coronations And for your full satisfaction herein I shall give you the parallel of them both together and begin first with The Oath of either King Edward In vita Aelfredi Magni fol. 62. Promissio Regis vel Edvardi vel Aethelredi utrumque euim Dunstanus Kingstoniae Coronavit circa Ann. 970. or King Ethelred for Dunstan crowned both of them at Kingston about the Year 970. This writing punctually to a Letter Hoc Scripto de litera ad literam descriptum est ad scriptum illud quod Dunstanus Archiepiscopus tradebat Domino nostro Kingstoniae ipso illo die quo Consecratus erat in Regem atque illi interdicebat ne ullam sponsionem daret praeter sponsionem illam quam deposuerat in Altari Christi quemadmodum Episcopus illi dictaret corresponds with that Writing which Dunstan the