Selected quad for the lemma: parliament_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
parliament_n	burgess_n	king_n	knight_n	3,853	5	7.2952	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A54640	The pillars of Parliament struck at by the hands of a Cambridge doctor, or, A short view of some of his erroneous positions, destructive to the ancient laws & government of England to which is added the true state of the doctor's error about the Parliament, 49 H.3 / by William Petyt of the Inner-Temple, Esq. ...	Petyt, William, 1636-1707.	1681 (1681)	Wing P1950; ESTC R5699	10,164	16

THE PILLARS OF PARLIAMENT Struck at by the Hands of A Cambridge Doctor OR A SHORT VIEW Of some of his Erroneous POSITIONS Destructive to the Ancient Laws Government OF ENGLAND To which is added The true State of the Doctor 's Error about the Parliament 49 H. 3. By William Petyt of the Inner Temple Esq LONDON Printed for Tho. Simmons at the Princes Arms in Ludgate-Street MDCLXXXI THE PILLARS OF Parliament STRUCK AT By the HAND of A Cambridge Doctor OR A SHORT VIEW Of some of His Erroneous Positions c. ABout a Tear and a half since I did in a small Treatise assert the Ancient Right of the Commons of England in Parliament And therein maintained That the Commons of England represented by Knights Citizens and Burgesses in Parliament did not begin to be an Essential part of Parliament Anno 49 H. 3. by Rebellion To which there lately came out a pretended Full and Clear Answer wherein the Author thereof affirms That the Commons of England represented by Knights Citizens and Burgesses in Parliament were not introduced nor were one of the three Estates in Parliament before the 49th of H. 3. The Dignities Learning and Fame of the supposed Author of the Book being so great it is but fit that the Use End and Scope thereof should be better known and understood than yet it is In order whereunto I have for the Publick Good got time to make a small Abstract or Compendium of some of the Principles which the Answerer hath asserted and laid down therein Which are these following The DOCTOR' 's POSITIONS What Interest the Commons of England had in the Parliaments of the Saxon Times THere are no Commons to be found in the Saxon Great Councils Nor any thing that tends towards the Proof of the Commons of those Times to have had any Share of making Laws in those Councils The Commons as at this Day known not to be found amongst the Community of England in Old Historians In the Norman Times THat William the Conqueror claimed by the Sword and made an Absolute Conquest For without doubt there was no English-Men in the Common Council of the whole Kingdom For the English had neither Estates nor Fortunes left and therefore it could be no great matter to them by what Law Right or Propriety other Men held their Estates William the Conqueror divided all the Lands in England amongst his great Followers to hold of him The Free-men of England being French Flemings Anjovins Britains Poictovins and People of other Nations who came in with the Conqueror and to whom his Magna Charta was made not to English-men These were the Men the only Legal Men that named and chose Juries and served on Juries themselves both in the County and Hundred Courts and dispatched all Country business under the Great Officers If therefore the Justiciaries Chancellors Earls Sheriffs Lords of Mannors such as hear'd Causes and gave Judgment were Normans if the Lawyers and Pleaders were also Normans the Pleadings and Judgments in their several Courts must of necessity have been in that Language and the Law also the Norman-Law otherwise they had said and done they knew not what and judged they knew not how especially when the Controversies were determined by Military-men Earls Sheriffs Lords of Mannors c. that understood not the English Tongue or Law Or when the Chief Justiciary himself was a Military-Man as it often happened and understood only the Norman Language and 't is hardly to be believed these Men would give themselves the trouble of learning and understanding the English-Law and Language These were the Free-men which made such a Cry for their Liberties as appears by Magna Charta most of which is only an Abatement of the Rigour and a Relaxation of the Feudal Tenures the rest were but only Followers and helped to augment the Noise they were no Law-makers as this Gentleman meaning me fondly imagines For it is not probable that those Men that had the force of the Nation would permit Men of Small Reputation to share with them in Law-making Those that had the Power of this and other Nations De Facto always did give Laws and Tax the People After Symon Montford Earl of Leicester and the Numerous Barons had taken Hen. 3. and Prince Edward Prisoners at the Battel of Lewes and a New Government was framed and set up they Anno 49 H. 3. sent out Writs in the King ' s Name unto divers Bishops Abbots and Priors and to such of the Noble-men as were of their own Party to the Sheriffs of Counties Cities Burroughs and the Cinque-Ports And without doubt as others have Conjectured before Me the danger that Symon and his Privado's apprehended from the Concourse of the Nobility and their great Retinues and the Example of his and the Barons Practices at Oxford was the reason why they Anno 49 H. 3. altered the Ancient Usage and of their Sending Directing and in the King ' s Name Commanding the Sheriffs of each County the Cities and Burroughs to send Two Knights Citizens and Burgesses respectively Hence he affirms That the Commons of England represented by Knights Citizens and Burgesses in Parliament were not introduced nor were one of the Three Estates in Parliament before the 49th of H. 3. For the Commons were not comprehended in the Common University For the Noble-men of England and Council of the Baronage were the Community of England Barones Regni called to Parliament at the King's Pleasure And what King Henry a little before his Death begun that is to call such Earls and Barons Quos Dignatus est such as he pleased Edward the First and his Successors constantly observed Having had one great Antiquary's Opinion meaning Mr. Camden ' s joyned with Matter of Fact upon the Constitution of the House of Lords Let us see the Opinion of another concerning the Origin of the House of Commons back'd also by Matter of Fact Sir Robert Cotton says the Victory at Evesham and the dear Experience Henry the Third himself had made at Oxford in the 42d Year of his Reign and the memory of the many Streights his Father was driven to especially at Runnemede near Stanes brought this King wisely to begin what his Successors fortunately finished in lessening the Strength and Power of his Great Lords And this was wrought by searching into the Regality they had usurped over their peculiar Soveraigns and by weakening that Hand of Power which they carried in Parliaments by commanding the Services of many Knights Citizens and Burgesses to that great Council These were the Reasons why those Kings followed Montfort 's pattern to secure themselves against the Tumultuous Insolent and Seditious Practices of the Barons And as according to the Opinions of these great Antiquaries these new Constitutions of Parliament had their Origin from the King 's Authority so from the

same Authority and Time it was that this most excellent Great Council received its Perfection and became exactly fitted for the Government of these Nations as it seems to be very evident from these following Records And then the Doctor prints several Writs in the Reigns of E. 1. E. 2. and E. 3. for summoning sometimes one sometimes more Knights Citizens and Burgesses to such Great Councils as had no power to make Laws but were only called upon the suddain to give Advice and Counsel Yet the Doctor would have these to be Parliaments a plain if not a designed Error with several dangerous Notes or Inferences in the Margin as the Reader may observe pag. 230 231 232 233 242 243 246 248 249. The King and his Council judges whether and when Burgesses ought to come to Parliaments The Great Charter commonly attributed to Hen. 3. and styled his Charter was properly the Charter of E. 1. or perhaps rather his Explication or Enlargement of that Charter of King John and H. 3. For we find not the Great Charter either of that or King John's Form in any of the Rolls until the 25th of E. 1. And he had a greater sum of Money for confirming this Charter than H. 3. had as 't is recorded in the Summons to Parliament for that purpose In this Charter then confirmed there is no provision made for any Summons to Great Councils or Parliaments And the Reason may well be because the Constitution of Great Councils or Parliaments was lately changed from what it was in King John ' s time and until the 49th of H. 3. nor perhaps was it so fixed and peremptorily resolved on at this time viz. 25 E. 1. what it should exactly be for the future as to have it made an Article of the Charter And to this Conjecture the frequent Variations of Summons to Parliament in those times do give a probable Confirmation Thus far our Doctor Nullus Erranti Terminus But I will not say with him that here are any Aery Ambuscades Whimseys Marvellous Nonsence Gross Ignorance of Histories and Records admirable and idle fancies and a Troop more of such gentile Expressions which our Answerer hath been pleased to give that ingenious Gentleman Mr. Atwood of Grays-Inn and my self All strong Arguments and high Civilities scarce well becoming the Doctor in all his eminent Qualifications But to come to The True State of the Doctor and his Author's Error about the Parliament 49 H. 3. AFter Matthew Paris and Rishanger his Continuer had given them an Account of the Wars between H. 3. and his great Barons and that at the Battel at Lewes Anno 48. of that King he and Prince Edward were taken Prisoners by Symon Montfort Earl of Leicester General for the Barons In the Year following which was 49 H. 3. they meet with a Schedule affixed to the close Roll wherein there are Writs of Summons entred for calling Two Knights for each County Two Citizens Two Burgesses for every City and Borough and Two Barons for every of the Cinque-Ports to meet in a Parliament at London in the Octaves of St Hillary What to do Nobiscum ac cum proedictis Prelatis magnatibus nostris quos ibidem vocari fecimus super proemissis tractaturi atque Consilium impensuri To treat with him the said King and with the Prelates and Great Men of the Land touching the Premisses and to give their Advice Now because this Writ of Summons falls as the Doctor saith in the Nick of time with the Historian when the King and Prince were in custody of Symon Montfort He and his Author will needs thereupon nick the House of Commons and have this Summons to be the very First and Original Writ of Summons to Parliament that ever was of this nature that in this Critical Tear at this very time there began a wonderful Change and a marvellous Alteration of the ancient Form of our English Parliaments and that before the Commons were never any part thereof but then had their Origine and Beginning to be so by this Rebellion When as 1. If that Roll had been lost as all the Parliament Rolls of those times are it cannot appear that there were any Summons to Parliament either to the Lords Spiritual or Temporal or Commons till 22 and 23 E. 1. thirty Years after 49 H. 3. though it is evident and certain both from the printed Books and Records there were above fourteen Parliaments in the interim And our Doctor himself and his Author agree that both Lords and Commons were present and Parties in the Parliament Anno 52 H. 3. at Marlborough three Years after 49 H. 3. and also in the third Year of E. 1. which was eleven Years after 49 H. 3. at a Parliament at Westminster though there are no Writs of Summons either of the Lords or Commons nor any Rolls yet found out of those Parliaments 2. Neither do their own Historians whom they make use of nor Matthew Westminster whom the Doctor cites too who writ in the Reign of E. 1. Son to H. 3. and who particularly gives an Account also of those Wars nor any Historiographer or Lawyer nor any Record of that or succeeding Ages ever mention one Word of any such Change or Revolution in 49 H. 3. as our Doctor and his single Author by tacking and patching their Historian and Writs together have inferred and maintained in their Books Besides the Form of Acts of Parliament and Expressions both in Historians and Records are the same both before and after 49 H. 3. and in the Reigns of E. 1. E. 2. and E. 3. Notwithstanding all which and that the Doctor well knew that the Citizens and Burgesses were a Constituent Part of the Parliament in Ireland Anno 38 H. 3. which was eleven Years before 49 H. 3. as I proved in my Book p. 71. And also by way of Comparison p. 79. That the Cities Great Towns and Burroughs 1. Of France 2. Spain 3. Portugal 4. Denmark 5. Sweden And 6. Scotland have from time immemorable both de jure and de facto had their Delegates or Representatives in the General Councils or in our present Dialect Parliaments So that it might seem very strange that when the Cities and Burroughs in all the Kingdoms of Europe were ab antiquis temporibus even in the time coeval with their Government an essential part of their Common-Councils or Parliaments that England of all the European World should not be under the same Constitution before 49 H. 3. Yet the Doctor and his Author by all their Art and Skill have toiled and laboured to swim against the Stream of so great a Torrent of Reasons and Testimonies To which in convenient time shall be added many more Authorities which are first to be carefully examined and cannot be done in so short a time together with a Civil and Moderate Reply to the Doctor 's Answer