Chronicles (1 of 6): The Description of Britaine

by Raphael Holinshed; William Harrison; John Hooker

Certes it is a common practise (if the vnder shiriffe be not the better man) for the craftier or stronger side to procure and packe such a quest, as he himselfe shall like of, whereby he is sure of the issue before the charge be giuen: and beside this if the matter doo iustlie procéed against him, it is a world to sée now and then how the honest yeomen that haue Bona fide discharged their consciences shall be sued of Atteinct. an atteinct, & bound to appéere at the Starre chamber, with what rigor they shall be caried from place to place, countie to countie, yea and sometime in carts, which hath and dooth cause a great number of them to absteine from the assises, & yeeld to paie their issues, rather than they would for their good meaning be thus disturbed & dealt withall. Sometimes also they bribe the bailiffes to be kept at home, whervpon poore men, not hauing in their pursses wherewith to beare their costes, are impanelled vpon iuries, who verie often haue neither reason nor iudgement to performe the charge they come for. Neither was this kind of seruice at anie time halfe so painefull as at this present: for vntill of late yeares (that the number of lawiers and atturneies hath so exceedinglie increased, that some shifts must néeds be found and matters sought out, whereby they may be set on worke) a man should not haue heard at one assise of more than two or thrée Nisi priùs, but verie seldome of an atteinct, wheras now an hundred & more of the first and one or two of the later are verie often perceiued, and some of them for a cause arising of sixpence or tweluepence. Which declareth that men are growen to be farre more contentious than they haue béene in time past, and readier to reuenge their quarels of small importance, whereof the lawiers complaine not. But to my purpose, from whence I haue now digressed.

Beside these officers afore mentioned, there are sundrie other in euerie countie, as crowners, whose dutie is to inquire of such as come to their death by violence, to attach & present the plées of the crowne, to make inquirie of treasure found, &c. There are diuerse also of the best Iustices of peax & quorum. learned of the law, beside sundrie gentlemen, where the number of lawiers will not suffice (and whose reuenues doo amount to aboue twentie pounds by the yeare) appointed by especiall commission from the prince, to looke vnto the good gouernement of hir subiects, in the counties where they dwell. And of these the least skilfull in the law are of the peace, the other both of the peace and quorum, otherwise called of Oier and Determiner, so that the first haue authoritie onelie to heare, the other to heare and determine such matters as are brought vnto their presence. These also doo direct their warrants to the kéepers of the gailes within their limitations, for the safe kéeping of such offendors as they shall iudge worthie to commit vnto their custodie there to be kept vnder ward, vntill the great assises, to the end their causes may be further examined before the residue of the countie, & these officers were first deuised about the eightéene yeare of Edward the third, as I haue béene informed.

Quarter sessions. They méeting also & togither with the shiriffes, doo hold their aforesaid sessions at foure times in the yeare, whereof they are called quarter sessions, and herein they inquire of sundrie trespasses, and the common annoiances of the kings liege people, and diuerse other things, Petie sessions. determining vpon them as iustice dooth require. There are also a third kind of sessions holden by the high constables and bailiffes afore mentioned, called petie sessions, wherein the weights and measures are perused by the clarke of the market for the countie, who sitteth with them. At these méetings also vittellers, and in like sort seruants, labourers, roges and runnagates, are often reformed for their excesses, although the burning of vagabounds through their eare be referred to the quarter sessions or higher courts of assise, where they are iudged either to death, if they be taken the third time, & haue not since their second apprehension applied themselues to labour, or else to be set perpetuallie to worke in an house erected in euerie shire for that purpose, of which punishment they stand in greatest feare.

I might here deliuer a discourse of sundrie rare customes and courts, surnamed barons, yet mainteined and holden in England: but forsomuch as some of the first are beastlie, and therefore by the lords of the soiles now liuing conuerted into monie, being for the most part deuised in the beginning either by malicious or licentious women, in méere contempt and slauish abuse of their tenants, vnder pretense of some punishment due for their excesses, I passe ouer to bring them vnto light, as also the remembrance of sundrie courts baron likewise holden in strange maner; yet none more absurd and far from law than are kept yearlie at Kings hill in Rochford, and therfore may well be called a lawlesse court, as most are that were deuised vpon such occasions. This court is kept vpon wednesdaie insuing after Michaelmasse daie after midnight, so that it is begun and ended before the rising of the sunne. When the tenants also are altogither in an alehouse, the steward secretlie stealeth from them with a lanterne vnder his cloke, and goeth to the Kings hill, where sitting on a mole-hill he calleth them with a verie soft voice, writing their appéerance vpon a péece of paper with a cole, hauing none other light than that which is inclosed in the lanterne: so soone as the tenants also doo misse the steward, they runne to the hill with all their might, and there answer all at once, Here here, wherby they escape their amercements: which they should not doo if he could haue called ouer his bill of names before they had missed him in the alehouse. And this is the verie forme of the court deuised at the first (as the voice goeth) vpon a rebellion made by the tenants of the honour of Raibie against their lord, in perpetuall memorie of their disobedience shewed. I could beside this speake also of some other, but sith one hath taken vpon him to collect a number of them into a particular treatise, I thinke it sufficient for me to haue said so much of both.

And thus much haue I thought good to set downe generallie of the said counties and their maner of gouernance, although not in so perfect order as the cause requireth, bicause that of all the rest there is nothing wherewith I am lesse acquainted than with our temporall regiment, which (to saie truth) smallie concerneth my calling. What else is to be added after the seuerall shires of England with their ancient limits (as they agreed with the diuision of the land in the time of Ptolomie and the Romans) and commodities yet extant, I reserue vnto that excellent treatise of my fréend W. Cambden, who hath trauelled therein verie farre, & whose worke written in Latine shall in short time (I hope) be published, to the no small benefit of such as will read and peruse the same.

OF DEGREES OF PEOPLE IN THE COMMONWEALTH OF ENGLAND.
CHAP. V.

We in England diuide our people commonlie into foure sorts, as gentlemen, citizens or burgesses, yeomen, which are artificers, or laborers. Of gentlemen the first and chéefe (next the king) be the prince, dukes, marquesses, earls, viscounts, and barons: and these are called gentlemen of the greater sort, or (as our common vsage of spéech is) lords and noblemen: and next vnto them be knights, esquiers, and last of all they that are simplie called gentlemen; so that in effect our gentlemen are diuided into their conditions, wherof in this chapiter I will make particular rehearsall.

Prince. The title of prince dooth peculiarlie belong with vs to the kings eldest sonne, who is called prince of Wales, and is the heire apparant to the crowne; as in France the kings eldest sonne hath the title of Dolphine, and is named peculiarlie Monsieur. So that the prince is so termed of the Latine word Princeps, sith he is (as I may call him) the cheefe or principall next the king. The kings yoonger sonnes be but gentlemen by birth (till they haue receiued creation or donation from their father of higher estate, as to be either visconts, earles, or dukes) and called after their names, as lord Henrie, or lord Edward, with the addition of the word Grace, properlie assigned to the king and prince, and now also by custome conueied to dukes, archbishops, and (as some saie) to marquesses and their wiues.

Duke. The title of duke commeth also of the Latine word Dux, à ducendo, bicause of his valor and power ouer the armie: in times past a name of office due to the emperour, consull, or chéefe gouernour of the whole armie in the Romane warres: but now a name of honor, although perished in England, whose ground will not long beare one duke at once; but if there were manie as in time past, or as there be now earles, I doo not thinke but that they would florish and prosper well inough.

Marquesse. In old time he onelie was called marquesse, Qui habuit terram limitaneam, a marching prouince vpon the enimies countries, and thereby bound to kéepe and defend the frontiers. But that also is changed in common vse, and reputed for a name of great honor next vnto the duke, euen ouer counties, and sometimes small cities, as the prince is pleased to bestow it.