Selected quad for the lemma: city_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
city_n	edward_n	henry_n	sir_n	5,966	4	6.4255	4	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A76365	A plea for the commonalty of London, or, A vindication of their rights (which hath been long with-holden from them) in the choice of sundry city officers. As also, a justification of the power of the Court of Common-councell, in the making of acts, or by-laws, for the good and profit of the citizens, notwithstanding the negative votes of the Lord Major and aldermen. Being fully proved by severall charters granted to this City, by sundry royall kings of England, confirmed by Act of Parliament, and by records witnessing the particulars in the practise of them. / In a speech delivered in Common-councell, on Munday the 24th of February, 1644. By John Bellamie.	Bellamie, John, d. 1654.	1645 (1645)	Wing B1816; Thomason E1174_3; ESTC R208882	15,067	36

Commonaltie our rights in the choice of some of them I pray deny us not our rights in all For do you not thinke it is much better to use and keep that we have then by neglect disusage or mis-usage to loose all And is there not still some about the King which would fain take hold of any occasion to fill their own Coffers with our City Coyn if according to the Country Proverbe they could any way find a hole in our Coat Suffer me I beseech you to relate unto you what I have sometimes read to this purpose In the 16. year of Richard the 2d there was a Commission procured from the King to the then two Dukes of York and Glocester with others grounded as then pretended upon a Statute of Edward the 3d in the 28. yeare of his raign which Statute in King Edward the 2d daies was by a by-word called as saith Sir Henry Colthrop sometimes Recorder of London Flagellum Civit. Londini the whip and scourge of the City of London God keepe us from the like whip again least it fetch life as well as bloud from us It was to enquire I will give it you in the words of the Record of all and singular errours defects and mispritions in our City of London for want of good Government of the Majors Shrieves and Aldermen of the same City And as there doth not now so it seemes there did not then want informers for the then Major Aldermen and Shrieves were convicted and adjudged to pay for their first default a 1000 Marks for the 2d 2000 Marks And for the third the liberties of the City was taken into the hands of the King and did there remain untill by the mediation and intercession of the Queen a pardon was procured and their Priviledges restored My authour tels me not what this Mediation of the Queen cost this City but we may well thinke the pardon came not off at a low rate I 'll close this with a good lesson I long since learnt Foelix quem faciunt aliena pericula cautum Happie are they whom other mens harms doe make to beware The second Argument is from the obligation of a sacred Oath by which we all as free-men of this City stand bound to maintain all the Liberties and Franchises thereof Sacred Oaths I conceive may admit of a twofold distinction 1. Assertorie 2. Promisorie I am only to speak of the second and of it but three things and of those almost in as few words As 1. The Antiquity of it 2. The Authority of it 3. The Obligatorines or binding power of it For the Antiquity of it I find it as ancient as Abraham and the Authority of it from God himselfe both these in Genes 22.16 17. By my selfe have I sworn saith the Lord that in blessing I will blesse thee c. The Obligatorines or binding power of it is also from God himself Numb 30.1 2. This is the thing which the Lord hath commanded If a man sweare an Oath to bind his soule with a bond he shall not breake his word he shall do according to all that proceedeth out of his mouth And if any man dare doe otherwise God himselfe will likewise be a swift witnesse against him for it And that we are all bound by Oath to maintain the City Liberties this clause in a free-mans Oath viz. The franchises and customes of this City you shall maintain doth fully prove I have now gone through all I proposed to my self and J hope fully proved every particular Give me leave J beseech you to close all as St Paul did to Philemon in the case of Onesimus Though I might enjoyne thee that which is convenient yet for loves sake I rather intreat thee So J though we might require our rights of your Lordship and those worthy Aldermen as that which is our dues by the City Charters yet for love sake we rather become suters to your Lordship and all your Associates those grave Senatours the worthy Aldermen And doe as for love so for peace sake also intreat you to joyne with us by your consent and assistance to settle them all aright upon their owne Basis that so we may be in such a condition as upon every emergent occasion to be able by the blessing of God to be safe within our selves and serviceable in our places unto King and Parliament I could in this way of supplication to your Lordship even weep out my own eyes yea let out my owne bowels could J but thereby penetrate in the breasts of your Lordship and those worthy Aldermen to draw some compassion from you in this very nick of time to helpe to save a sinking City if not a dying Kingdome Is it not the enemies maxime Divide impera divide and rule and hath not Division already proved too destructive to us and is there any meanes under heaven so hopefull for our helps as Unity and Concord Hath not that God who is the God of Vnity made us One Hath not the Charters of our City made us One and doth not the Constitutions of this Court make us one entire Councell and yet shall we who are thus made one by this three-fold bond breake in two and runne to ruine O my Lord J want words to expresse my sorrow we who are the Commons stand with our stretched out Armes ready to imbrace your Lordship and all those worthy Aldermen in the nearest and firmest bond of Vnity and Love looke not upon us I Beseech you with a displeasing countenance but afford us the like mutuall imbraces disdain us not though below you for we are as your flesh and your bones If therefore there be any consolation in Christ if any comfort of love if any fellowship of the Spirit if any bowels of mercies in you grant our just desires and in love and peace settle and estate us in our rights and dues and be of the same mind with us having the same love to us for O how good and pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in Vnitie I might further presse this by a three-fold argument As 1. That as you are the head and Governors of this City 2. That as you are bound by severall sacred Oathes 3. That as you tender the welfare and libertie of your posterities You ought to doe it But I 'll forbeare hoping that a word to the wise will be sufficient and shut up all with the relation of a City Historie upon Record which I beseech you seriously to consider of and make such an application of it to your selves as in your wisdomes shall seem most meet unto you In Anno 1389. William Vennor Major and John Walcut and John Lony Shrieves with the then Aldermen who all by name in their order stand blemisht upon Record That for the Errours defects and mispritions in their Government they were fined at 3000 marks and the City Liberties seized on by the King Can you imagine that every or any water or aqua fortis will wash of or weare away this their obloquie and repreach Abundans cautela non nocet Very much cautiousnes will no way hurt you Consider on the other side that the wisest of Kings spoke very wisely when he said A good name is rather to be chosen then great riches and that it is better then a pretious ointment And will it not be so to you when for your long lasting fame and glory it may stand upon Record to after ages when we are dead and gone That in Anno 1644. when the Right Honourable Thomas Atkin was Lord Major the right Worshipfull William Gibbs and Richard Chambers were Shrieves and that learned and able Lawyer and Patriot of his Countries libertie John Glyn was Recorder and such and such worthy Knights and Gentlemen reading you all according to your degrees by name was Aldermen That then by your assistance and consent London I say the Commonalty of London was restored to their long lost Liberties and Priviledges Consider what I say and the Lord give you understanding in all things FINIS

and Commoners members of this Court of Common-Councell and I being by this Court added to that Committee thought it therfore my duty according to the best of my abilities to give an accompt to this Court whom it chiefely concernes how in my judgement I conceive the right and truth therein doth stand and for methods sake I shall deliver what in this I have to speake under these three heads First That this City by those favours and bounties which we and our predecessors have received from sundry Royall Kings of England is now invested with many excellent immunities franchises and priviledges Secondly Who are the proper recipients of those favours or to whom the power of using and maintaining those favours and priviledges granted to us by our Royall Kings of England is committed Thirdly The reasons or arguments wherefore those persons unto whom this power is committed should carefully and conscionably maintaine and use those priviledges with which they are intrusted For the proofe of the first I have a large and a pleasant field to walk in and truly I want both time to recount them all they are so many and words to set forth the worth of them they are so excellent When I throughly view them I know not well whether I should more magnifie the grace and favour of those royall Princes in giving us so many priviledges or admire our own happinesse in the injoyment of them But I must only doe in these as men usually doe in a curious garden pluck here a flower and there an herb which are most pleasing to their sences and most usefull for their service and when I have done the best I can I must leave many behind me for want of time and skill to collect and improve them for the common good But my hope and desire is that some more able and skilfull hand will shortly set them forth in their use and lustre before your Lordship and this Court I can no way cast my eye but it beholds many witnesses of this truth for that we are here at this time in the capacity of a City Councell to consult upon debate about and determine of such things which doe or may concerne the common good this pleades this proves our priviledge That Emblem of Authority which ere while was borne before your Lordship and now presents it selfe within your view is another argument to prove your power and in it the power of this City whose head under his Majesty your Lordship is Very much hath been anciently written by many Authors in the praise and commendation of London but it hath been lately as truly so fully summed up together by that learned Lawyer Sr Edward Cook sometime Recorder of London and after Lord Chiefe Justice of England in his fourth part of Institutes p. 247. In these three expressions 1. Camera Regis 2. Rei Publicae Cor. 3. Totius Regni Epitome The Chamber of the King the heart of the Common-wealth the Epitome of the whole Kingdome But my Lord I must come to the proofe of these proofes for it is not sufficient to shew that we are thus and that your Lordship is possest of such a power for this and more then this may be by usurpation and without warrant But that which is my part to prove is That your Lordship and this City is invested with a just and a full power thus to be and thus to doe and that by the free and cleere grants of sundry royall Kings of England manifested in their severall and respective Charters which by their grace and favour they have granted to us Those pleasant flowers and usefull herbs which I shall now endeavour to present you with are such as will chiefely make a flourishing and populous City to be truly happy which are these two First To have the power to choose our own chiefe Governour and subordinate Officers amongst our selves Secondly To have also the power to make such Laws which are or shall be for our own welfare and best accommodation London was anciently governed both before the conquest in the time of the conquest and for about 120 yeares after the conquest which was untill the first yeare of Richard the first by Port graves or Port-greeves Richard the first appointed the first Major of London which continued for about 24 yeares untill the 14th yeare of King John And King John was the first King of England that gave us the power to choose our chiefe Governour viz. the Major amongst our selves as the words of the Charter in the 16 yeare of his raigne makes it plaine the words are these Know ye that We have granted to our Barons of our City of London that they may choose unto themselves a Major of themselves And that Charter of Henry the third in the 37 yeare of his raigne gives us the like power in these words We grant also unto the said Citizens that they may yearely present to our Barons of the Exchequer We or our Heires not being at Westminster every Major whih they sholl choose in the City of London to the end they may be by them admitted as Major And that Charter of Edward the second in the 12th of his raigne confirmeth to us the same power of choosing the Major with this addition also of choosing both the Sheriffs I say of choosing not only one but both the Sheriffs and that in these words That the Major and Sheriffs of the City aforesaid may be chosen by the Citizens of the same City according to the tenour of the Charters of our Progenitors sometimes Kings of England to that end made Et nullo alio modo Which Charter hath reference to the Charter of King John in the first yeare of his raigne in these words And further We have granted to the Citizens of London that they may make of themselves Sheriffs whomsoever they will and may remove them when they will And the same Charter of Edward the second gives us the power of choosing the Chamberlaine Common Clarke and Common Serjeant in these words And that the Chamberlaine Common Clarke and Common Serjeant of the City afore-said be chosen by the Commonalty of the same City and amoved at the pleasure of the same Commonalty The same Charter gives the choice of the Masters of the Way-house to the Commonalty in these words And that the Weights and Beames for weighing of Merchandizes betwixt Merchant and Merchant Whereof the issues growing and the knowledge of them pertaine to the Commonalty of the City afore-said remaine to be kept at the will of the same Commonalty in the custody of two good and sufficient men of the same City expert in that office to be hereunto chosen by the Commonalty afore-said and that they be not in any otherwise committed to any others but to such as shall be so chosen And in the 22th of Henry the eigth this is granted to the Major Commonalty and Citizens of London conjunctim I might tire out my selfe and weare out your

patience if I should reade all the severall Charters which gives the choice of many other City Officers unto the Commonalty as the Serjeants of the Chamber the Offices of Packing Garbling of Spices Gaugers and Measurers with many others but I will at present forbeare and goe on to the next which is this That this City is invested with power to make such Laws which are or shall be for our own welfare and best accommodation That Charter of Edw. 3. in the 15th yeare of his raigne fully cleeres it in these words We have granted further for Vs and our Heires and by this our present Charter confirmed to the Major and Aldermen of the City aforesaid That if any customes in the said City hitherto obtained and used be in any part difficult or defective or any thing in the same newly hapning where before there was no remedy ordained and have need of amending the same Major and Aldermen and their Successors with the assent of the Commonalty of the same City may adde and or daine a Remedy meet faithfull and consonant to reason for the common profit of the Citizens of the same City as oft and as such time as to them shall be thought expedient When I seriously consider what Priviledges by these Charters we are invested with I know not well what further in this kind could be desired to make us a happy people were we not wanting in our selves towards our own happinesse I have now done with the first which I think makes fully good the thing proposed viz. That this City by those favours and bounties which we and our predecessors have received from sundry Royall Kings of England is now invested with many excellent Immunities Franchises and priviledges and I pray God give us grace wisely and humbly to make a right use of them The second thing I proposed to speake to was this viz. Who are the proper Recipients of those priviledges or to whom the power of using and maintaining those priviledges and favours granted to us by our Royall Kings of England is committed I have only in this these two things to speake to First To shew to whom these priviledges have been granted Secondly To prove by whom these priviledges have been practised These two things being once well cleered will fully prove the thing proposed For the first take a survey of all the Charters which have been granted to this City since the date of that grant of King John to this day which are very many and they all runne thus or to this effect To the Major Aldermen and Commonalty of the City of London or to the Major and Commonalty of our City of London And here I cannot but remind you of those Charters of Edward the third in the 15th yeare of his raigne where the Major and Aldermen with the assent of the Commonalty have the power as to explaine so to amend the old or to make new Laws for the common profit of the Citizens And of that of King John in the first year of his raigne and of Edward the second and in the 12th yeare of his raigne where the sole power both to elect and to amove the Sheriffs the Chamberlin the Common Clarke and the Common Serjeant is wholly left to the pleasure of the Commonalty without any reference to the Major and Aldermen Thus it is cleare that the Commonalty have by the Charters an equall share with the Major and Aldermen in the priviledges granted to this City and if there be any difference as there is in the choice of some City Officers the advantage is unto the Commons The second particular in this second head is this By whom these priviledges have been practised I shall endeavour to make this as cleere as the former For as the power in the aforesaid Charter of Edward the third doth inable the Major and Aldermen with the assent of the commonalty to amend the old or to make new Laws so suitable thereunto are all our Acts of Common-councell which are our City Laws they are made as in the joint names so by the joint power of the Major Aldermen and Commons in Common-councell assembled Give me leave I pray to instance in a few particulars which have been done by the power of this Court since I have had the happinesse to sit as a Scholler in this Schoole As upon the 4th of March 1641. The removing of Duputy Alden from being a member of this Court Upon the 5th of Septemb. 1642. The putting away of Mr John Wild from being Town Clarke of this City Upon the 18th of Febr. 1642. The expelling of Thomas Wiseman the City Remembrancer out of his Office Upon the 28th of April 1643. The Amoveing of divers Aldermens Deputies from their places of Deputy-ship And all this by the joint and concurrent power and authority of the Ld Major Aldermen and Commons in this Common-councell assembled And that all the determinative binding and concluding power of this Court is in the plurality of the votes of the Lord Major Aldermen and Commons conjunctim And that the Lord Major and Aldermen have in this Court no more power of a negative voice then as single persons which every member of this Court hath as fully as they if their judgements in the debate sway them to the negative And that the Aldermen alone and by themselves cannot hold the negative against the Commons affirmative I prove these three wayes First by practice Secondly by argument Thirdly by equity and justice First I will shew by practice that it hath not been so Secondly I will prove by argument that it cannot be so Thirdly I will make it appeare that in equity and justice it ought not to be so First That it hath not been so I thus prove by practice Upon the 17th of Febr. 1641. A Petition was brought into this Court directed only to the Lord Mayor and Aldermen and because it was not directed to the Lord Major Aldermen and Commons in Common-councell assembled this Court refused to take any cognizance of it But the then Lord Major Sir Richard Gurney with the major part of the Aldermen then present in that Common-councell would have the Court to admit of that Petition and the Court refusing for the reason aforesaid the Lord Major and Aldermen conceiving as I suppose that they should carry it by plurality of votes would have the Court divided and numbred by the Pole and so it was done there was for the Petition the Lord Major 7 Aldermen and 61 Commoners and against the Petition 5 Aldermen and 85 Commoners and thus the members of this Court both Aldermen and Commoners being reckoned together by the Pole on both sides as members of this Court the question was determined the Petition rejected and the power and authority of this Common Councell maintained Secondly That it cannot be so I thus prove by Argument That Court which hath the power to make a Law and by that Law to confer a power upon the

soule diffuseth it selfe into all the Members of the body to make them fit for action as into the feet to walke into the hands to worke O suffer us I pray you to doe that which God which nature and which all our Royall Kings in all their Charters have granted to us and doth require of us that is that in our places we may act our parts And then you will easily see that as in the Naturall body the head cannot walke without the feet nor work without the hands nor can your Lordship and those worthy Aldermen though the head and chiefe of this great Councell yet act nothing without the concurrent power of us your hands and feet for to assist you The soundest and best of bodies are subject to diseases and those maladies in the most noble parts are ever most dangerous if therefore there breeds an ulcer or tumor in the head and cause it so to swell as it hinders the necessary and naturall motion of the rest of the Members and thereby endangereth the life of all Oh then blame not I beseech you blame not the feet if they run forth to seek a remedy nor yet the hands if they apply it for every Member as it tenders it 's owne well-being ought to seeke the welfare of the whole body And if the distemper be in the head as sad experience daily proveth no member of the body can then be well at ease But I fore-see an objection that may here be made against a part of what I have before spoken which is this That the choyce or election of some City-officers have been time out of mind in the power of others and not in the Commonalty as one of the Shrieves to be chosen by my Lord Majors Prerogative and the common Clark and common Serjeant by the Court of Aldermen I shall give to this objection a two-fold answer First that which our Saviour Christ gave to the Pharisees in the case of divorce they then pleading as these now prescription for it and saying that time out of mind even ever since Moses daies it had been so True saith our Lord Christ Moses for the hardnesse of their hearts suffered them to give a bill of divorce and to put away their wives but from the beginning it was not so The same say I 't is confest that a great while the choice of these and some other City-Officers have been suffered to run along in these Channels of pretended Prerogative and unwarranted custome but from the beginning it was not so therefore as our Saviour Christ said in that case What God hath joyned together let no man put asunder So say I in this what God and what the Charters of our City hath joyned together let not man let not not your Lordships pretended Prerogative let not unwarranted custome either put or keepe asunder The second Answer I give to this objection is this That this power hath either been given from the Commonalty by their owne consent or els taken away from them by usurpation if by usurpation then it behoves this Court the only representative body of this City to use all good meanes to regaine what hath been so long unjustly taken from them But if given away by consent as I will not deny but our fore-fathers in their times might be perswaded upon specious shews and faire pretences and peradventure in their esteeme upon solid reasons to make over a part of their power into the hands of the L d Major and Aldermen who knew better for their owne advantage how to use it then they to keepe it yet I hope if reason and just cause require the power of this Councell may reassume it again into the hands of the Commonaltie as it did in the like case upon the 21. of June 1643. reassume the sole power of choosing the Chamberlain and Bridge-masters into the hands of the said Commonalty I come now to the third and last head I am to speake to viz. The reasons or arguments wherefore those persons unto whom this power is committed should carefully and conscionably maintain and use those priviledges with which they are entrusted I will insist only upon two Arguments to presse this First from that dammage and losse which our Predecessours have under-gone for mis-using and non-usage of those Priviledges and Immunities which by the favour and bounty of former Princes have beene bestowed on them Secondly from that obligation of a sacred Oath by which we all as free men of this City stand bound for to maintain them The omission and misusage of Priviledges have been exceeding detrimentall to our Predecessours and may be of as dangerous a consequence unto us but before I prosecute this Argument give me leave to acquaint you how carefull one of the Kings of England was to preserve this City from losse and danger in this respect I reade that Edward the third in the first yeare of his raigne made provision for this City that our Liberties should not be seized into the hands of the King for any persionall Trespasse of any one minister of Justice in this City but did ordaine that such a minister of Justice should be punished according as the quality of his Trespasse should require But if the City it selfe which is only represented in this Court shall so farre undervalue or slight the grace and favour of our Royall Princes as not to use or to misuse such graunts and priviledges as they are pleased in their bounties to invest us with then as this neglect and non-usage or misusage of our priviledges hath made our Predecessours to pay deare for it So we may also mourne under the losse of it and smart for it For in the same Edward the 3. daies in the 15. yeare of his raigne it cost this City 1000. marks for not fully using those free Customes and Liberties which had been formerly granted to them where observe that it is not sufficient to use some of our free Customs and Liberties but we must use them all yea and fully use them in that way and manner as in which they were granted to us by our Charters else as then so now the non-usage or mis-usage of them may occasion a mulct or fine to be imposed on us For there is no man that is any whit conversant in our City Charters but can easily and truly testifie that not once or twice but 10. if not 20. times this City hath been forced to receive a pardon for non-usage and mis-usage of their priviledges and for City-Officers to be chosen and not by the persons appointed by Charter to choose them is a plain mis-usage of power and priviledge Therefore my Lord if your Lordship will by your Prerogative still choose one of the Shrieves and the Court of Aldermen will still choose the common Clarke and common Sergeant Why I beseech you may you not as well share the choice of all the City-Officers amongst your selves but if you will grant us of the