Selected quad for the lemma: england_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
england_n	duke_n	king_n	york_n	7,865	5	9.8357	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A33531	English-law, or, A summary survey of the houshold of God on earth and that both before and under the law, and that both of Moses and the Lord Jesus : historically opening the purity and apostacy of believers in the successions of ages, to this present : together with an essay of Christian government under the regiment of our Lord and King, the one immortal, invisible, infinite, eternal, universal prince, the Prince of Peace, Emmanuel.	Cock, Charles George.	1651 (1651)	Wing C4789; ESTC R37185	322,702	228

that but with a reflex upon the matters of the Church as being not to be neglected in respect of their own nature and also for their necessity to the explaining the matters treated of and I the rather chuse to pitch upon that time because the histories are more clear and from that settlement do all the grand Quaeries flow which are now discussed by so many wits and so many pens wherein yet I shall be brief as formerly though laying the plot to the generality of the succeeding matter William the first commonly called the Conquerour being the Bastard son of the Duke of Normandy having indeed no title at all to the Crown of England I cannot say usurps he fought against an usurper yet layes claim to it only under a pretended and invalid promise of Edward late King of England and with his Comrades to whom he had promised shares in his purchase He from Normandy and with Normans that is Frenchmen of the Country Province or County of Normandy lands in England fights the then King and slayes him in the Field and the English distasted at former Kings and it seems doubtfull to whom the Crown belonged and no one publikely laying claim whereby it is probable the race was wom out or utterly disheartned William soon settles himself and by agreement with the English to keep the Laws or rule them according to their Laws he is accepted as King but as to avoid war the strengths of the English being yet in no considerable manner broken by the one battel with the slain King he pretends his Title of Donation Adoption or what you will call such a pretence yet he as he found occasion and opportunity not only strengthned himself but weakned the English and that insensibly deposing all Bishops of whose fidelity he was not assured and for setling a new form of Government upon yet exceeding prudent grounds which was the so called Tenure in Capite or of the Crown he by cutting off the Males of the chief Nobles as Traitors disposed the Females where they were in marriage to his Normans and the other upon seisures he granted to hold of him as of his Crown thus he wrought his own ends every way for now he hereby takes the power of the Kingdom and the adherences of the ancient Nobility into the Norman Race his Normans now as by agreement and according to the rule of their Nation take all from him who is Lord paramount Thus all the land in England is holden of the King and by the equity of the judicial he holding all of God onely and so the land was absolutely enslaved and the title of warlike conquest is atchieved by a quiet bargain for this marriage of the inheritrix all other objects taken away cast the tenants eyes solely upon the enjoyer of their Lady now this way was prepared to before the kingdom being formerly divided not onely into Counties under an Earl Consul or their Sheriff but each County into their Hundreds and those subdivided into half Hundreds and those again into Tythings the most admirable Law that ever was in point of prudence directed even by the infinite Wisdom to the Jew and approved by these men as obligatory to Christians or so pretending these in their gradations all had their law from their Lord and held of him most under an oath and that according to the nature of the Tenures whether by homage or fealty onely with a saving of right to the King and other Lords and that Lord he held of the King nay the wise Bastard had a further reach for these Land-tenants were his Militia and none else were now suffered to have Arms so that his Normans being conveniently disposed into all parts of the Nation and the Nation thus engaged by these courses aforesaid being more warlike then wise few then knowing more then the Priest told them the work was readily effected and so much the rather because the Nobles had Knights held of them by the like service of attendance in the wars some holding Honors and some Mannors in subordination and these again had Freeholders for the provision of their houses which was called the service of the plough And thus all being distinguished into their orders and ranks there was nourished by these mutual dependances love and duty service and sustenance the Noble man being at Court the Lord or chief Knight in the County the Patrons of the Yeomonry and all yet held in chief of the King This prudent settlement holding a correspondence with the ancient Jewish and no difference from the later Romane Government both here by severall Governors and Governments made native was very facile to be effected and the rather because that our rocks of offence now were no stumbling stones of offence then but the foundation-stone of the ladder of the highest preferments for the Kingdom being settled upon a Military frame yet wisely observing the rules of humane Arts Wardship and Marriage the now or late Bugbears were thus laid and reserved by that discreet Prince following so justly and evenly one upon the neck of another by them accounted demonstrative reason that truly his enemies approved at last what his friends denied that is the English admitted what the Normans spurned at for as I find the Kingdom being put into this Sword posture it was thought meet that the Tenants of the King who were not fit to do him service should be under his tuition and who would and could so carefully provide both for their training in warlike exercises or dispose them in marriage for his safety and their well-being as the Prince whose strength and securiry they were to be both in war and peace so that Lords to their Knights and they to their Esquires and all to their Soccagers so that Soccagers or Freeholders sought a Tenancy in Knights Service and they by Knights Service sought to hold of the King not in Capite only but by the greater services of Petite and grand Serjeantie being so much the more or less honorable as they were directed more or less immediatly to the person of the King And I do not finde that King William did create more Lords then there were Counties for he observed his plot of Government as I may say once for all intermingling the old and his new with such a fit contexture as the first glance or present witnesses did not easily discern it Now as he laid his Military part wisely so did he not indiscretely settle the Civil part for that he also ordered that as the Commonwealth was but all one great family and though in regard of the multitude of subjects or children it was necessary to see and hear by others eyes and ears and so to answer and determine differences yet it was of necessity that all should yield obedience to him and render him a final account and therefore he disposed not from himself the ultimate and last determination of all or any cause but that they might appeal to

yet no way punished Gods Sabboth contemned god-Mammon that mental Adultery of Idolatry is most of their sin common to them with their other brethren in the flesh by what names soever called or known And for the duty towards Neighbour there is nothing but envying and malice furfetting gluttony or drunkenness the Nurses to Adultery and Lasciviousness with pride in apparel and abundance of idleness which increasing poor increases and by them necessity and that brings Theft or Covetize or both and sure among such to swear in truth will not at all be regarded it will be thought cruelty not to tell an Officious so called lye to save thy brothers life which now makes it nothing to have lyes sworn this brings scandals upon seats of Iustice for these things known and not remedied if possible will asperse But some say some Judges make no conscience of such acts they exemplifie not only in Ship-Money but in ordinary Tryals while they deny justice by delaying and admitting the continuance of delayes in justice and sometimes go against their own knowledge in the Law as in the case of admitting such to read as they know cannot and more evidently such as are not capable by Law as those branded before not once but seven times whereby the Rogue is as preserved so encouraged and this because due notice is not taken of persons branded in the Calender nor Records penally presented in Court to which though ignorant persons answer they will not come there again but act their Villainies in another County wise men will not who know the Law admits no going out for it will prove wandring in such of necessity but with Certificate but the true reason though it cannot wholly excuse is the best namely they think the Law too hard and would rather have constant work-houses but there is two evils in this so just so righteous a proposal to change this Law for if either work-houses or due course of certificates were setled the Commonweale would be quickly rid of such vermin But then the first evil appears namely Clerks Fees would cease The next evil is the matter of charge in building repairing and maintaining the houses and Officers c. for a work-house in this age where building back and belly cat up all will hardly be maintained much less raised but to be well provided with stock and Overseers rather venture all There is complaint against our now Iudges taking Fees if so they do having yet 1000. l. per annum that Fees might be discharged But these Complainers have one word more to the Law that is they say the great Charter of Normandy they own rather to be the old Norman Laws before William the Bastard then the Law of England though he might well labour to introduce the whole plot Truth it will serve to discover the Reasons of our bondage and that 's all which while Copyholds are not discarded together with Crown Tenure we are not freed of For Fleta and Bracton they say they are the meer heads of Justinians Institutes a little corrected according to the guise of Englands Principles of liberty above the Ancient Roman or State of Greece in the height of the Empire Yet for that exploded by the Kings Iudges For Horn Britton Glanvil they are reputed more English but may be as well Scottish Sweadish or Danish especially Glanvil who if compared with R. Mai. Scot the old Tenures Customes Services Writs c. are the same word for word the other were they who drew the Traditions of our fathers into form by insensible degrees raising debased Engl. to a glimmering of Native liberty in the use of a body of law for it is plain Englands Law unwritten could not be well known by the vulgar Fortescue taking the advantage of the contest betwixt York and Lancaster declares more freedome happily then consists with reason in the letter Now all these books were altogether exploded Fleta and Horn not permitted to be printed but hung up by the licence liberty and all that was the common reading of the Lawyer was the resolutions of the Iudges in the so called Year-Books which have no date beyond Edward the Third there being then a stipend given to certain men constantly sitting in Court to report the reasons of the Iudges so that let them answer at their perill for now their reasons were permanent and brought to strict judgement Yet they still had their evasions in cases of great interest either for one Kings Title or other for Prerogative or Priviledge as particular respects engaged and providence favoured as was evident in the case of R. 2. and his Iudges which lay asleep from him till our late Charls revived it and suffered publickly for it as Richard did privately far the more manly and exemplary way of the two and rational it is for if it be lawful for man to give Law he may and ought to enforce and no way can be more consentaneous to order then that of the body Representative which is not in this case denyed either by the Regular Presbyterian or violent so called Interdependent only they deny this a Parliament as before is said These Reporters wrot till Henry the Seventh there are some fragments of Henry the eight Edward the Sixth and Q. Mary and Elizabeth taken by Students then and since which are called by the names of the Authors as Kelway Petty Brook Dyer Plowden c. with some particular assertions of others but none durst write freely Lord Cook put out several Books of Reports all which being principally matters of Title or betwixt party and party swam down stream Now in most of these were matters altered at pleasure for out of these books it is easie to argue black white and white black Reason was cut into such fine shreads of wit and form which is as vain that judgement was puzled to find something where there was so much of nothing and if any thing were it was so disjoynted a piece in 1o. Ed. 3. debated further 18o. further Process in 23o. and finished 31o. Jan. 24o. ultimo Regis Caroli Rex ultimus Brittannorum A subtile Oracle true and not true let matters pass as they will so that in such a confused study who could learn ought though helped with Fitz-Herberts yea and Brooks Abridgement for the old Books and the late Indexes the least too big for any book of Law for a Nation where each is to be supposed knowing of it and no man excused by his ignorance Now for the Crown Law of which we had no compleat Tract but Stamford the Lord Cook treating of that particular and tacitly in his both Jurisdictions of Courts and Expositions of Statutes holding forth not only the bare letter but a rational disquisition of the Texts they also were estopped and well is it say some if they have not met with a concealed Dominicane Expurgator or Jesuitical Emendator there being such hard hold on all sides for them and against them since published