Selected quad for the lemma: england_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
england_n	henry_n	king_n	stephen_n	5,689	5	11.2407	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A41303	The free-holders grand inquest touching our Sovereign Lord the King and his Parliament to which are added observations upon forms of government : together with directions for obedience to governours in dangerous and doubtful times / by the learned Sir Robert Filmer, Knight.	Filmer, Robert, Sir, d. 1653.	1679 (1679)	Wing F914; ESTC R36445	191,118	384

part of Henry the Third's Reign in whose dayes it is thought the Writ for Election of Knights was framed which is about two hundred years and above a third part of the time since the Conquest to our dayes the Barons made the Parliament or Common Councel of the Kingdom under the name of Barons not only the Earls but the Bishops also were Comprehended for the Conquerour made the Bishops Barons Therefore it is no such great Wonder that in the Writ we find the Lords only to be the Counsellours and the Commons Called only to perform and consent to the Ordinances Those there be who seem to believe that under the word Barons anciently the Lords of Court-Ba●…ons were Comprehended and that they were Called to Parliament as Barons But if this could be proved to have been at any time true yet those Lords of Court-Barons were not the representative Body of the Commons of England except it can be also proved that the Commons or Free-holders of the Kingdome chose such Lords of Court-Barons to ●…e present in Parliament The Lords of Manors ●…ame not at first by Election of the People as Sir Edw. Coke treating of the institution of Court-Ba●…ons resolves us in these words By the Laws and Ordinances of ancient Kings and especially of King Al●…red it appeareth that the first Kings of this Realm ●…ad all the Lands of England in Demean and les grand Manors and Royalties they reserved to themselves and of the remnant they for the Defence of the Real●… enfeoffed the Barons of the Realm with such Iurisdiction as the Court-Baron now hath Coke's Institute●… First part Fol. 58. Here by the way I cannot but note that if th●… first Kings had all the Lands of England in Demean 〈◊〉 Sir Edward Coke saith they had And if the fir●… Kings were chosen by the People as many thin●… they were then surely our Forefathers were a ver●… bountiful if not a prodigal People to give all th●… Lands of the whole Kingdom to their Kings wit●… Liberty for them to keep what they pleased and t●… give the Remainder to their Subjects clogg'd an●… cumbred with a Condition to defend the Realm●… This is but an ill sign of a limited Monarchy by original Constitution or Contract But to conclude th●… former Point Sir Edward Coke's Opinion is th●… in the ancient Laws under the name of Barons were comprised all the Nobility This Doctrine of the Barons being the Comm●… Councel doth displease many and is denied a●…tending to the Disparagement of the Commons an●… to the Discredit and Confutation of their Opinio●… who teach that the Commons are assigned Councello●… to the King by the People therefore I will call in M●… Pryn to help us with his Testimony He in his Boo●… of Treachery and Disloyalty c. proves that before th●… Conquest by the Laws of Edward the Confesso●… cap. 17. The King by his Oaths was to do Iustice 〈◊〉 the Councel of the Nobles of his Realm He also resolves that the Earls and Barons in Parliament a●… above the King and ought to bridle him when he exor●…tates from the Laws He further tells us the Peers an●… Prelates have oft translated the Crown from the right He●… 1. Electing and Crowning Edward who was illegitimate and putting by Ethelred the right Heir after Edgars decease 2. Electing and Crowning Canutus a meer Foreigner in opposition to Edmund the right Heir to King Ethelred 3. Harold and Hardiknute both elected Kings successively without title Edmund and Alfred the right Heirs being dispossessed 4. The English Nobility upon the Death of Harold enacted that none of the Danish bloud should any more reign over them 5. Edgar Etheling who had best Title was rejected and Harold elected and crowned King 6. In the second and third year of Edw. 2. the Peers and Nobles of the Land seeing themselves contemned entreated the King to manage the Affairs of the Kingdome by the Councel of his Barons He gave his Assent and sware to ratifie what the Nobles ordained and one of their Articles was that he would thenceforward order all the Affairs of the Kingdom by the Councel of his Clergy and Lords 7. William Rufus finding the greatest part of the Nobles against him sware to Lanfranke that if they would choose him for King he would abrogate their over-hard Laws 8. The Beginning saith Mr. Pryn of the Charter of Hen. 1. is observable Henry by the Grace of God of England c. Know ye That by the Mercy of God and Common Councel of the Barons of the Kingdom I am Crowned King 9. Maud the Empress the right Heir was put by the Crown by the Prelates and Barons and Stephen Earl of Mortain who had no good Title assembling the Bishops and Peers promising the amendment of the Law●… according to all their Pleasures and Liking was by th●… all proclaimed King 10. Lewis of France Crowned King by the Barons in stead of King John All these Testimonies from Mr. Pryn may satisfie that anciently the Barons were the Common Councel or Parliament of England And if Mr. Pryn could have found so much Antiquity and Proof for th●… Knights Citizens and Burgesses being of the Common Councel I make no doubt but we should have heard from him in Capital Characters but alas he meets not with so much as these Names in those elder Ages He dares not say the Barons were assigned by the People Councellors to the King for he tells us every Baron in Parliament doth represent hi●… own Person and speaketh in behalf of himself alone but in the Knights Citizens and Burgesses are represented the Commons of the whole Realm therefore every one of the Commons hath a greater voice in Parliament than the greatest Earl in England Nevertheless Maste●… Pryn will be very well content if we will admi●… and swallow these Parliaments of Barons for the representative Body of the Kingdom and to that Purpose he cites them or to no Purpose at all But to prove the Treachery and Disloyalty of Popish Parliaments Prelates and Peers to their Kings which i●… the main Point that Master Pryn by the Title of hi●… Book is to make good and to prove As to the second Point which is That untill the time of Hen. 1. the Commons were not called to Parliament besides the general Silence of Antiquity which never makes mention of the Commons Coming to Parliament untill that time our Histories say before his time only certain of the Nobility were called to Consultation about the most important affairs of the State He caused the Commons also to be assembled by Knights Citizens and Burgesses of their own Appointment much to the same Purpose writes Sir Walter Raleigh saying it is held that the Kings of England had no formal Parliaments till about the 18th year of King Hen. 1. For in his Third year for the Marriage of his Daughter the King raised a Tax upon every Hide of Land by the Advice of His Privy Councel alone And