Selected quad for the lemma: power_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
power_n	king_n	law_n	limit_v	3,744	5	10.3160	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A88186	For every individuall member of the honourable House of Commons	Lilburne, John, 1614?-1657.	1647 (1647)	Wing L2109; Thomason E414_9; ESTC R204503	7,264	4

For every Individuall Member of the Honourable House of Commons ●…R THe law of England having alwayes been esteemed by me the visible state security of my life liberty and propriety for the preservation of which I have in the field with my sword in my hand often run the h●zzard of death and being oppressed contrary thereunto by the present House of Lords in Iune 1646. I coould doe no lesse for my own preservation and the preser●ation of the liberties and freedomes of my native country then to fly by way of Appeale to the au●hority and jurisdiction of your House my legall Peers and Equalls who by the Commons of Eng●and are chosen and bet●usted to be the great and grand Patrons and Guardians of their liberties and ●reedomes and ought not to suffer them to be trodden underfoot by all the Lords in England And my ●ormall Appeale from the prison of Newgate I made unto your house the 16. of Iune 1646. now ●rinted in the 9. 10 11. pages of The Free mans freedome vindicated which was accepted and appro●ed of by your House and also read and debated and committed to a select and chosen Committee ●here Mr. Henry Martin had the Chaste before whom I made my plea and since printed it and cal●●● An Anatamy of the Lords tyranny who was on●y authorised in matter of fact to examine all the Lords proceedings with me ther being then as appealed to me no scruple either in the house or any of ●hat Committee about the Lords jurisdiction over a Commoner and having most illegally in a tyrannicall and chargeable imprisonment staid above ●6 moneths for that report there being as to mee ●ppeares some more scruples in your house now about the Lords jurisdiction then was when I first ●ppealed to you your house resolved upon 15. October 1647. anew to commit the whole ●atter of my ●eport then lately made by Mr. Martin to a new Committee who are to consider of presidents in ●his and the like cases and to state their opinions to the house what they thinke fit to be done thereupon and the speciall care of it is referred to Mr. Maynard before whom and the Committee I appea●ed the 20. October 1647. and had liberty to make my grand Plea in point of law against the Lords ●urisdiction and their unjust and illegall dealings with me which grand plea with my addition●●●lea herewith present unto you intreating you as one of my Iudges seriously to read and consider I● And on the 1. November 1647 upon a motion in your house for an addition to my Committee that so my long and unsupportable attendance may come to some issue all the Members of your House that will come to my Committee are added to it and by the power of that Committee I am summoned before them the 8. present to state my questions upon which their results or judgements are 〈◊〉 ●low or be grounded and being before them apprehended some conceptions in them that the matter was very difficult and weighty although I conceive in my aforesaid pleas I have made it as ●●●in as the Sun that shines at noone day that the Lords have dealt most illegally and unjustly with me and dare venter my life and being upon what I have before both Committees said against at the Lawyer in England in point of law but in regard I apprehend for all I have said that there is some ●cruples in some Members of that Committee and may be much more in divers in the house when it is reported in that slender manner that it is like there being not any results upon the 〈◊〉 question 〈◊〉 the Committee I therfore crave leave in writing to state my questions I presented to the Committee with some additions to them and in the first place I lay down this position which at my utmost ●●●ll● according to the rules of law and iustice I will make good viz. That the book called my plea to Iudge Reeves for wrighting of which I was summoned to the Lords bar it an honest and iust booke free from scandals and falshoods and hath nothing but 〈◊〉 in it and therefore neither punishable by the House of Lords nor any Court of justice in England but admit it were full of notorious scandalls in the highest nature the maine question will 〈…〉 1. Whether the house of Lords by the Law of England have any originall iurisdiction in 〈◊〉 o●●●●●ly to summon me a free commoner of England up to their barre to answer a charge for 〈◊〉 the foresaid booke or any other booke though never so scandalous in it self which I positively deny and s●●ven strong reasons or arguments J made before and gave unto the foresaid Committee which you may please to read in my Grand Plea pag. 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 〈◊〉 of which briefly are 〈◊〉 also my plea Mr. Martin pa. 9. 10. First that the Lords sit not in their House by any power or authority d●●●● from the peoples free election and choice but are meerly and altogether the ●●●●tures of the King made by his prerogative sometimes of the basest and corr●p●●●● of the people being the meere issues of his will who himselfe is limited and bounded by the law 〈◊〉 who by his writ that summons them to sit in Parliament only impowers them to confer and treat 〈◊〉 him or afford their Councell of certaine hard urgent affaires concerning himselfe the State 〈◊〉 defence of the Kingdome of England and the Church thereof but my pretended offence touch●● none of these things And besides the Lords had no conference nor treaty with the King their prerogative foutaine Ergo but read my Grand plea pag. 6 and 7. Secondly I was the 10. of Iune 1646. summoned up to the Lords bar to answer such things a●● stood charged with before their Lorships concerning a pamphlet intituled as before which did not in the least belong unto the jurisdiction of their Court but at the most is meerly an action tryable at the Common law and no where else see Cookes 5. part report pag. 125. De libellis fam●sis and 13. Hen. 7. Relway and 11 Eliz. Dier 285. and 30. Assise pla 19. and 3. E. 1. chap. 33. and 37. E. 3.18 and 38. E. 3.9 and 42. E. 3.3 and 2. R. 2.5 and 12. R. 2.11 and 1 part of your own book 〈◊〉 Decl. pag. 208. read my Plea pag. 7 and 8. And being so they ought not to have medled with it it being a known maxime in law that when an ordinary remedie may be had an extraordinary is not to be made use of Thirdly no man is to be imprisoned nor iudged but by the known established and declared law●● of the land see the Petition of Right But there is no established law of the land for the iudgment of the Lords in any thing where the King their creature is not concurrent 14. E. 3. c. 5. Which statute plainly shewes that in delayes of iustice or error in iudgement in inferior Courts

which is all the causes they have iurisdiction of by law which binds them as well as any other Court 4. H. 4.23 there ought to be a Petition to the King and a Commission from him to them to give them cognizance or power of it but none of this was in my case Ergo but read my Plea pag. 8. and 9 Fourthly By Magna Charta and 3. E. 1.16 and the Petition of Right no man is to be iudged 〈◊〉 by his Peers or Equalls that is men of his own condition and by due processe by indictment presentment or originall writ by a iurie of his Equall of good and lawfull people of the same neighbourhood according to the old law of the land But the Lords are none of my Peers See Clarkes case 5. part Cookes reports and his 2. part institutes sol 28.29.48.50 and Sir Simon de Berisfords case 4. E. 3. R●t 2. Neither had I in any one particular any legall proceeding being summoned before any charge was filed against me Ergo but read my plea pag. 9 and 10. Fiftly By the lawes of this land no man is to be Iudge in his own case ● H. 6. sol 1● and 5. E●●● Dier 220. and Dr. Bonhams case 8. part Cookes reports But the Lords were with me complainants prosecutors witnesses fury and Iudges Ergo but read my plea pag. 10. 11. and 1. part book D●● pag. 38. 39. 201 278. Sixtly if the Lords iudgement originally were binding against me then a few Lords would bl●● not only me but all the Commons of England who one by one may be served by them as I am and that without any hope of redresse they being Iudges still in the appeal● which both law and rea●●● abhors 1. part book Decl. pag. 41. 150. 207. 496. 637. 690. 726. 728 and to by this meanes the weale and safety of the people called by you the supreame law 2. part book Decl. pag. 879. is totally destroyed and we the Commons of England made the perfectest slaves in the world by having o● fundamentall lawes destroyed and made Cyphers and the power of our representatives destroyed and made Ciphers which ●s an act of higher treason then ever was committed by Str●fford and 〈◊〉 thousand times more iustly deserves his doome then his crime of but endevouring to subvert 〈◊〉 fundamentall lawes did but read my grand plea pag. 11 and 12. Seventhly The Lords being the meere creatures of the King made by his will and pleasure and 〈◊〉 there as prerogative persons only and yet in law and by their own principles as Lords with●●● the King they have to prerogative and yet have with a witnesse a●ted upon me c. without the King or his particular Commission which makes all they have done unto me to be null and void 〈◊〉 in law and reason and renders them in my apprehension for this their habit●●llnesse in the w●●●● and highest of tyranny to have forfeited their power and honour and 〈◊〉 ought any 〈◊〉 by 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 trustees of the people and who should be the carefull● and watchfull Guardians of their lawes ●nd liberties to be owned or acknowledged to be a house of Peers but a company of Apostates falno ●●om their first institution and absolutely degen●●ated into a pack of tyrants and therefore in equity ●eason and iustice ought as well as the Star-Chamber to be pluckt up by the roots and transcendently ●●ned besides The second question that at the Committee I truly stated was this whether it be warrantable or ●ustifiable by law in the House of Lords to summon me a free and legall Commoner of England up to ●heir b●r to answer a charge before any be in being or filed against me which also I positively deny ●nd have proved to be most illegall in my plea last yeare before Mr. pag. 8 9 see also the 4th reason ●efore My third question at the Commitee I stated to this effect whether by the law of England it be justifi●ble for the Lords to summon me up to their bar to answer a charge and then when I come there refuse to shew it me though desired by me but examine me upon interrogatories against my selfe which I also confidently deny and for proofes se● your own Votes made for me in your house the 21. of May 1641. against the Star-Chamber and the Lords own decree made in that very cause 13. Feb. ●645 printed in the last page of my relation of my proceedings at their bar My fourth question that now I truly state is this whether it be warrantable by law in the Lords to summon me to answer a charge at their bar before they have any crimes against me and Ex officio to examine me and thereby either force it to stand mute which they would consture a contempt or to plead for my selfe and from my plea to p●ck quarrells against me and so ●otally wave the thing they originally summoned me for and commit me for a pretended crime committed Ex postsacto to remaine in prison during their pleasure which is ad infi●itum even till dooms day in the afternoon for they will never be just till then and so I shall never be released by ●hem see their warrant of commitment of the 11. Iune 1646. and my printed plea to Mr. Martin pag 5. and 7. My fift question I state is this whether it be warrantable by the law of England for the Lords to summon me up to their bar where by their ille●all dealings with me I am necessitated to declare against their assuming a jurisdiction over me and before them under my hand and seale appeale to my legall judges the House of Commons and yet notwithstanding they got on to judge me before my appeale which was a supersedeas be determined see my reasons in the 9. p. of my plea to Mr. Martin My sixt question I state thus whether it be warrantable by law for the Lords to summon me up to their bar after my appeale to the House of Commons and when I am by force brought say nothing to me but command me to kneele at their bar and for refusing so to doe commit me during their pleasure close prisoner to Newgate without pen inke or paper or the accesse of any whatsoever in any kind but only my keeper and then to set Sergeant Finch Mr. Hayle Mr. Hear●ne and Mr. Glover to draw up a charge against me for pretended crimes committed after my first summons and without ever giving me notice or suffering me to speake either with my wife friends or councell to bring me up the third time after three weekes cl●se and barbarous tyrannicall restraint to answer a charge● see their warrant of close imprisonment of the 23. of Iune 1646. and the 5. 9. pag of my plea to Mr. Martin My seaventh question I state thus whether any Court in England that meddles with that which by law they have no jurisdiction of can either fine or imprison the party summoned before them in such a