CHAPTER XI. CHANCELLORS AND KEEPERS OF THE GREAT SEAL FROM THE DEATH CHAP. Oct. 25. JOHN DE 1292. ON the death of Burnel the Great Seal was, for a short time, in the keeping of William de Hamilton*, a man of business and of moderate abilities, who subsequently became Chancellor. But if he expected to succeed to the envied 1292. office on this occasion, he was disappointed; for soon after the LANGTON, King heard of the loss he had sustained, he named as the Chancellor. new Chancellor JOHN DE LANGTON, a person who, though Dec. 17. much inferior to his predecessor, acted a considerable part in this and the succeeding reign. He was of an ancient family His origin. in Lincolnshire, which produced Cardinal Stephen Langton, Archbishop of Canterbury, so illustriously connected with Magna Charta, and of which Bennet Langton, the friend of Dr. Johnson, was the representative in the reign of George III. He early distinguished himself by his talents and industry, and rendered himself useful to Lord Chancellor Burnel. Being introduced into the Chancery as a clerk, he rose to be Master of the Rolls, and showed qualities fitting him for the highest offices in the state. duct. He continued Chancellor for ten years to the entire satis- is confaction of his royal master, who required no ordinary zeal and activity in his ministers. for des patch of Immediately upon his appointment he published an ordi- Ordinance nance in the King's name for the more regular despatch of business, "that in all future parliaments all petitions shall business. be carefully examined, and those which concern the chancery There is an entry in the Close Roll, 20 Ed. 1., stating that the Great Seal was in the keeping of Walter de Langton, keeper of the wardrobe, under the seal of William de Hamilton; but it is certain that Hamilton sealed the writs and did the business of the Great Seal, which was probably ordered to be kept in the King's wardrobe under the superintendence of the keeper of the wardrobe. CHAP. A. D. 1293. Earl of Fifer. King of Scots. shall be put in one bundle, and those which concern the exchequer in another, and those which concern the justices in another, and those which are to be before the King and his council in another, and those which are to be answered in another."* A parliament was called at Westminster soon after, when Appeal of the new Chancellor had to begin the session with disposing of a very novel appeal, which was entered by the Earl of Fife against Baliol King of Scotland as vassal of Edward King of England; and the question arose, whether the appeal lay? This was immediately decided by Lord Chancellor Langton, with the unanimous concurrence of the Lords, in the affirmative; and the respondent was ordered to appear. Formerly in the English parliaments there had always been placed on the right hand of the throne, and on the same level with it, a chair for the King of Scotland, who came to do homage for Cumberland and his other possessions in England-as the Kings of England did homage to the Kings of France for Normandy and Guienne. Baliol now claimed the place and precedence of his royal predecessors; but the Chancellor, in the name of the House, announced the resolution of their Lordships, "that he should stand at the bar as a private person amenable to their jurisdiction, and that having been guilty by his contumacy of a breach of feudal allegiance, three of his principal castles should be seized into the King's hands till he gave satisfaction."† Parliament at Berwick. Baliol, seeing the degradation to which he had reduced himself and his country, soon after renounced his allegiance as unlawfully extorted from him, and in the vain hope of effectual assistance from France set Edward at defiance. "And now," says Daniel, "began the contests between the two nations which spilt more Christian blood, did more mischief, and continued longer, than any wars that we read of between any two people in the world. ‡ Lord Chancellor Langton had the proud satisfaction of pre Claus. 21 Ed. 1. m. 7. This shows the answer of the Aula Regia to have become familiar. 1 Parl. Hist. 41. Dan. Hist. p. 111. XI. siding at a parliament held at Berwick in 1296, after Edward CHAP. had overrun, and for the time subjugated, Scotland. There he administered the oaths of allegiance to all the Scottish nobility who were reduced to the sad necessity of swearing fealty to the haughty conqueror, and of binding themselves to come to his assistance at any time and place he might prescribe. But Wallace soon arose; Robert Bruce was to follow; and amid the general gloom the Highland seers could descry in the distant horizon shadows of the glories of Bannockburn. abroad. We must confine ourselves to events in which Lord Chancellor Langton was more immediately concerned. The following year Edward, thinking that he had conquered Scot- A. D. 1297. land, determined to carry on war against France, that he might take vengeance for the perfidy of the monarch of that country, by which he asserted he had been tricked out of Guienne. Having assembled his fleet and army at Win- King goes chelsea, then the great port of embarkation for the Continent, he hastened thither himself to meet them, accompanied by the Chancellor, who on board the ship "Edward" delivered the Great Seal into his own hand as he was setting sail for Flanders.* The King carried it abroad with him, having appointed John de Burstide, who attended him as his secretary, to keep it. But Langton still remained Chancellor, and on his way back to London, at Tonbridge Castle, another seal was delivered to him by Prince Edward, appointed guardian of the realm in the King's absence. Parliament "Confirm A parliament was soon after held while the King remained A. D. 1297. abroad, nominally under the young Prince, but actually at Westunder Langton. Here broke out a spirit of liberty which minster. could not be repressed, and the Chancellor was obliged to allow the statute to pass both Houses, called "The Confirmation of the Charters," whereby not only MAGNA CHARTA and CHARTA DE FORESTA were confirmed; but it was Charters." enacted that any judgment contrary to them should be void; that copies of them should be sent to the cathedral churches throughout the realm, and read before the people twice every Rot. Pat. 25 Ed. 1. n. 2. m. 7. Rot. Claus. m. 7. ation of the XI. CHAP. year*; that sentence of excommunication should be pronounced on all who should infringe them†; and that no aids should be taken without the consent of parliament. ‡ A. D. 1298. "Articuli super Chartas." The statute was in the form of a charter, but the Chancellor conceived that he had no power to give the royal assent by putting the seal to it, and it was sent to Flanders by messengers from both Houses, to be submitted to Edward himself. After much evasion and reluctance, he ordered De Burstide to seal it with the Great Seal which he had brought along with him. The King, baffled in his military operations against France, and alarmed by the news of an insurrection in Scotland under Wallace, found it prudent to return to his own dominions, and (according to the close Roll), on Friday, the 14th of March, 1298, he landed at Sandwich from Flanders, and the next day, about one o'clock, John de Langton, the Chancellor, came to the King's bed-chamber at Sandwich, and there, in the presence of divers noble persons, by the King's bed-side, he delivered up to the King the seal that had been used in England during his absence, and the King immediately after, with his own hand, delivered to the Chancellor the Great Seal which he had taken with him to Flanders. § 66 Edward, having obtained (it is to be feared by the advice of the Keeper of his conscience) a dispensation from the Pope from the observance of the confirmation of the Charters to which he had given his assent when out of the realm, the Parliament the following year passed the statute of “ Articuli super Chartas," which introduced the new enactment “that the commonalty should choose three persons in every county to be authorised by the King's letters patent under the Great Seal, to hear and determine such complaints as should be made of those who offended in any point against the Charters, as well the King's officers as others, and to punish them by imprisonment, ransom, or amercement according to the trespass." To this statute the King gave his royal assent 25 Ed. 1. c. 2. † C. 3. C. 4. C. 5. and 6. 2 Inst. 525. Rot. 57. a. § Rot. Pat. 26 Ed. 1. mm. 23. 12. in dorso. XI. in person from the throne, "the Chancellor and the Judges CHAP. sitting on the woolsacks," and from this time no sovereign of England has denied that the Charters are law, however in practice they may have been violated.* elected The Chancellor was now involved in a dispute in which he Chancellor was personally interested, and which caused him great trouble Bishop of and anxiety for some years. He had not had the good luck Ely. to be promoted to the episcopal bench,-when the see of Ely becoming vacant, he thought he was secure of it. But while some of the monks voted for him according to the wishes of the government, others gave their voices for their own Prior, who, they said, would have much more leisure to attend to the duties of a faithful overseer of the church of Christ. The Court was then at York, the Chancellor, as usual, attending the King. He posted off to Lambeth to consult the Archbishop of Canterbury, leaving the Seal with three persons, John de Crancombe, John de Caen, and William de Birlay, to be kept by them in their joint custody on the King's behalf until he should return. † The Archbishop Goes to advised him to proceed in person to Rome, the Prior of Ely Rome. having already appealed to the Pope. Langton, without resigning his office of Chancellor, had leave of absence to prosecute his suit, and on the 14th of February, 1299, delivered up the Great Seal, to be held during his stay abroad, by John de Burstide as Keeper. He landed at Dover on his return, on the 11th of June following, and on the 16th of the same month the Seal was re-delivered to him by the King. ‡ He had not succeeded at the Vatican, notwithstanding all the influence exerted in his favour. The Holy Father, taking this opportunity to show the plenitude of his power, entirely set aside the election of the monks, consecrated the Bishop of Norwich to the see of Ely, bestowed Norwich on the Prior of Ely, and, by way of consolation to the English Chancellor, made him Archdeacon of Canterbury. On the 12th day of August 1302, Langton resigned his Resignaoffice of Chancellor for some reason not explained to us. This 1 Parl. Hist. 43. † Rot. Pat. 26 Ed. 1. m. 27., and Rot. Claus. 26 Ed. 1. m. 10. tion of Langton. |