Publisher's Synopsis
Excerpt from The Growth of Political Liberty: A Source Book of English History
In the anglo-saxon Chronicle we have the word of the man who was put upon and oppressed by the Norman advener; and in it we realise how the Saxon stem, and the N onnan graft, alike went to strengthen the English feudal system. The century's struggle between the kings and the old nobility followed, ending with the last stand of the Norman barons against Henry II. The career of Thomas a Becket, who had the instinct of a fighting baron rather than of a saint, and who stood up armed for spiritual liberty, makes the decisive comment on this time. It is interesting to compare him with John Ball. One of Becket's last words was: God's house shall be denied to no man; while Ball said: Now the time is come, appointed by God, in which ye may (if ye will) cast Off the yoke. We see that in different ways they were moved by the same militant idea.
Pass now to a very solid staple landmark in the English scene - London, whose first Commune, as it was called Communa Regis - was, curiously enough, set up by law, while the king, Richard I., was on crusade and out of London and the kingdom. Stubbs leads us to View this incorporation of London as marking two significant changes: (i) the Victory of the communal principle over the old shire organisation, and (2) the triumph of the London merchant over the noble. That was in the years 1191 - 1200; and already the law had let in the common man as a judicial asset in the jury ordered in criminal cases by the Assize of Clarendon.
The Great Charter follows, with its remedy of feudal abuses, and its special provisions for the safeguarding of the tenant, the heir at law, the king's labourer and the common man. No man, it said, is to be put in prison.
About the Publisher
Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com
This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
