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163. Demand with its appurtenances was vacant, the aforesaid Henry of for the throne Lancaster rose from his place, and, standing erect, so that made by Henry of he might be well seen by the people, and protecting himself Lancaster humbly with the sign of the cross on his forehead and breast, after first calling on the name of Christ, claimed the aforesaid English realm, inasmuch as it was vacant, together with the crown and all its parts and appurtenances, in his mother tongue, in this form of words:

(1399)

"In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, Amen. I, Henry of Lancaster, claim this realm of England with the crown and all things appertaining to it, as being descended by right line of blood from the good lord King Henry, and through that right that God of his grace hath sent me with help of my kin and of my friends to recover it; the which realm was in point to be undone for default of governance and for violation of the laws." ...

After which the aforesaid archbishop, taking the said King Henry by his right hand, led him to the aforesaid royal throne. And after the said king on bended knees before the said throne had prayed for a short time, the said archbishop of Canterbury, joining to himself the said archbishop of York, took the said king and caused him to sit on the aforesaid royal throne, while the people applauded vigorously with excessive joy.

CHAPTER XI

THE USES OF LANCASTER AND YORK, 1399-1485

I.. THE GROWTH OF THE POWERS OF PARLIAMENT

The importance of parliament in the government has already been shown in the last selection of the preceding chapter. Its acquisition of its powers was rather a matter of slow growth than of definite conspicuous steps forward. Some stages in this growth, however, can be seen in the three following documents. The first is dated 1348, and shows the claim of parliament to grant taxes to the king only under certain conditions, which the king must conform to.

164. A grant of taxes by parliament on certain con

From henceforth no imposition, tallage, nor charge by loan, nor of any other sort whatsoever, shall be laid by the privy council of our lord the king without the grant and assent of parliament; and also two prelates, two lords, and two justices in this ditions present parliament shall be assigned to hear and examine all the petitions previously put forward in the last parliament by the Commons which have not yet been answered; and with them the petitions now set forth, in the presence of four or six of the Commons chosen by them for this special purpose, so that the said petitions be answered reasonably in the present parliament, and of those which have previously been answered in full, that the answers be in force without change. . . .

for three

years

It is also provided that the said conditions be entered on An annual tax the roll of parliament as a matter of record, so that there can be remedy if anything to the contrary is attempted in time to come. Thus the said poor Commons, to their very great sacrifice, grant to our lord the king three fifteenths, to be levied

165. Impeachment of Richard

Good Par

liament

for three years commencing at Michaelmas next coming; so that each of the three years one fifteenth and no more be levied, at two terms of the year, at Michaelmas and at Easter, in equal portions. The said aid shall be assigned and kept solely for the war of our lord the king and in no manner for the payment of former debts.

The following record, dated 1376, gives a fuller account of the first instance of impeachment of the king's ministers, which has already been referred to and which always afterward remained a right of parliament.

Richard Lyons, merchant of London, was impeached and accused by the said Commons of many deceptions, extortions, Lyons by the and other crimes committed by him against the king our lord, and against his people, as well during the time when he was in attendance upon the household and council of the king as also during the time when he was farmer of the subsidies and customs of the king; because he has put and procured to be put upon the wool, woolfells, and other merchandises, certain new impositions without the assent of parliament, and he has levied and collected those impositions largely for his own use and for the use of those about the king, who are of the said covenant, without the oversight or witness of any comptroller, and without his being charged by record or otherwise except at his will, but he alone is sole treasurer and receiver.

Richard's defense

Various loans were also made for the use of the king without necessary cause; and especially one loan of twenty thousand marks which was recently made in London, and this by the advice of the said Richard and other privy councilors about the king, who had agreed with the creditors to receive part of the profit and to be partners secretly in the said loan; to which loan the said Richard furnished his own money and afterwards gained by way of usury from the king his lord, of whose council he had formerly been a member, a great quantity of money to the great damage and deception of the king.

To which the said Richard, being present in parliament, replied, that as to the loan made to the king of the twenty

thousand marks aforesaid, he was entirely free from blame. And further he said that he had gained thereof neither profit nor gain, nor did he furnish anything to the loan aforesaid, in money nor in anything else; and this he was ready to prove by all the reasonable means that might be demanded. And as to the said imposition of ten shillings and twelvepence on the sack of wool, etc., and of fourpence on the pound of coin, he could not clearly excuse himself of having also levied and collected them and of taking thereof a portion, that is to say, twelvepence from each sack of wool, etc. But this he did, he said, at the express command of our lord the king, and at the prayer and with the consent of the merchants who asked for such licenses. And as to the residue of those impositions, he had caused them to be delivered entirely to the receiver of the chamber of the king and had accounted therefor fully in the said chamber. And the said Richard was told that for it he ought to produce the warrant by which he had done the said things. But no warrant nor authorization was produced in parliament under the seal of the king nor otherwise, save only that he said that he had commandment therefor from the king himself and from his council to do it. And upon this, testimony was given openly in parliament, that our lord the king had said expressly the day before to certain lords here present in parliament that he did not know how or in what manner he had conferred such an office upon him; and furthermore, he did not recognize him as his officer. And as to the other articles the said Richard made no answer; but he said that if he had committed offense or done wrong in any wise, he placed himself at the mercy of the king our lord.

Thereupon the said Richard was ordered to prison during Punishment the king's pleasure; and to be put to fine and ransom, according to the amount and heinousness of his offense, and that he lose his liberty of the city of London, and that he never hold office of the king nor enter the council or the palace of the king.

The following extract from the records of parliament gives testimony to the resentment of the House of Commons against the recent arrest of one of their

166. Repeal of condemnation of Thomas

members for introducing a bill obnoxious to the king; and also to their success in forcing the new king to reverse the judgment against Haxey and to acknowledge their privileges for the future.

Item, as at the parliament held at Westminster on the day of St. Vincent, in the twentieth year of King Richard, for the honor and profit of the said king and all the realm, Thomas Haxey (1399) Haxey, clerk, presented a bill to the Commons of the said parliament; for which bill, by the wish of the said king, the said Thomas was adjudged a traitor, and forfeited all that he had, contrary to the right and custom which had been used before in parliament, in destruction of the customs of the Commons: may it please our very gracious lord the king in this present parliament to amend that judgment and make it void, as erroneous; and to reinstate the said Thomas fully in his rank, estate, goods and chattels, ferms, annuities, pensions, lands, tenements, rents, offices, advowsons, and possessions whatsoever with their appurtenances, and that he be able to enter upon the aforesaid ferms, annuities, lands, tenements, rents, offices, advowsons, and possessions, or any of them, grants to any person made in any way since the said judgment notwithstanding; as well in fulfillment of the right as for the saving of the liberties of the said Commons.

Acknowledgment of the

right of free

Commons

The king wills, by the advice and consent of all the lords, spiritual and temporal, that the judgment rendered against speech by the Thomas Haxey, clerk, in the parliament held at Westminster in the twentieth year of the late King Richard, be wholly annulled, reversed, repealed and made void, and held of no force or effect; and that the said Thomas be reinstated in his name and reputation, and made and held an able person, such as he was before the said judgment was rendered, as in the record made thereof and enrolled before in this roll of parliament appears more at length.

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