The Formation of the English Common Law: Law and Society in England from the Norman Conquest to Magna Carta (The Medieval World Series)

During the Anglo-Norman period a concept of law developed, binding ruler and ruled alike and which was based on custom common throughout the country. This was Common Law and it was from this that subsequent law developed. John Hudson's text is an introductory survey of Common Law for students and other non-specialist readers. Certain aspects of medieval law such as its feuds, its ordeals and its outlaws are well known, this text shows how these aspects fitted in to the system as a whole, considers its Anglo-Saxon origins, the influence of the Norman invaders and later administrative reforms. The events and legal processes also throw light on the society, politics and thought of the times. Cover 1 Half Title 2 Title 4 Copyright 5 Contents 6 Editor's Preface 10 Author's Preface 12 Abbreviations 14 CHAPTER 1 Introduction 18 The concept of law 19 The functions of law 24 Disputing and negotiating 25 English common law 33 The formation of the English common law 36 CHAPTER 2 The Court Framework in Anglo-Norman England 41 The king's court 44 Local and itinerant justices 48 Shire courts 51 Hundred courts 54 Seignorial courts 57 Urban courts 64 Ecclesiastical courts 65 Conclusions 67 CHAPTER 3 Violence and Theft in Anglo-Norman England 69 Bricstan's case 70 Offences, offenders, and motives 74 Prevention and police 78 Trial 86 Punishment and compensation 94 Conclusions 100 CHAPTER 4 Law and Land-holding in Anglo-Norman England 103 Land, lordship, and law 104 The forms of land-holding 106 The customary framework: control of land held in fee 111 Disputes 122 Anglo-Norman land law and common law property 133 Conclusions 133 CHAPTER 5 Angevin Reform 135 Kingship, Stephen's reign, and Angevin reform 135 The eyre 140 Chronology 143 The stages and nature of reform 156 Henry II and reform 161 The administrator's mentality 163 Conclusions 172 CHAPTER 6 Crime and the Angevin Reforms 174 Ailward's case 176 Classification 177 The continuation of traditional methods 183 Presentment and the extension of royal authority 192 The limits of royal authority 197 Conclusions 201 CHAPTER 7 Law and Land-holding in Angevin England 203 Abbot Samson of Bury St Edmunds 204 New procedures 209 The impact of change 222 Conclusions 235 CHAPTER 8 Magna Carta and the Formation of the English Common Law 237 King John and the administration of justice 238 Magna Carta 241 Law and legal expertise 244 The common law 247 Concluding comparisons 254 Glossary 257 Note on sources 266 Further reading 270 Index 278 John Hudson's authoritative but accessible introduction to the formation of the English common law, expressly designed for students and general readers as well as scholars, is assured of a wide welcome. It spans the century and a half from the Norman Conquest to Magna Carta; and, within a strong interpretative framework, it integrates the legal developments with the wider changes in the thought, society and politics of the time. Some manifestations of medieval law will already be known to most readers; it feuds and ordeals, its outlaws, its hangings and mutilations. John Hudson shows us how these familiar aspects fit into the system of medieval English law as a whole, and how that system relates to what we today call "common law" - the body of custom common throughout England which first moulded, and then defined, people's concept of legal norms, and from which subsequent law developed and against which it has been judged. Dr Hudson explores the role and functioning of law in society; how people used it for their own purposes, and how it was in turn used to control them. Law was a means of settling disputes, of facilitating actions, and of regulating behaviour. Throughout he is able to illustrate and animate these themes by detailed discussion of particular cases, some dramatic, some gruesome. The result is not only to maintain the human interest of a subject which can too easily become aridly technical; it also throws a vivid light on the lives and concerns of the men and women of Anglo-Norman England. This student introduction to the growth of English Common Law, from the Norman Conquest through to the Magna Carta, integrates legal development with change in thought, society and politics, in an interpretative framework.