The English Judiciary in the Age of Glanvill and Bracton c.1176-1239

by Ralph V. Turner

• ISBN13: 9780521072427
• ISBN10: 0521072425
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-08-14
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

This book presents a study of the evolution of a professional judiciary in medieval England through the careers of forty-nine royal justices from the last decade of Henry II until 1239. Those years were crucial for the growth of the common law, producing the two legal treatises Glanvill and Bracton. The period also represents a critical phase in the growth of a professional civil service for England. Professor Turner's study plots the shifts from unspecialized multipurpose royal servants to corps of specialists, concentrating on one sphere. By using the method known as prosopography, the author succeeds in bringing vague outlines of the early royal justices into sharper focus. Although they played a major role in the shaping of English common law, little biographical material has been available. This study, by looking at the judges collectively, succeeds in overcoming the scarcity of sources on individuals and presents a composite picture.

Table of Contents

Introduction

The statute of 1279 and its antecedents

The working of the statute

Enforcement of the statute

Manipulation of the statute

Patterns of Ecclesiastical accession

The impact of mortmain legislation on the church, Conclusion

The reputation of the Royal Justices

Glanvill and his colleagues c. 1176-89

The origins of a professional judiciary in the reign of Richard I

King John's corps of justices

Pattishall, Raleigh and their colleagues

The work of the justices

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