CHAPTER IV.

THE FIRST CHARTER OF THE EMPRESS.

Though the election of the Empress, says William of Malmesbury, took place immediately after Easter, it was nearly midsummer before the Londoners would receive her.[248] Hence her otherwise strange delay in proceeding to the scene of her coronation. An incidental allusion leads us to believe that this _interregnum_ was marked by tumult and bloodshed in London. We learn that Aubrey de Vere was killed on the 9th of May, in the course of a riot in the city.[249] This event has been assigned by every writer that I have consulted to the May of the previous year (1140), and this is the date assigned in the editor's marginal note.[250] The context, however, clearly shows that it belongs to 1141. Aubrey was a man of some consequence. He had been actively employed by Henry I. in the capacity of justice and of sheriff, and was also a royal chamberlain. His death, therefore, was a notable event, and one is tempted to associate with it the fact that he was father-in-law to Geoffrey. It is not impossible that, on that occasion, they may have been acting in concert, and resisting a popular movement of the citizens, whether directed against the Empress or against Geoffrey himself.

The comparison of the Empress's advance on London with that of her grandfather, in similar circumstances, is of course obvious. The details, however, of the latter are obscure, and Mr. Parker, we must remember, has gravely impugned the account of it given in the _Norman Conquest_.[251]

Of the ten weeks which appear to have elapsed between the election of the Empress and her reception in London, we know little or nothing. Early in May she came to Reading,[252] the Continuator's statement to that effect being confirmed by a charter which, to all appearance, passed on this occasion.[253] It is attested by her three constant companions, the Earl of Gloucester, Brian fitz Count, and Miles of Gloucester (acting as her constable), together with John (fitz Gilbert) the marshal, and her brothers Reginald (now an earl)[254] and Robert (fitz Edith).[255] But a special significance is to be found in the names of the five attesting bishops (Winchester, Lincoln, Ely, St. David's, and Hereford). They are, it will be found, the same five who attest the charter to Geoffrey de Mandeville (midsummer), and they are also the five who (with the Bishop of Bath) had attended, in March, the Empress at Winchester. This creates a strong presumption that, in despite of chroniclers' vague assertions, the number of bishops who joined the Empress was, even if not limited to these, at least extremely small.[256]

This is one of the two charters in which the Empress employs the style "Regina." It is probable that the other also should be assigned to this period.[257] These two exceptional cases would thus belong to the interim period during which she was queen elect, though technically only "domina." Here again the fact that, during this period, she adopted, alternatively, both styles ("regina" and "domina"), as well as that which Mr. Birch assigns to his first period, proves how impossible it is to classify these styles by date.

If we reject the statement that from Reading she returned to Oxford,[258] the only other stage in her progress that is named is that of her reception at St. Albans.[259] In this case also the evidence of a charter confirms that of the chronicler.[260] At St. Albans she received a deputation from London, and the terms on which the city agreed to receive her must have been here finally arranged.[261] She then proceeded in state to Westminster,[262] no doubt by the Edgware Road, the old Roman highway, and was probably met by the citizens and their rulers, according to the custom, at Knightsbridge.[263]

Meanwhile, she had been joined in her progress by her uncle, the King of Scots, who had left his realm about the middle of May for the purpose of attending her coronation.[264]

The Empress, according to William of Malmesbury, reached London only a few days before the 24th of June.[265] This is the sole authority we have for the date of her visit, except the statement by Trivet that she arrived on the 21st (or 26th) of April.[266] This latter date we may certainly reject. If we combine the statement that her flight took place on Midsummer Day[267] with that of the Continuator that her visit lasted for "some days,"[268] they harmonize fairly enough with that of William of Malmesbury. If it was, indeed, after a few days that her visit was so rudely cut short, we are able to understand why she left without the intended coronation taking place.

From another and quite independent authority, we obtain the same day (June 24th) as the date of her flight from London, together with a welcome and important glimpse of her doings. The would-be Bishop of Durham, William Cumin, had come south with the King of Scots (whose chancellor he was), accompanied by certain barons of the bishopric and a deputation from the cathedral chapter. Nominally, this deputation was to claim from the Empress and the legate a confirmation of the chapter's canonical right of free election; but, in fact, it was composed of William's adherents, who purposed to secure from the Empress and the legate letters to the chapter in his favour. The legate not having arrived at court when they reached the Empress, she deferred her reply till he should join her. In the result, however, the two differed; for, while the legate, warned from Durham, refused to support William, the Empress, doubtless influenced by her uncle, had actually agreed, as sovereign, to give him the ring and staff, and would undoubtedly have done so, but for the Londoners' revolt.[269] It must be remembered that, for her own sake, the Empress would welcome every opportunity of exercising sovereign rights, as in her prompt bestowal of the see of London upon Robert. And though she lost her chance of actually investing William, she had granted, before her flight, letters commending him for election.[270]

Thus we obtain the date of the charter which is the subject of this chapter. In this case alone was Mr. Eyton right in the dates he assigned to these documents. Nor, indeed, is it possible to be mistaken. For this charter can only have passed on the occasion of this, the only visit that the Empress paid to Westminster. Yet, even here, Mr. Eyton's date is not absolutely correct. For he holds that it "passed in the short period during which Maud was in London, _i.e._ between June 24 and July 25, 1141";[271] whereas "June 24" is the probable date of her departure, and not of her arrival, which was certainly previous to that day.

There is but one other document (besides a comparatively insignificant precept[272]) which can be positively assigned to this visit.[273] This consideration alone would invest our charter with interest, but when we add to this its great length, its list of witnesses, and its intrinsic importance, it may be claimed as one of the most instructive documents of this obscure and eventful period.

Of the original, now among the Cottonian Charters (xvi. 27), Mr. Birch, who is exceptionally qualified to pronounce upon these subjects, has given us as complete a transcript as it is now possible to obtain.[274] To this he has appended the following remarks:—

"This most important charter, one of the earliest, if not the earliest example of the text of a deed creating a peerage, does not appear to have been ever published. I cannot find the text in any printed book or MS. Fortunately Sir William Dugdale inspected this charter before it had been injured in the disastrous Cottonian fire, which destroyed so many invaluable evidences of British history. In his account of the Mandevilles, Earls of Essex (_Baronage_, vol. i. p. 202) he says that 'this is the most antient creation-charter, which hath ever been known, _vide_ Selden's _Titles of Honour_, p. 647,' and he gives an English rendering of the greater portion of the Latin text, which has enabled me to conjecture several emendations and restorations in the above transcript."

Mr. Birch having thus, like preceding antiquaries, borne witness to the interest attaching to "this most important charter," it is with special satisfaction that I find myself enabled to print a transcript of the entire document, supplying, there is every reason to believe, a complete and accurate text. Nor will it only enable us to restore the portions of the charter now wanting,[275] for it further convicts the great Dugdale of no less serious an error than the omission of two most important witnesses and the garbling of the name of a third.[276]

The accuracy of my authorities can be tested by collation with those portions of the original that are still perfect. This test is quite satisfactory, as is also that of comparing one of the passages they supply with Camden's transcript of that same passage, taken from the original charter. Camden's extract, of the existence of which Mr. Birch was evidently not aware, was printed by him in his _Ordines Anglicani_,[277] from which it is quoted by Selden in his well-known _Titles of Honour_.[278] It is further quoted, as from Camden and Selden, at the head of the Patents of Creation appended to the _Lords' Reports on the Dignity of a Peer_,[279] as also in the Third Report itself (where the marginal reference, however, is wrong).[280] It is specially interesting from Camden's comment: "This is the most ancient creation-charter that I ever saw" (which is clearly the origin of the statement as to its unique antiquity), and from the fact of that great antiquary speaking of it as "now in my hands."

The two transcripts I have employed for the text (D. and A.) are copies respectively found in the Dugdale MSS. (L. fol. 81) and the Ashmole MSS. (841, fol. 3). I have reason to believe that this charter was among those duly recorded in the missing volume of the Great Coucher.

CHARTER OF THE EMPRESS TO GEOFFREY DE MANDEVILLE (Midsummer, 1141).

M. Imperatrix regis Henrici filia Archiepiscopis Episcopis ►"Archiepiscopis, etc." (D.).◄ Abbatibus (Comitibus Baronibus Justiciariis Vicecomitibus et ministris et omnibus baronibus et fidelibus) suis Francis et Anglis totius Angliæ et Normanniæ salutem. (Sciatis►"Sciant" (D.).◄ omnes tam præsentes quam futuri quod Ego Matildis regis Henrici filia et Anglor[um]►"or'" (D.); "oru'" (A.).◄ domina) do et concedo Gaufrido►"Galfrido" (A.).◄ de Magnavillâ (pro servitio suo et heredibus suis post eum hereditabiliter ut sit comes de Essex[iâ]►"Essexa" (D.); "Essex'" (A.).◄ et habeat tertium denarium Vicecomitatus de placitis sicut comes habere debet in comitatu suo►"comitat' su'" (A.); "comitatu[m] suu[m]" (D.).◄[281] in omnibus rebus, et præter hoc reddo illi in feodo et hereditate de me et heredibus meis totam terram quam) tenuit[282] (Gaufridus de Magnavilla avus suus et Serlo de Matom in Angliâ et Normanniâ ita libere et[282]) bene et quiete sicut aliquis antecessorum suorum illam unquam melius (et liberius tenuit, vel ipsemet) postea (aliquo in tempore, sibi dico) et heredibus suis (post eum), et concedo illi et heredibus suis Custodiam turris Londonie►"London" (A.); "Londoniæ" (D.).◄ (cum parvo Castello quod) fuit Ravengeri in feodo et hereditate de me (et heredibus) meis cum terris et liberationibus et omnibus Consuetudinibus quæ ad (eandem terram►"terram" (D., A.).◄[283]) pertinerent►"pertinat" (A.); "pertinent" (D.).◄, et ut inforciet illa secundum voluntatem suam. (Et similiter[284]) do ei et concedo et heredibus suis C libratas terræ de me et de (heredibus) meis in dominio, videlicet Niweport►"Newport" (A.).◄[285] pro tanto quantum reddere solebat die qua rex H[enricus]►"Henricus rex" (A.).◄ pater meus fuit vivus et mortuus, et ad rem(ovend') mercatum de Niweport►"Newport" (A.).◄ in Castellum suum de Waldena cum omnibus Consuetudinibus que prius mercato illi melius pertinuerunt in (Thelon[eo] et passag[io]►"passagio" (A.).◄[286]) et aliis consuetudinibus, (et) ut vie de Niweport►"Newport" (A.).◄ quæ sunt juxta littus aquæ[287] dirigantur ex consuetudine ad Waledenam (sup[er] foris) facturam meam et Mercatum de Waldenâ sit ad diem dominicam►"dictam" (A.).◄ et ad diem Jovis et ut feria[288] habeatur apud Waledenam et incipiat in (Vigiliâ Pentecost►"Vigilia Pentecost" (A.); "vigil' pentecostes" (D.).◄[289]) et duret per totam hebdomadam pentecostes Et Meldonam[290] ad perficiendum predictas C libratas terræ pro tanto quantum►"quanto" (A.); "quantum" (D.).◄ inde reddi solebat die quâ (Rex Henricus fuit) vivus et mortuus cum omnibus Appendiciis et rebus que adjacebant in terrâ et mari ad Burgum illud predicto die mortis Regis Henrici, et (Deopedenam[291]) similiter pro tanto quantum inde reddi solebat die quâ rex Henricus fuit vivus et mortuus cum omnibus Appendiciis suis et Boscum de chatelegâ[292] cum (hominibus pro)[293] xx solidis, et terram de Banhunta[294] pro xl solidis, et si►"et si" in D.; "et" omitted in A.◄ quid defuerit ad C libratas perficiendas►"perfici end'" (D.).◄ perficiam ei in loco competenti in Essexa (aut in Hert)fordescirâ►"Heortfordescira" (D.); "Hertfordscira" (A.).◄ aut in Cantebriggscirâ tali tenore quod si (reddi)dero Comiti Theobaldo totam terram quam (tenebat)[295] in An(gliâ dabo Gaufrido►"Gaufrido" (D.); "Galfrido" (A.).◄ Comiti Essex[ie] escambium suum ad valentiam►"valens" (D.); "valentiam" (A.).◄ in his prædictis tribus►"his tribus" (A.).◄ Comitatibus antequam de) predictis terris dissais(iatur; si etiam►"et etiam" (A.).◄ reddidero totum honorem et totam terram) heredibus Willelmi peur[elli] de Lond[oniâ][296] dabo similiter ei escambium ad valens antequam dissaisiatur de illâ quæ fuit peurelli et illud (escambium erit) de terrâ que remanebit illi hereditabiliter Et preter hoc do et concedo ei et heredibus suis de me et heredibus meis tenendum feodum (et servicium) xx militum et infra servicium istorum xx militum do ei feodum et servicium terre quam Hasculf[us] de tania[297] tenuit in Angliâ die quâ fuit (vivus et) mortuus, quam tenet Graeleng[us][298] et mater sua pro tanto servicii quantum de feodo illo debent et totum superplus istorum xx militum[299] ei perficiam in (prenomina)tis[300] tribus comitatibus. Et servicium istorum xx militum faciet mihi separatim preter aliud servicium alterius feodi sui. Et preterea concedo (illi ut)[300] castella sua que habet stent et ei remaneant (ad) inforcia(nd[um])►"inforciand'" (A.);"inforciandum" (D.).◄[300] ad voluntatem suam Et ut ille et omnes homines sui teneant terras (et tenaturas)►"terras et tent'" (A.).◄ suas omnes de quocunque teneant sicut tenuerunt die quâ ipse homo meus effectus est salvo servitio dominorum Et ut ipse et homines sui (sint quieti) de omnibus debitis que debuerunt regi Henrico aut regi Stephano et ut ipse et omnes homines sui per totam Angliam sint quieti de Wastis fores(tariis et) assartis que facta sunt in feodo ipsius Gaufredi►"Gaufridi" (D.); "Galfridi" (A.).◄ usque ad (diem quo) homo meus devenit Et ut a die illo in antea omnia illa ess(arta sint amodo excultibilia et arrabilia sine forisfacto et ut habeat mercatum die Jovis apud Bisseiam[301] et feriam similiter ibidem quoque anno; et incipiat►"anno incipiat" (A.).◄ vigiliâ Sancti Jacobi et duret tres dies. Et [preterea]►"preteria" (A.); "præterea" (D.).◄ do et concedo ei et heredibus suis in feodo et hereditate ad tenendum de me et heredibus meis vicecomitatum Essex[ie]►"Essex" (A.); "de Essexâ" (D.).◄ reddendo inde rectam firmam que inde reddi solebat die quâ rex Henricus pater meus fuit vivus et mortuus, ita quod auferat de summâ firmâ►"firmæ" (D.); "firma" (A.).◄ vice)comitatus quantum pertinuerit[302] (ad) Meldonam et Niweport►"Newport" (A.).◄ que ei (donavi►"donu'" (A.); "donavi" (D.).◄ et) quantum (pertinuerit[303] ad tertium) denarium de placitis Vicecomitatus unde eum feci Comitem, et ut teneat omnia excidamenta mea que mihi exciderint (in com)itatu Essexe reddendo inde firmam rectam quamdiu erunt in Dominio►"Dominica" (D.).◄ meo Et ut sit capitalis Justicia in Essexâ►"Essexiâ" (A.).◄ hereditabiliter mea►"meo" (A.).◄ (et hered[um]) meorum de placitis et forisfactis que pertinuerint ad Coronam meam, ita quod non mittam aliam Justiciam super eum in Comitatu illo nisi[304] (ita sit quod ali)quando mittam aliquem de paribus suis qui audiat cum illo quod placita mea juste tractentur Et ut ipse et omnes homines sui sint (quieti versus) me et versus heredes meos de omni forisfacto et omni malivolentiâ►"malevolentia" (A.).◄ preteritâ ante diem quo►"anno et die quo" (A.); "ante diem" (D.).◄ meus homo devenit Et ei firmiter concedo et (heredibus suis) quod bene et in pace et libere et sine placito habeat et[305] teneat hereditabiliter, sicut hæc carta confirmat, omnia tenementa sua (que ei concessi, in terris) et tenaturis►"tenaturis" (D.); "tenem'tis" (A.).◄ et in feodis et firmis et Castellis et libertatibus et in omnibus Conventionibus►"consuetudinibus" (A.).◄ inter nos factis (sicut aliquis Comes) terre[306] mee melius et quietius et liberius tenet ad modum Comitis in omnibus rebus ita quod ipse vel aliquis hominum suorum non (ponantur[307] in ullo►"ponantur ullo" (D.).◄ modo) in placitum►"placitum" (D.); "placit'" (A.).◄ de aliquo forisfacto quod fecissent antequam homo meus factus esset, nec pro aliquo forisfacto quod facturus sit in (antea ponatur in) placit[um] de feodo vel Castello vel terrâ vel tenurâ quam ei concesserim quamdiu se defendere potuerit de scelere sive (traditione►"de traditione" (A., D.).◄) ad corpus meum pertinente per se aut per unum militem si quis coram venerit qui eum appellare inde voluerit.

(T[estibus] H[enrico] Ep[iscop]o Winton[ensi]) et A[lexandro] Ep[iscop]o Lincoln[ensi] et R[oberto] Ep[iscop]o Heref[ordensi] et N[igello] Ep[iscop]o Ely[ensi] (et B[ernardo] Ep[iscop]o de S[ancto] David et W[illelmo] Cancellario et Com[ite] R[oberto] de Glocestr[iâ] et Com[ite] B[aldewino[308]]) et Com[ite] W[illelmo] de Moion et B[riano] fil[io] Com[itis] (et M[ilone] Glocestr[ie] et R[oberto] Arundell[309]] et R[oberto] Malet[310] et Rad[ulfo] Lovell[311] et Rad[ulfo] Painell[312]) et W[alkelino] Maminot[313] et Rob[erto] fil[io] R[egis][314] et Rob[erto] fil[io] Martin[315] (et Rob[ert]o fil[io] Heldebrand[i][316] Apud Westmonaster[ium]).[317]

One cannot but be greatly struck by the names of the witnesses to this charter. The legate and his four brother prelates, who had been with the Empress in Winchester, at her reception on March 3, are here with her again at Westminster. So are her three inseparable companions; but where are the magnates of England? Two west-country earls, one of them of her own making,[318] and a few west-country barons virtually complete the list. I do not say that these were, of necessity, the sole constituents of her court; but there is certainly the strongest possible presumption that had she been joined in person by any number of bishops or nobles, we should not have found so important a charter witnessed merely by the members of the _entourage_ that she had brought up with her from the west. We have, for instance, but to compare this list with that of the witnesses to Stephen's charter six months later.[319] Or, indeed, we may compare it, to some disadvantage, with that of the Empress herself a month later at Oxford.[320] Where were the primate and the Bishop of London? Where was the King of Scots? These questions are difficult to answer. It may, however, be suggested that the general disgust at her intolerable arrogance,[321] and her harshness to the king,[322] kept the magnates from attending her court.[323] Her inability to repel the queen's forces, and her instant flight before the Londoners, are alike suggestive of the fact that her followers were comparatively few.

There are several points of constitutional importance upon which this instructive charter sheds some welcome light.

In the first place we should compare it with Stephen's charter (p. 51), to which, in Mr. Eyton's words, it forms the "counter-patent."[324] In the former the words of creation are: "Sciatis me fecisse comitem de Gaufredo," etc. In the charter of the Empress they run thus: "Sciatis ... quod ... do et concedo Gaufredo de Magnavilla ... ut sit Comes," etc. This contrast is in itself conclusive as to the earldom having been first _created_ by Stephen and then _recognized_ by the Empress. This being so, it is the more strange that Mr. Eyton should have arrived at the contrary conclusion, especially as he noticed the stronger form in the charter creating the earldom of Hereford ("Sciatis me fecisse Milonem de Glocestriâ Comitem"), a form corresponding with that in Stephen's charter to Geoffrey. The earldom of Hereford being _created_ by the Empress, as that of Essex had been by Stephen, we find the same formula duly employed by both. The distinction thus established is one of considerable importance.

The special grant of the "tertius denarius" is a point of such extreme interest in its bearing on earls and earldoms that it requires to be separately discussed in a note devoted to the subject.[325]

But without dwelling at greater length upon the peerage aspect of this charter, let us see how it illustrates the ambitious policy pursued in this struggle by the feudal nobles. Dr. Stubbs writes:—

"It is possible that the frequent tergiversations which mark the struggle may have been caused by the desire of obtaining confirmation of the rank [of earl] from both the competitors for the crown."[326]

But it is my contention that Geoffrey and his fellows were playing a deeper game. We find each successive change of side on the part of this unscrupulous magnate marked by a distinct advance in his demands and in the price he obtained. Broadly speaking, he was master of the situation, and he put himself and his fortress up to auction. Thus he obtained from the impassioned rivals a rapid advance at each bid. Compare, for instance, this charter with that he had obtained from Stephen, or, again, compare it with those which are to follow.

The very length of this charter, as compared with Stephen's, is significant enough in itself. But its details are far more so. Stephen's grant had not explicitly included the _tertius denarius_; the Empress grants him the _tertius denarius_ "sicut comes habere debet in comitatu suo."[327] But what may be termed the characteristic features are to be found in such clauses as those dealing with the license to fortify, and with the grants of lands.[328] These latter, indeed, teem with information, not only for the local, but for the general historian, as in the case of Theobald's forfeiture. But their special information is rather in the light they throw on the nature of these grants, and on the sources from which the Empress, like her rival, strove to gratify the greed of these insatiable nobles.

Foremost among these were those "extravagant grants of Crown lands" spoken of by Dr. Stubbs and by Gneist.[329] Now, in this charter, and in those which follow, we are enabled to trace the actual working of this fatal policy in practice. The Empress begins, in this charter, by granting Geoffrey, for this is its effect, £100 a year in land ("C libratas terræ"). Stephen, we shall find, a few months later, regains him to his side by increasing the bid to £300 a year ("CCC libratas terræ"). But how is the amount made up? It is charged on the Crown lands in his own county of Essex. But observe, for this is an important point, that it is not charged as a lump sum on the entire _corpus comitatus_ (or, to speak more exactly, on the annual _firma_ of that _corpus_), but on certain specified estates. Here we have a welcome allusion to the practice of the early Exchequer. The charter authorizes Geoffrey, as sheriff, to deduct from the annual ferm of the county, for which he was responsible at the Exchequer (being that recorded on the _Rotulus exactorius_), that portion of it represented by the annual rents (_redditus_) of Maldon and Newport, which, as estates of Crown demesne, had till then been included in the _corpus_.[330] From the earliest Pipe-Rolls now remaining we know that the estates so alienated were usually entered by the sheriff under the head of "_Terræ Datæ_," with the amount due from each, for which amounts, of course, he claimed allowance in his account. I think we have here at least a suggestion that even at the height of the anarchy and of the struggle, the Exchequer, with all the details of its practice, was recognized as in full existence. I have never been able to reconcile myself to the accepted view, as set forth by Dr. Stubbs, of the "stoppage of the administrative machinery"[331] under Stephen. He holds that on the arrest of the bishops (June, 1139) "the whole administration of the country ceased to work," and that Stephen was "never able to restore the administrative machinery."[332] Crippled and disorganized though it doubtless was, the Exchequer, I contend, must have preserved its existence, because its existence was an absolute necessity. Without an exchequer, the income of the Crown would, obviously, have instantly disappeared. Moreover, the case of William of Ypres, and others to which reference will be made below, will go far to establish the important fact that the Exchequer system remained in force, and that accounts of some kind must have been kept.

The next point to which I would call attention is the expression "pro tanto quantum inde reddi solebat die quâ Rex Henricus fuit vivus et mortuus," which is applied to Maldon and Newport. The Pipe-Rolls, it should be remembered, only took cognizance of the total ferm of the shire. The constituents of that ferm were a matter for the sheriff. At first sight, therefore, these expressions might seem to cause some difficulty. Their explanation, however, is this. Just as I have shown in _Domesday Studies_[333] that the ferm of a town, as in the case of Huntingdon, was in truth the aggregate of several distinct and separate ferms, so the ferm of a county must have comprised the separate and distinct ferms of each of the royal estates. That ferm would be a customary, that is, fixed, _redditus_ (or, as the charter expresses it, "quantum inde reddi solebat"). A particularly striking case in point is afforded by Hatfield Regis (_alias_ Hatfield Broadoak). When Stephen increased the alienation of Crown demesne to Geoffrey, he granted him Hatfield _inter alia_ "pro quater xx libris," that is, as representing £80 a year. This same estate, after the fall of Geoffrey, was alienated anew to Richard de Luci, and in the early Pipe-Rolls of Henry II. we read, under "Terræ Datæ" in Essex, "Ricardo de Luci quater xx libræ numero in Hadfeld." That is to say, in his annual account, the sheriff claimed to be allowed £80 off the amount of his ferm, in respect of the alienated estate. Now, the Domesday valuation of this manor is fortunately very precise: "Tunc Manerium valuit xxxvi libras. Modo lx. Sed vicecomes recipit inde lxxx libras et c solidos de gersuma" (ii. 2 b). The Domesday _redditus_ of the manor, therefore, had remained absolutely unchanged. In such cases of alienation of demesne, it was, obviously, the object of the grantee that the manor should be valued as low as possible, while that of the sheriff was precisely the reverse. It was on this account doubtless, to prevent dispute, that these charters carefully named the sum at which the manor was to be valued, either in figures, as in the case of Bonhunt,[334] or, as in that of Maldon and Newport, in the formula "quantum inde reddi solebat" at the death of Henry I., this formula probably implying that the earlier ferm had been forced up in the days of the Lion of Justice.

The conclusion I would draw from the above argument is that the sheriff was not at liberty to exact arbitrary sums from the demesne lands of the Crown. A fixed annual render (_redditus_) was due to him from each, though this, like the _firma_ of the sheriff himself, was liable to revision from time to time.[335]

But it would be difficult to overestimate the importance of evidence which forms a connecting link between Domesday and the period of the Pipe-Rolls, especially if it throws some fresh light on the vexed question of Domesday values. Moreover, we have here an obvious suggestion as to the purpose of the Conqueror in ascertaining values, at least so far as concerned the demesne lands of the Crown, for he was thus enabled to check the sheriffs, by obtaining a basis for calculating the amount of the _firma comitatus_. With this point we shall have to deal when we come to Geoffrey's connection with the shrievalty of Essex and Herts.

Attention may also be called to the formula of "excambion" (as the Scottish lawyers term it) here employed, for it would seem to be earlier than any of those quoted in Madox's _Formularium_. But the suggested exchange is specially interesting in the case of Count Theobald, because it gives us an historical fact not elsewhere mentioned, namely, that the Empress, on obtaining the mastery, forfeited his lands at once. Her doing so, we should observe, is in strict accordance with the chroniclers' assertions as to her wholesale forfeitures and her special hostility to Stephen's house. And we can go further still. We can ascertain not only that Count Theobald was forfeited, as we have seen, by the Empress, but also that the land she forfeited had been given him by Stephen himself. In a document which I have previously referred to, we read that Stephen had given him the "manor" of Maldon,[336] being that manor of Crown demesne which the Empress here bestows upon Geoffrey.

Another important though difficult subject upon which this charter bears is that of knight-service. Indeed, considering its early date—a quarter of a century earlier than the returns contained in the _Liber Niger_—it may, in conjunction with Stephen's charter of some six months later, be pronounced to be among our most valuable evidences for what Dr. Stubbs describes as "a subject on which the greatest obscurity prevails."[337]

Let us first notice that the Empress grants "feodum et servicium XX militum," while Stephen grants "LX milites feudatos ... scilicet servicium" of so and so "pro [LX] militibus." Thus, then, the "milites feudatos" of Stephen equates the "feodum et servicium ... militum" of the Empress. And, further, it repeats the remarkable expression employed by Florence of Worcester when he tells us that the Conqueror instructed the Domesday Commissioners to ascertain "quot milites feudatos" his tenants-in-chief possessed, that is to say, how many knights they had enfeoffed. But the Empress in her charter complicates her grant by adding the special clause: "Et servicium istorum XX militum faciet mihi separatim preter aliud servicium alterius feodi sui." Had it not been for this clause, one might have inferred that the object of the grant was to transfer, to Earl Geoffrey the "servicium" of these twenty knights' fees due, of right, to the Crown, so that he might enjoy all such profits as the Crown would have derived from that "servicium," and, at the same time, have employed these knights as substitutes for those which he was bound to furnish, from his own fief, to the Crown. But the above clause is fatal to such a view. Again, both in the charters of the Empress and of her rival, these special grants of knights and their "servicium" are kept entirely distinct from those of Crown demesne or escheated land, which, moreover, are expressed in terms of the "librata terræ." On the whole I lean strongly to the belief that, although the working of the arrangement may be obscure, the object of Geoffrey was to add to the number of the knights who followed his standard, and thus to increase his power as a noble and the weight that he could throw into the scale. And the special clause referred to above would imply that the Crown was to have a claim on him for twenty knights more than those whom he was bound to furnish from his own fief.

Lastly, we may note the identity of the formula employed for the grant of lands and for that of knights' service. In each case the grant is made "pro tanto,"[338] and in each case the Empress undertakes to make good ("perficere") the balance to him within the limit of the three counties of Essex, Cambridgeshire, and Herts.[339]

With the subject of castles I propose to deal later on. But there is one point on which the evidence of this charter is perhaps more important than on any other, and that is in the retrospective light which it throws on the system of reform introduced by the first Henry.

Incidentally, we have here witness to that system, of which the Pipe-Roll of 1130 is the solitary but vivid exponent, and under which the very name of "plea" became a terror to all men. Every man was liable, on the slightest pretext, to be brought within the meshes of the law, with the object, as it seemed, and at least with the result, of swelling the royal hoard (cf. pp. 11, 12, _n._ 1). Even to secure one's simplest rights money had always to be paid. Thus, here, Geoffrey stipulates that he and his men are to hold their possessions "sine placito," and "ita quod ... non ponantur in ullo modo in placito de aliquo forisfacto," etc., etc. So again, in his later charter, we find him insisting that he and they shall hold all their possessions "sine placito et sine pecuniæ donatione," and that "Rectum eis teneatur de eorum calumpniis sine pecuniæ donatione." The exactions he dreaded meet us at every turn on the Pipe-Roll of 1130.

But, on the other hand, the charter, broadly speaking, illustrates, by the retrograde concessions it extorts, the cardinal factor in the long struggle between the feudal nobles and their lord the king, namely, their jealousy of that royal jurisdiction by which the Crown strove, and eventually with success, to break their semi-independent power, and to bring the whole realm into uniform subjection to the law.

After the clauses conferring on Geoffrey the _hereditary_ shrievalty of Essex, a matter which I shall discuss further on, there immediately follows this passage, the most significant, as I deem it, in the whole charter:—

"Et ut sit Capitalis Justicia in Essexiâ hereditabiliter mea et heredum meorum de placitis et forisfactis que pertinuerint ad coronam meam, ita quod non mittam aliam justiciam super eum in comitatu illo nisi ita sit quod aliquando mittam aliquem de paribus suis qui audiat cum illo quod placita mea juste tractentur."

The first point to be dealt with here is the phrase "_Capitalis_ Justicia in Essexiâ." Here we have the term "capitalis" applied to the _justicia_ of a single county. On this I would lay some stress, for it has been generally supposed that this style was reserved for the Great Justiciary, the _alter ego_ of the king himself.[340]

In his learned observations on the "obscurities" of the style "_justitia_ or _justitiarius_," Dr. Stubbs writes that "the _capitalis justitia_ seems to be the only one of the body to whom a determinate position as the king's representative is assigned in formal documents" (i. 389). It was probably the object of Geoffrey, when he secured this particular style, to obtain for himself all the powers vested in "the king's representative," and so to provide against his supersession by a justiciar claiming in that capacity.

Let us now examine the witness of the charter to the differentiation of the sheriff (_vicecomes_) and the justice (_justitia_), for that is the development which its terms involve.

Dr. Stubbs points out that, under the Norman kings, "the authority of the sheriff, when he was relieved from the company of the ealdorman, ... would have no check except the direct control of the king" (i. 272); and Gneist similarly observed that "After the withdrawal of the eorl, the Anglo-Saxon shir-gerefa became the regular governor of the county, who was henceforth no longer dependent upon the eorl, but upon the personal orders of the king, and upon the organs of the Norman central administration" (i. 140). And for a period of transition between the two systems, the Anglo-Saxon and the late Norman, the sheriff not only presided, in his court, as its sole lay head, but also in a dual capacity. Dr. Stubbs, it is true, with his wonted caution, does but suggest it as "probable that whilst the sheriff in his character of sheriff was competent to direct the customary business of the court, it was in that of _justitia_ that he transacted special business under the king's writ."[341] But Gneist treats of him, under a separate heading, in his capacity of "royal justiciary" (i. 142). It is from this dual position that there developed, by specialization of function, two distinct officers, the sheriff (_vicecomes_) and the justice (_justicia_). This is the development which, as yet, has been somewhat imperfectly apprehended.

The centralizing policy of Henry I., operating through the _Curia Regis_, has, I need hardly observe, been admirably explained by Dr. Stubbs. He has shown how two methods were employed to attain the end in view: the one, to call up certain pleas from the local courts to the _curia_; the other, to send down the officers of the _curia_ to sit in the local courts.[342] In the latter case, the royal officer ("justicia") appeared as the representative of the central power of which the _Curia Regis_ was the exponent. Thus, there were, again, for the county court two lay presidents, but they were now the sheriff, as local authority, and the justice, who represented the central. Such an arrangement was, of course, a step in advance for the Crown, which had thus secured for itself, through its justice, a footing in the local courts.[343] But with this arrangement neither side was able to rest satisfied. Broadly speaking, if I may be allowed the expression, the Crown sought to centralize the sheriff, and to exclude the local element; the feudatories would fain have localized the justice, and so have excluded the central. Thus, before the close of Henry's reign, he had actually employed on a large scale the officers of his _curia_ as sheriffs of counties, and "by these means," as Dr. Stubbs observes, "the king and justiciar kept in their hands the reins of the entire judicial administration" (i. 392).[344] The same policy was faithfully followed by his grandson, a generation later, on the occasion of the inquest of sheriffs (1170), when, says Dr. Stubbs, "the sheriffs removed from their offices were most of them local magnates, whose chances of oppression and whose inclination towards a feudal administration of justice were too great. In their place Henry instituted officers of the Exchequer, less closely connected with the counties by property, and more amenable to royal influence, as well as more skilled administrators—another step towards the concentration of the provincial jurisdiction under the _Curia Regis_."[345]

This passage enables us to see how essentially contrary to the policy of the Crown were the provisions of Geoffrey's charter. It not only feudalized the local shrievalty by placing it in the hands of a feudal magnate, and, further still, making it hereditary, but it seized upon the centralizing office of justice, and made it as purely local, nay, as feudal as the other.

But let us return to the point from which we started, namely, the witness of Geoffrey's charter to the differentiation of the sheriff and the justice. It proves that the sheriff could no longer discharge the functions of "a royal justiciary," without a separate appointment to that distinct office. When we thus learn how Geoffrey became both sheriff and justice of Essex, we can approach in the light of that appointment the writ addressed "Ricardo de Luci Justic' et Vicecomiti de Essexa," on which Madox relies for Richard's tenure of the post of chief justiciary.[346] It may be that Richard's appointment corresponded with that of Geoffrey. But whatever uncertainty there may be on this point, there can be none on the parallel between Geoffrey's charter and that which Henry I. granted to the citizens of London. Indeed, in all municipal charters of the fullest and best type, we find the functions of the sheriff and the justice dealt with in the same successive order. The striking thought to be drawn from this is that the feudatories and the towns, though their interests were opposed _inter se_, presented to the Crown the same attitude and sought from it the same exemptions. In proof of this I here adduce three typical charters, arranged in chronological order. The first is an extract from that important charter which London obtained from Henry I., the second is taken from Geoffrey's charter, and the third from that of Richard I. to Colchester, which I quote because it contains the same word "justicia," and also because it is, probably, little, if at all, known.

CHARTER OF HENRY I. TO LONDON.

"Ipsi cives ponent _vicecomitem_ qualem voluerint de se ipsis, _et justitiarium_ qualem voluerint de se ipsis ad custodiendum placita coronæ meæ et eadem placitanda; et nullus alius erit Justitiarius super ipsos homines Londoniarum."

CHARTER OF THE EMPRESS TO GEOFFREY.

"Concedo ei et heredibus suis ... _vicecomitatum_ Essexie. Et ut sit Capitalis _Justicia_ ... de placitis et forisfactis que pertinuerint ad coronam meam, ita quod non mittam aliam Justiciam super eum in comitatu illo," etc.

CHARTER OF RICHARD I. TO COLCHESTER.

"Ipsi ponant de se ipsis _Ballivos_ quoscunque voluerint et _Justiciam_ ad servanda placita Coronæ nostræ et ad placitanda eadem placita infra Burgum suum et quod nullus alius sit inde Justicia nisi quem elegerint."

Here we have the two offices similarly distinct throughout. We have also the _ballivi_, representing to the town what the _vicecomes_ represents to the shire, a point which it is necessary to bear in mind. The "bailiff," so far as the town was concerned, stood in the sheriff's shoes. So also did the "coroner" (or "coroners") in those of the justice. Indeed, at Colchester, two "coroners" represented the "justice" of the charter. I cannot find that Dr. Stubbs calls attention to the fact of this twin privilege, the fact that exemption from the sheriff and from the justice went, in these charters, hand in hand.

Lastly, we should observe that though, in these charters, the clause relating to the sheriff precedes that which relates to the justice, yet, conversely, in the enumeration of those to whom a charter is directed, "justices" are invariably, I believe, given the precedence of "sheriffs." This, which would seem to have passed unnoticed, may have an important bearing. Ordericus, in a famous passage (xi. 2) describing Henry's ministers, tells us how the king

"favorabiliter illi obsequentes de ignobili stirpe illustravit, de pulvere, ut ita dicam, extulit, dataque multiplici facultate _super_ consules et illustres oppidanos exaltavit.... Illos ... rex, cum de infimo genere essent, nobilitavit, regali auctoritate de imo erexit, in fastigio potestatum constituit, ipsis etiam spectabilibus regni principibus formidabiles effecit."

Observe how vivid a light such a passage as this throws upon the clause in Geoffrey's charter:—

"Non mittam aliam Justiciam _super_ eum in Comitatu illo, nisi ita sit quod aliquando mittam aliquem de paribus suis qui audiat cum illo quod placita mea juste tractentur."

The whole clause breathes the very spirit of feudalism. It betrays the hatred of Geoffrey and his class for those upstarts, as they deemed them, the royal justices, who, clad in all the authority of the Crown, intruded themselves into their local courts and checked them in the exercise of their power. Henceforth, in the courts of the favoured earl, the representative of the Crown was to make his appearance not regularly, but only now and then ("aliquando"); moreover, when he came, he was to figure in court not as the superior ("super eum"), but as the colleague ("cum illo") of the earl; and, lastly, he was not to belong to the upstart ministerial class: he was to be one of his own class—of his "peers" ("de paribus suis").

As an illustrative parallel to this clause, I am tempted to quote a remarkable charter, unnoticed, it would seem, not only by our historians, but even by Mr. Eyton himself. The Assize of Clarendon, a quarter of a century (1166) after the date of our charter to Geoffrey, contained clauses specially aimed against such exemption as he sought. Referring to these clauses, Dr. Stubbs writes:—

"No franchise is to exclude the justices.... In the article which directs the admission of the justices into every franchise may be detected one sign of the anti-feudal policy which the king had all his life to maintain."[347]

But the clauses in question, though their sweeping character fully justifies this description,[348] contrast strangely with the humble, almost apologetic, charter in which Henry II., immediately afterwards, announces that he is only sending his "justicia" into the patrimony of St. Cuthbert "by permission" of the bishop, and as a quite exceptional measure, not to be taken again. It throws, perhaps, some new light on the character and methods of the king, when we find him thus stooping, in form, to gain his point in fact.

"Henricus Rex Angl' et Dux Normann' et Aquitan' et Comes Andegav', justiciariis Vicecomitibus et omnibus ministris suis de Eborac'sir et de Nordhummerlanda salutem. Sciatis quod consilio Baronum meorum,[349] et Episcopi Dunelmensis licencia, mitto hac vice in terram sancti Cuthberti justiciam meam, quæ[350] videat ut fiat justicia secundum assisam meam de latronibus et murdratoribus et roboratoribus;[351] non quia velim ut trahatur in consuetudinem tempore meo vel heredum meorum, sed ad tempus hoc facio, pro prædicta necessitate; quia volo quod terra beati Cuthberti suas habeat libertates et antiquas consuetudines, sicut unquam melius habuit. T. Gavfrido Archiepiscopo [_sic_] Cant. Ric. Arch. Pictav. Comite Gaufrido, Ricardo de Luci. Apud Wodestoc."[352]

The first charter of the Empress has now been sufficiently discussed. It was, of course, his possession of the Tower that enabled Geoffrey to extort such terms, the command of that fortress being essential to the Empress, to overawe the disaffected citizens.

[248] "Itaque multæ fuit molis Londoniensium animos permulcere posse, ut, cum hæc statim post Pascha (ut dixi) fuerint actitata, vix paucis ante Nativitatem beati Johannis diebus imperatricem reciperent" (p. 748).

[249] "Galfridus de Mandevilla firmavit Turrim Londoniensem. Idibus Maii Albericus de Ver Londoniis occiditur" (M. Paris, _Chron. Major._, ii. 174).

[250] _Ibid._

[251] _The Early History of Oxford_, cap. x.

[252] "Ad Radingum infra Rogationes veniens, suscipitur cum honoribus, hinc inde principibus cum populis ad ejus imperium convolantibus" (_Cont. Flor. Wig._, 130).

[253] _Add. Chart._ (Brit. Mus.), 19,576; _Arch. Journ._, xx. 289; _Journ. B. A. A._, xxxi. 389.

[254] "Reginaldo _comite_ filio regis." He had attested, as we have seen, an Oxford charter (_circ._ March 24) as Reginald "filius regis" simply. This would seem to fix his creation to _circ._ April, 1141 (see p. 68).

[255] "Roberto fratre ejus."

[256] We obtain incidentally, in another quarter, unique evidence on this very point. There is printed in the _Cartulary of Ramsey_ (Rolls Series), vol. ii. p. 254, a precept from Nigel, Bishop of Ely, to William, Prior of Ely, and others, notifying the agreement he has made with Walter, Abbot of Ramsey:—"Sciatis me et Walterum Abbatem de Rameseia consilio et assensu dominæ nostræ Imperatricis et Episcopi Wynton' Apost' sedis legati aliorumque coepiscoporum meorum scilicet Linc', Norwycensis, Cestrensis, Hereford', Sancti Davidis, et Roberti Comitis Gloecestrie, et Hugonis Comitis et Brienni et Milonis ad voluntatem meam concordatos esse. Quapropter mando et præcipio sicut me diligitis," etc., etc. This precept, in the printed cartulary, is dated "1133-1144." These are absurdly wide limits, and a little research would, surely, have shown that it must belong to the period in which the Empress was triumphant, and during which the legate was with her. This fixes it to March-June, 1141. Independent of the great interest attaching to this document as representing a "concordia" in the court of the Empress during her brief triumph, it affords in my opinion proof of the _personnel_ of her court at the time. Five of the seven bishops mentioned were, as observed in the text, in regular attendance at her court, and we may therefore, on the strength of this document, add those of "Chester" and Norwich, as visiting it, at least, on this occasion. So with the laity. Three of the four magnates named (of whom Miles had not yet received the earldom of Hereford) were her constant companions, so that we may safely rely on this evidence for the presence at her court on this occasion of Hugh, Earl of Norfolk.

[257] _Journ. B. A. A._, xxxi. 389. Note that in this case Seffrid, Bishop of Chichester, appears as a witness, doubtless because he had been Abbot of Glastonbury, to which abbey the charter was granted.

[258] See above, p. 66.

[259] "Proficiscitur inde cum exultatione magna et gaudio, et in monasterio Sancti Albani cum processionali suscipitur honore, et jubilo" (_Cont. Flor. Wig._, 131).

[260] "Apud sanctum Albanum" (Duchy of Lancaster: Royal Charters, No. 16; _Journ. B. A. A._, xxxi. 388).

[261] "Adeunt eam ibi cives multi ex Londoniâ, tractatur ibi sermo multimodus de reddenda civitate" (_Cont. Flor. Wig._, 131).

[262] "Imperatrix, ut prædiximus, habito tractatu cum Londoniensibus, comitantibus secum præsulibus multis et principibus, secura properavit ad urbem, et apud Westmonasterium cum processionali suscipitur honorificentiâ." (_ibid._).

[263] _i.e._ Hyde Park Corner, as it now is. See, for this custom, the _Chronicles of the Mayors of London_, which record how, a century later (1257), upon the king approaching Westminster, "exierunt Maior et cives, _sicut mos est_ ad salutandum ipsum usque ad Kniwtebrigge" (p. 31). The Continuator (p. 132) alludes to some such reception by the citizens ("cum honore susceperunt").

[264] "Videns itaque David rex multa competere in imperatricis neptis suæ promotionem, post Ascensionem Domini ad eam in Suthangliam profectus est: ... Venit itaque rex ad neptem suam, plurimosque ex principibus sibi acquiescentes habuit ut ipsa promoveretur ad totius regni fastigium" (_Sym. Dun._, ii. 309). As he did not join her till after her election, I have taken this latter phrase as referring to her coronation (see p. 80). Cf. p. 5, _n._ 5.

[265] "Vix paucis ante Nativitatem beati Johannis diebus."

[266] "Cives ... Imperatricem ... favorabiliter susciperunt undecimo [_al._ Sexto] Kal. Maii."

[267] See the _Liber de Antiquis Legibus_: "Tandem a Londonensibus expulsa est in die Sancti Johannis Bapt." So also Trivet.

[268] "Ibique aliquantis diebus ... resedit" (p. 131).

[269] "[Legatus] rem exanimans, præscriptam factionem invenit, fautoribusque ipsius dignâ animadversione interdixit ne Willelmum in Episcopum nisi canonicâ electione susciperent. Ipsi quoque Willelmo interdixit omnem ecclesiasticam communionem, si Episcopatum susciperet nisi Canonice promotus. Actum id in die S. Johannis Baptistæ. Pactus erat Willelmus ab Imperatrice baculum et annulum recipere; et data hæc ei essent, nisi, facta a Londoniensibus dissentione, cum omnibus suis discederet _ipso die_ a Londonia Imperatrix."—Continuatio Historiæ Turgoti (_Anglia Sacra_, i. 711). This passage further proves (though, indeed, there is no reason to doubt it) that the legate remained in London till the actual flight of the Empress. It also illustrates their discordance.

[270] "Literas Imperatricis directas ad Capitulum, quarum summa hæc erat: Quod vellet Ecclesiam nostram de Pastore consultam esse, et nominatim de illo quem Robertus Archidiaconus nominaret, et quod de illo vellet, et de alio omnino nollet. Quæsitum est ergo quis hic esset. Responsum est quod Willelmus" (_ibid._). This has, of course, an important bearing on the question of episcopal election. Strong though the terms of her letter appear to have been, the Empress here waives the right, on which her father and her son insisted, of having the election conducted in her presence and in her own chapel, and anticipated the later practice introduced by the charter of John.

[271] _Add. MSS._, 31,943, fol. 97. So too fol. 115: "After June 24, 1141, when the Empress was received in London; before July 25, when Milo was created Earl of Hereford."

[272] Mandate to Sheriff of Essex in favour of William fitz Otto (_Journ. B. A. A._, xxxi. 387). It is possible that the charter to Christ Church, London (_ibid._, p. 388), may also belong to this occasion; but, even if so, it is of no importance.

[273] A charter to Roger de Valoines. See Appendix G.

[274] _Journ. B. A. A._, pp. 384-386.

[275] The portions which are wanting in the charter and which are supplied from my transcript will be found enclosed in brackets.

[276] Robert, Earl of Gloucester, and William the chancellor are omitted altogether, and Ralph _Lovell_ becomes Ralph _de London_. Dugdale has, of course, misled Mr. Birch.

[277] Appended (as the "Degrees of England") to Gibson's well-known edition of the _Britannia_ (1772), vol. i. p. 125.

[278] Second edition, p. 647.

[279] Appendix V., p. 1 (ed. 1829).

[280] Page 164.

[281] "Ego Matildis filia regis Henrici et Anglorum domina do et concedo Gaufredo de Magnavilla pro servicio suo et heredibus suis post eum hereditabiliter ut sit Comes de Essexia, et habeat tertium denarium Vicecomitatus de placitis sicut Comes habere debet in comitatu suo" (Camden).

[282] Mr. Birch reads "tenuit bene," omitting the intervening words.

[283] Mr. Birch for "eandem terram" (_rectius_ "turrem") conjectures "illam".

[284] Mr. Birch conjectures "Preterea."

[285] Newport (the name hints at a market-town) was ancient demesne of the Crown. It lay about three miles south-west of (Saffron) Walden.

[286] There was still a toll bridge there in the last century. For table of tolls and exemptions, see Morant's _Essex_.

[287] Apparently, the high road on the left bank, and the way on the right bank, of the Cam.

[288] Neither this market nor this fair are, it would seem, to be traced afterwards.

[289] Mr. Birch conjectures "vigiliam."

[290] This was presumably a grant of the borough of Maldon (_i.e._ the royal rights in that borough), though Peverel's fee in Maldon was an escheat at the time. The proof of this is not only that it is here described as a "borough" (_burgus_), but also that its annual value was to be deducted from the sheriff's ferm, which could only be the case if it formed part of the _corpus comitatus_, _i.e._ was Crown demesne. In Domesday, Peverel's fee in Maldon was valued at £12, and the royal manor at £16 ("ad pondus"), though it had been £24. It was probably the latter which Henry II. granted to his brother William as representing ("pro") £22 ("numero") (see Pipe-Rolls).

[291] Depden, three miles south of Walden. It had formed part, at the Survey, of the fief of Randulf Peverel.

[292] Catlidge, according to Morant.

[293] Mr. Birch conjectures "tenentibus ibidem pro."

[294] Bonhunt, now part of Wickham Bonhunt, adjoining Newport. It had been held by Saisselinus at the Survey. In 1485 it was held of the honour of Lancaster.

[295] Mr. Birch conjectures "ipse habuit."

[296] This, apparently, refers to Depden, as forming part of Peverel's fief, which had been an escheat, in the king's hands, as early as 1130 (_Rot. Pip._, 31 Hen. I.).

[297] Hasculf de Tany was ancestor of the Essex family of Tany, of Stapleford-Tany, Theydon Bois, Elmstead, Great Stambridge, Latton, etc. He appears repeatedly in the Pipe-Roll of 31 Hen. I. (pp. 53, 56, 58, 60, 99, 152), when he was in litigation with William de Bovill and Rhiwallon d'Avranches.

[298] "Graelengus" is proved to be identical with "Graelandus de Thania," the Essex tenant-in-capite of 1166, by Stephen's second charter (Christmas, 1141), which gives his holding as 7½ fees, the very amount at which he returns it in his _Carta_ (see p. 142). But his contemporary, Graeland "fitz Gilbert" de Tany, on the Pipe-Rolls of Henry II., was probably so styled for distinction, being a son of Gilbert de Tany who figures on the Essex Pipe-Roll of 1158.

[299] Compare the phrase "superplus militum" in _Rot. Pip._ 31 H. I. (p. 47).

[300] "Predictis;" "ei quod omnia;" "et sint inforciata" (Mr. Birch).

[301] Bushey in Hertfordshire. Part of Mandeville's Domesday fief.

[302] Mr. Birch reads "pertinuerunt."

[303] "Pertinuit"—Mr. Birch's conjecture.

[304] "Quod aliquando"—Mr. Birch's conjecture.

[305] Mr. Birch reads "placito hac teneat."

[306] Mr. Birch reads "tre mee."

[307] Mr. Birch conjectures "ponantur in (placitum)."

[308] Mr. Birch conjectures "Baldewino Comite Devonie."

[309] On Robert Arundell, see Yeatman's _History of the House of Arundel_, p. 49 (where too early a date is suggested for this charter), and p. 105 (where it is implied that he was a tenant of the Earl of Gloucester). He occurs repeatedly in the Pipe-Roll of 31 Hen. I., and again in the Westminster charters (1136) of Stephen. (See Appendix C.)

[310] Robert Malet also was a west-country baron. He figures in connection with Warminster in the Pipe-Roll of 31 Hen. I., and is among the witnesses to the Westminster charters (1136), being there styled "Dapifer" (see Appendix C.). The _carta_ of the Abbot of Glastonbury (1166) proves that he was the predecessor of William Malet, _dapifer_ to Henry II.

[311] Another west-country baron. He was one of the rebels of 1138, when he held Castle Carey against the king (_Hen. Hunt._, p. 261; _Ord. Vit._, v. 310; _Gesta_, p. 43). According to Mr. Yeatman, he was son of "William Gouel de Percival, called Lovel," Lord of Ivry (_History of the House of Arundel_, p. 136). He is however wrongly termed by him "Robert (_sic_) Lovel" on p. 268. He witnessed an early charter of the Empress to Glastonbury (_Journ. B. A. A._, xxxi. 390).

[312] Ralph Paynell had instigated the Earl of Gloucester's raid on Nottingham the previous September (_Cont. Flor. Wig._, 128), and was one of the rebels in 1138, when he held Dudley against the king (_ibid._, 110). He was presumably identical with the "Rad[ulfus] Paen[ellus]" of 1130 (_Rot. Pip_, 31 Hen. I.). He witnessed the charter to Roger de Valoines (see p. 286), and three other charters of the Empress (_Journ. B. A. A._, xxxi. 391, 395, 398), including the creation of the earldom of Hereford (25 July, 1141).

[313] Walchelin Maminot had been among the witnesses to the above Westminster charters of (Easter) 1136, but had held Dover against the king in 1138 (_Ord. Vit._, v. 310). when Ordericus (v. 111, 112) speaks of him as a son-in-law of Robert de Ferrers (Earl of Derby). He witnessed the charter to Roger de Valoines (see p. 286), and five other charters of the Empress (_Journ. B. A. A._, xxxi. 388, 391, 394 _bis_, 398), including the creation of the earldom of Hereford (25 July 1141), and he appears in the Pipe-Rolls and other records under Henry II. from 1155 to 1170.

[314] Robert, natural son of Henry I. by Edith (afterwards married to Robert d'Oilli of Oxford), and uterine brother, as Mr. Eyton observes (_Addl. MSS._, 31,943, fol. 115), "to Henry d'Oilli of Hook-Norton." He appears in connection with Devonshire in the Pipe-Roll of 31 Hen. I., and is probably identical with Robert "brother" of Earl Reginald of Cornwall (_vide ante_, p. 82). He is mentioned as present (as "Robert fitz Edith") at the siege of Winchester, a few weeks later (_Sym. Dun._,