The Project Gutenberg Etext Our Legal Heritage, by S. A. Reilly
OUR LEGAL HERITAGE
The first thousand years: 600 - 1600
King AEthelbert - Queen Elizabeth
2nd Edition
By
S. A. Reilly, Attorney175 E. Delaware PlaceChicago, Illinois 60611-1724
1999
Preface
This was written to see what laws have been in existence for along time and therefore have proven their success in maintaininga stable society. It's purpose is also to see the historicalcontext in which our legal doctrines were derived. It looks atthe inception of the common law system, the origin of the jurysystem, the meaning in context of the Magna Carta provisions, theemergence of attorneys, and the formation of probate law fromchurch origins.
This book is a primer. One may read it without prior knowledge inhistory or law, although it will be more meaningful to lawyersthan to non-lawyers. Since it defines terms unique to Englishlegal history, it may serve as a good introduction on which tobase further reading in English legal history. The meaning ofsome terms in King Aethelbert's code in Chapter 1 are unknown orinexact.
The chapters are sequential. The title of each chapter in theTable of Contents includes the time period covered. The title ofeach chapter denotes an important legal development of that timeperiod.
Each chapter is divided into three sections: The Times, The Law,and Judicial Procedure. The law section is the central section.It describes the law governing the behavior and conduct of thepopulace. It includes law of that time by which people livedwhich is the same, similar, or a building block to the law oftoday. In earlier times this is both statutory law and the commonlaw of the court. The Magna Carta, which is quoted in Chapter 7,is the first statute of the Statutes at Large. The law sectionsof Chapter 7 - 13 mainly quote or paraphrase most of thesestatutes or the Statutes of the Realm. Excluded are statuteswhich do not help us understand the development of our law, suchas statutes governing Wales after its conquest and statutes onsuccession rights to the throne.
The first section of each chapter: The Times, sets a backgroundand context in which to better understand the laws. The usualsubject matter of history such as battles, famines, periods ofcorruption, and international relations are omitted as nothelping to understand the process of civilization and developmentof the law in the nation of England.
The last section of each chapter: Judicial Procedure, describesthe process of applying the law and trying cases for therelevant time period. It also contains some examples of cases.
For clarity and easy comparison, amounts of money expressed inpounds or marks have been converted to the smaller denominationsof shillings and pence. There are twenty shillings in a pound. Amark in silver is two thirds of a pound.
The sources and reference books from which information wasobtained are listed in the bibliography instead of beingcontained in tedious footnotes.
Dedication
A Vassar College faculty member once dedicated her book to her
students, but for whom it would have been written much earlier.
This book "Our Legal Heritage" is dedicated to the faculty of
Vassar College, without whom it would never have been written.
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