A learned commendation of the politique lawes of Englande vvherin by moste pitthy reasons & euident demonstrations they are plainelye proued farre to excell aswell the ciuile lawes of the Empiere, as also all other lawes of the world, with a large discourse of the difference betwene the. ii. gouernements of kingdomes: whereof the one is onely regall, and the other consisteth of regall and polityque administration conioyned. written in latine aboue an hundred yeares past, by the learned and right honorable maister Fortescue knight ... And newly translated into Englishe by Robert Mulcaster.

About this Item

Title
A learned commendation of the politique lawes of Englande vvherin by moste pitthy reasons & euident demonstrations they are plainelye proued farre to excell aswell the ciuile lawes of the Empiere, as also all other lawes of the world, with a large discourse of the difference betwene the. ii. gouernements of kingdomes: whereof the one is onely regall, and the other consisteth of regall and polityque administration conioyned. written in latine aboue an hundred yeares past, by the learned and right honorable maister Fortescue knight ... And newly translated into Englishe by Robert Mulcaster.
Author
Fortescue, John, Sir, 1394?-1476?
Publication
[Imprinted at London :: In Fletestrete within Temple Barre, at the signe of the hand and starre, by Rychard Tottill,
1567]
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Subject terms
Law -- England -- Early works to 1800.
Cite this Item
"A learned commendation of the politique lawes of Englande vvherin by moste pitthy reasons & euident demonstrations they are plainelye proued farre to excell aswell the ciuile lawes of the Empiere, as also all other lawes of the world, with a large discourse of the difference betwene the. ii. gouernements of kingdomes: whereof the one is onely regall, and the other consisteth of regall and polityque administration conioyned. written in latine aboue an hundred yeares past, by the learned and right honorable maister Fortescue knight ... And newly translated into Englishe by Robert Mulcaster." In the digital collection Early English Books Online. https://name.umdl.umich.edu/A01080.0001.001. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed May 16, 2024.

Pages

Page 72

CAncellarius. non his quib{us} turbaris princeps, contrariantur le∣ges Angliae licet a liter quodamodo ipsae in dubiis eli∣ciant veritatem. Quid duorū ho∣minū testimonio obest lex illa ge∣neralis cōsilii, qua cauetur, vt non nisi duodecē tes∣tium

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depositione cardinales de cri∣minibus conuin∣cantur? Si verum est duorum testi∣monium, a fortio∣ri testimoniū du∣odecim verum iu¦dicari debet, dicē∣te iuris regula. Plus semper in se continet quod est minus. Super ero∣gationis meritum promittebatur sta¦bulario, si pl{us} quā duos quos recepit denarios, ipse in vuln̄rati cura ero gasset. Nōne plus∣quā duos aut tres testes producere oportebit quēpiā qui absenē se fu∣isse probare niti∣tur, tēpore crimi∣nis sibi impositi, quod {per} duos aut

Page 73

tres testes adūsa∣ri{us} ei{us} {pro}bauit vel probare parat{us} ē? Sic et qui testes de {per}iurio cōuīce∣re satagit, multo illis plures {pro}duce¦re necesse habet, quo nō sē{per} duo∣rū vel triū hom testimoniū verū esse iudicabitur, sed intelligēda est lex illa, qd mino∣re testiū numero, quam duorū, veri¦tas in dubiis non debet exquiri, vt patet per Bernar∣dū ex tra. de testi. ca. licet ī glosa or dinaria, vbi ip̄e as¦signat diūsos cas{us} ī q̄b{us} {per} leges plu∣res quātres opor¦tet {pro}ducere tes∣tes. Videlicet ī ali∣q̄b{us} eorū quin{que}

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et in aliquib{us} sep¦tē, per duos etiam testes veritatē {pro}∣bari posse, cū non aliter ip̄a pateret vti{que} leges Angliae affirmāt. Nā si quae supra altum mare extra corpus cu∣iuslibet comitatus regni illius fiant, quae postmodū in placito corā admi¦rallo Angliae de∣ducātur, {per} testes illa iuxta legū An¦gliae sāctiones pro¦bari debent. Con¦similiter quo{que} co¦rā constabulario et mariscallo An∣gliae fieri solitū est de facto qd in reg¦no alio actū ē dū∣modo adiurisdicti¦on̄ curiae cōstabula¦riae cognitio eius

Page 74

pertineat, etiā et in curiis quarūdā libertatū ī Anglia vbi {per} legē merca∣toriā proceditur, {pro}bant per testes contractus inter mercatores extra regnum factos.

Quia in casib{us} his nō reperiūtur vici¦ni, {per} quorū sacra¦menta iuratae ex duodecim hoīb{us} fieri possūt, prout de contractib{us} et aliis casibus infra¦regnū Anglioe e∣mergentibus, est fieri consuetū. Si militer si carta in qua testes nomi∣nātur, deducatur in curia regis, pro¦cessus tūc fiet er∣ga testes illos, ipsi

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quoque recognos¦cēt simul cum du¦odecim iuratori∣bus per eorum sa¦cramenta, vtrum carta illa sit factū eius cuius suppo∣nitur an nō. Qua¦re legem qua testi¦bus veritas extor quetur, lex An∣gliae non condēp∣nat, maxime cum necessit’ id depos∣cat, quia et sic faci¦ūt ipsae leges An∣glioe, nedū in casi∣b{us} iā notatis, sed etiā ī quibusdā ca¦sibus aliis quos nō expedit hic notar’ Sed {per} testes solū, lex ipsa nūquā li∣tē dirimit, q̄ {per} iura tā duodecē homi∣nū discidi poterit cū sit mod{us} iste ad veritatē eliciendā multo potior et

Page 75

efficatior quā est forma abquarum aliarū legū orbis, et remotior a cor¦ruptionis et su∣bornationis peri∣culo. Nec pot’ hec {pro}decendi forma in causa aliqua, ob defectum testium deperire, ne{que} tes∣tiū (si qui fuerint) attestationes, ef∣fectum debitum non sortiri, nec {per}iurari possūt duo∣decī homines hu¦iusmodi, quī {pro} eo¦rū crimine ipsi a∣cerbissimè puniā∣tur, et nihilomin{us} {per}s {per} eorū deposi∣tionē grauata, re∣mediū debitū cō∣sequetur, ac non fient hec per ex∣traneorū aut igno

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torum hominum arbitriū aut dicta∣mē, sed {per} probo∣rū, nobiliū, et fide dignorū vicino∣rū {per}tib{us} sacramē∣ta, q̄b{us} partes illae nullā habēt causā calūpniae aut dif∣fidēcioe de eorum dicto. O quā hor∣rēdum et detes∣tabile discrimē se∣pe accidit, ex for∣ma {per} depositionē testium {pro}cedēdi. Nōne si quis clā¦destinū cōtrahat matrimonium, et postea corā testi∣b{us} mulierē aliā ip¦se affidauerit, cū cadē cōsummare matrimoniū arta∣bitur in foro con¦tēcioso, et postea ī penitēciali foro iudicabitur ipse

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cōcumbere cum prima, si debitè re¦q̄ratur, et penitere debet quotiēs ex actione {pro}pria cō¦cubuerit cū secū∣da, licet in vtro{que} foro iudex fuerit homo vn{us} et idē. Nōne in hoc casu vt ī Iob. scribitur {per}plexi sūt testiculi leuiathā? Proh pu¦dor, verè perplexi sunt, nā cum neu∣tra mulierum ha∣rum, ne{que} cū alia, contrahēs iste ex tunc cōcu mbet si¦ne animaduertio∣ne in foro cōtēdē¦tium aut penitēti∣um, quale malū in∣cōueniēs aut dis∣crimen, per mo∣dum et formā pro∣cess{us} legis Anglioe

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impossibile est in casu aliquo eue∣nire, etiam si leui∣athan ipse ea ge∣nerare nitatur. Nōne vides iā prī¦ceps clarissime, le¦ges Anglioe tāto magis clarescere, quāto eisdē tu ā pli{us} reluctaris?

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