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.

CAll to remēbraūce, most worthye prince after what sorte you saw y^e wealthie villages and townes (as touchynge ••••ore of corne) in the roy∣alme of Fraunce, while you were there a so iour∣ner, pestered with the kynges men at armes & their horses, so that skant in any of y^e great townes there you could gett any lodgynge. Wheare of y^e inhabiters you learned y^t those men, thoughe they continue in one village a monethe or ii, do not nor will paye any thynge at all either for their owne charges, or for the char∣ges of their horses. But, which is worse, y^•y cōpel∣led y^e īhabitz of y^e vilages

and town dwellers whe∣ther they cāe, to prouide of their owne proper costes out of the villages adioyninge wyne & flesh for them, and other thīgs y^t thei needed at dearer prices then they might haue bought the same at home. And if any refused thus to do, they were anō by plaine stafford lawe forced to do it. And when they had spent all the vic∣tualies, fewell, and horse meat in one towne, then those men went to an o∣ther towne wastynge the same in lyke maner, not payeyng one pennye for any necessaries either for themselfs, or ells for their cōcubines and harlottes, whereof they euer car∣ryed

caried aboute withe them great abundaunce, nor for hosē or shewes, and other lyke euen to the least poīt or lace, but they compelled the townesmen, wheare theye carried to beare all theire expenses. And thus were al the villages and vnwalled townes of that lande vsed, so that there is not the least village there free from this miserable calamitie, but that it is once or twyse euery yeare beggered by this kynde of pilling. Furthermore the kyng suffereth no man to eate salte within his king¦dome, excepte he buy it of the kinge at suche price as pleaseth him to assesse.

And if any pore man had rather eate his meate fre∣she, then to buy salt so ex∣cessiuely deare, hee is im∣īmediatly

cōpelled to buy so much of y^e kinges salte at the kings price as shall suffice so many persones as he keepeth in his house. Moreouer all the inhaby∣ters of that royalme gee∣ue yearelye to the kynge the fowerthe parte of all the wynes y^t theire groūd¦es bearethe: and euerye vintener the fowerth pen¦ney of the price of the wi∣ne that hee sellethe. And beesides all this euery vil∣lage and borroughe pay∣ethe yearelye to the kyng great summes of moneye assessed vppon them for the wages of men at ar∣mes, so that the charges of the kings army, which is euer verye great, is main¦teyned by the poore peo∣ple of y^e villages, boroug∣hes, & towns of y^e roialme.

And yet moreouer euerye village findethe continu∣allye twoo Crossebowes at the leaste, and some mo wythe all furnyture and habyliments requisite for the kynges seruyce in hys warres as ofte as it plea∣sethe hym to muster them whyche hee dothe verye ofte. And these thynges not considered, other ex∣ceedynge greate talleges are yearelye assessed vp∣pon euerye vyllage of the same royalme to the kyn∣ges vse, whereof theye are no yeare released. The people beeinge wyth the∣se and diuers other cala∣mities plagued and op∣pressed, do liue in greate mysery, drīkīg water dai∣ly. Neyther do y^e inferiour sort tast any other licor sa∣uīg only at solēpne feasts

Theire shamewes are made of hempe, muche ly∣ke to sacke clothe. Wool∣len clothe theye weare none, excepte it bee verye course, and that onelye in theire coates vnder theire sayde vpper gar∣mentes. Neyther vse they anye hosen, butte from the knee vpwarde: the residue of theire legges go naked. Theire wo∣men go barefoote sauing on holye dayes. Neyther menne nor women eate anye fleshe there, but one¦lye larde of bacon, wythe a small quantity whereof they fatten theire potage and brothes. As for rosted or sodden meate of fleshe they tast none, except it be of y^e inwards sometimes & heads of beastes y^e be kil¦led for gētlemē & merchātz

But the menne at armes they deuour and consume al their pullein so, y^e theye haue skant the egges left to eate for speciall deintiez And if theye fortune at a∣nye time to growe some∣what wealthie in substā∣ce, so that any of them be compted ryche, hee is by & by charged to the kinges subsidie more deepely thē any of his neighboures, so that within short time he is made equall in pouer∣tie with the rest of his beg¦gerlye neighboures. And this as I suppose, is the state of the common and rascall people of that na∣tion. But gentlemen and nobles are not so oppres∣sed, and ouercharched wyth exaccions. Butte yf anye of them chaū∣ce

to bee accused of anye cryme, thoughe it be by hys enemies, hee is not euer wonte to bee cyted or called beefore an ordy∣narye iudge. But ma∣nye tymes it hathe beene seene that hee hathe in that beehalfe been talked wythe in the kynges chamber, or elswhere in some priuate place, and sometymes onelye bye a pourseuaunte or messen∣ger. And immedyatlye as soone as the princes conscience hathe throughe the reporte of others, iud∣ged him guiltie, he is wi∣theout anye fassion of iud¦gement put in a sacke and in the night season by the Marshals seruāts hurled īto a riuer, & so drowned.

After which sort you haue harde of manye mo put to deathe, then that haue be∣ne by ordinary processe of the lawe condempned.

Howe be it the princes ple¦sure, as saye the Ciuile lawes, hathe the force of a lawe. Also whyle yowe weare abydynge in Fraū¦ce, and nighe to the same kyngedome, you heard of other greate enormityes lyke vnto these, and some much worse then these de∣testable & damnable done no otherwise but vnder y^e colour of that lawe: whi∣che here to rehearse woul¦de continue oure talke too longe a time. Now there∣fore let vs se what y^e effect of the lawe politique and regal, which some of your progenitours would haue chaunged into this Ciuile

hathe wrought in the roy∣alme of Englande: that yowe beeynge instructed wythe the experience of bothe lawes, may the bet∣ter by theire effectes iudge whether of thē ye oughte rather to choose. Seeynge the philosopher, as afore is rehearsed, dothe saye, y^e contraries layde together do more {per}fectly appeare.