Clerical petitions 1350-1450 : a study of some aspects of the relations of crown and church in the later Middle Ages

Abstract

The nature of medieval kingship ensured a constant stream of suitors seeking the royal grace and favour. By far the greatest fund of patronage in the realm lay in the hands of the crown, and the king was ultimately the source of justice in society. The petition was the channel by which subjects were able to reach the king's ear with their wrongs and requests. The development of the written petition in the thirteenth century had responded to the need for a formal and recognised method of approaching the crown that all subjects might use. In the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries a suit to the crown normally meant a written petition. From the large number of these petitions that have survived almost every aspect of medieval life, public or private, may be illustrated. Three general types of petition may be distinguished. A large proportion are simply requests for favour, and seek grants of the benefices, privileges, exemptions, and licences in the king's gift. A second group seek remedy for the wrongs committed against the suppliant by the king and his officers. A third group seek relief against other subjects, the complainant being unable to find it under the established legal system.