Disputing legal privilege: civic relations with the Church in late medieval England

Abstract

a b s t r a c tThis article explores how provincial town governments sought to bolster civic authority in the period from c.1350 to c.1500. It focuses on royal boroughs, such as York, Chester and Norwich, which had a strong sense of lay civic identity and political pride. In these places, the king was the direct overlord, but the power of civic government was nonetheless frequently challenged by the franchises of local abbeys and convents, cathedral chapters, bishops' palaces, areas of sanctuary and the estates of local nobles. The main case study is urban relations with the Church, in particular disputes with local religious houses and rivalry between the Church and borough courts. How town leaders sought to deal with rival authorities provides an insight into the creation and assertion of lay urban identity in the late medieval period, and illuminates broader themes of how power was legitimised and enforced in post-Black Death society.

Review of periodical literature published in 2009

“…Interestingly, the author does not consider the experience of Stamford in the wars to have been particularly extreme or unusual; he suggests that any sense that it may have suffered greater harm than most towns is possibly a consequence of the work of Stamford's historians. The relationship between towns and associated institutions, such as local lords, is also considered by Carrel, who explores the ways in which later medieval civic governments sought to establish their authority relative to the claims of competing ecclesiastic jurisdictions. Carrel notes the symbolic and very public ways in which town government attempted to illustrate its rights over a town, including ‘riding the bounds’, as well as suggesting ways in which urban leaders sought to claim new moral areas of jurisdiction.…”

“…The relationship between towns and associated institutions, such as local lords, is also considered by Carrel, who explores the ways in which later medieval civic governments sought to establish their authority relative to the claims of competing ecclesiastic jurisdictions. Carrel notes the symbolic and very public ways in which town government attempted to illustrate its rights over a town, including ‘riding the bounds’, as well as suggesting ways in which urban leaders sought to claim new moral areas of jurisdiction. Similar observations are to be found in Scrase's discussion of the dispute between townspeople of Wells and the bishop of Bath and Wells in 1341–3.…”

Evidence of Municipal Awareness as a Construct for Enhancing Citizen Satisfaction in Municipal Council of Malaysia

“…Municipal awareness is of categories; political awareness, regulation awareness, environmental awareness, planning awareness and civic awareness [28,100]. All these categories of awareness's have a positive impact on human development and service delivery [74,90].…”