This article focuses on the Peasants' Revolt of 1381 as a means of examining some of the late medieval assumptions about the nature of royal mercy. Rather than adding to the weight of scholarship on the causes and characteristics of the Revolt, this article discusses the views on mercy ('grace for the rebels') 1 that were reportedly expressed by all parties during the course of the rebellion. The first section analyses the chronicles and their references to discussion of pardon and mercy during the revolt itself. The second section examines the role of the royal pardon in the subsequent judicial proceedings in the Home Counties d who were the first recipients of pardon, and how were they able to secure royal grace? The final section then discusses the formulation of the pardon in the autumn parliament, and the debate surrounding the course of government policy in the wake of revolt on an unprecedented scale. This article seeks to demonstrate that the Crown and commons shared a common language of pardon, and understood that by framing their discussion in terms of royal grace, they were alluding to a particular kind of idealised relationship between the king and his subjects.On 13 December 1381 a schedule of pardon for all those involved in the recent insurrection was put before parliament. Richard II authorised this grant of royal mercy, and in so doing he offered grace to all his subjects, both those accused of rebellion and those who had remained loyal. E-mail address: helen.lacey@mansfield.ox.ac.uk 1 The parliament rolls of medieval England [hereafter PROME], ed. C. Given-Wilson et al. (CD-ROM. Scholarly Digital Editions, Leicester, 2005), 'Richard II: parliament of 1381, text and translation', item 30. I would like to thank the audience of the Oxford Medieval History Seminar for their advice on an early version of this paper, and Mark Ormrod for his helpful comments on this essay in draft form. 0304-4181/$ -see front matter Ó
RESUMENEl artículo examina los discursos documentados de personas que fueron acusadas de criticar al monarca o al gobierno real en la Inglaterra del siglo xiV. Dichas palabras fueron atribuidas a individuos de fuera de la élite social, quienes estaban entonces inmersos en discursos políticos trazados por las ideologías y las estructuras institucionales de las cortes reales. Precisamente este proceso pudo influir en las relaciones entre vecinos y comunidades locales, así como entre los particulares y los oficiales que representaban a la Corona. Cuando tratamos de considerar en cómo ello afecta a nuestra comprensión de la cultura política bajomedieval, debemos tener en cuenta el contexto de la acusación: el papel de los informadores, los testimonios y los jurados locales. A veces las noticias políticas emanaban de los oficiales reales, mensajeros, ayudantes y alguaciles, que demostraban así su buena conexión con el poder. También podían manipular el proceso para acusar a sus oponentes de difundir rumores falsos y de perseguir venganzas locales a través de los tribunales reales. Todos aquellos que participaban en el proceso tenían que interactuar con el lenguaje y el procedimiento del sistema judicial real y construían cuidadosamente sus narrativas como parte de la representación requerida por los tribunales. Los registros escritos, entonces, nos permiten examinar cómo las palabras de dichos individuos eran reproducidas en forma de texto y, aún más, considerar con atención cómo eran representados en tanto que súbditos de la Corona. ABSTRACTThis article examines the reported speech of individuals who were accused of voicing criticism of the monarch or of royal government in fourteenthcentury England. These words were attributed to individuals outside of the social elite, who were then drawn into political discourses shaped by the ideologies and institutional structures of the state. This process might influence relations between neighbours and local communities, as well as between individuals and the officials who represented the Crown. When we think about how this affects our understanding of late medieval political culture, we need to think about the whole context of the accusation: the role of 'informers', witnesses and local juries. Political news sometimes emanated from royal office holders, messengers, clerks and sheriffs, allowing them to demonstrate just how well-connected they were with those in power. They could also manipulate the process to accuse opponents of spreading false tales and pursue local vendettas through the royal courts. All those who participated in the process had to interact with the language and procedures of royal government and they constructed their narratives carefully as part of the performance required by the various courts, councils and tribunals they came before. The written records, then, allow us to examine how the words of these individuals were rendered in textual form, and further, to think carefully about how they were represented as subjects of the Crown.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.