1F Profits of justice Flashcards
Profits of Justice
A key element of the king’s role was the maintenance of law
and order within the realm. It was also obviously crucial that this
system of law enforcement was efficient enough to ensure that
payments owing to the crown were made.
By 1399, a complex
system of courts and royal administration had developed to
organise efficient payments to the crown
The central courts were based at Westminster
and included the court of the Exchequer, which heard cases
relating to the crown’s revenue. Its judges were the barons of
the Exchequer, who by the late Middle Ages were professional
lawyers. Clearly, for the king to maintain a healthy income, it was
necessary that those who broke the law in relation to payments to
the crown were pursued through legal channels and therefore the
court of the Exchequer was important to ensure royal financial
solvency.
Other courts were important not only in terms of law
enforcement, but also
as a source of royal income. many people who were found guilty of oftences were simply
punished by a fine and, when the conviction took place in the
royal courts, this money accordingly went to the king’s coffers
In 1874. the historion JR. Green made the highly influcntal
argument that
Edward IV and Henry VII created a now
monarchy, in other words, that these two kings substantially
altered the role of a king and how the politics and the finances of
the realm were managed. In Bowards case, this focused mainly
on his use ol per lors of loans and taxation.
Alexander Grant on Henry VII
Argued that the first Tudor reign saw the birth of a more ‘modern’ form of government, particularly in terms of his management of
finances. These bonds were payments to the crown by members
of the nobility in return for either privileges or as fines which were
imposed upon those whose loyalty to the king was questionable,
or who were liable to carrel violently with another noble family
