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The bishops claim their

liaments, and on all occations.

for high treafon out of parliament folely and by himself in an extra-judicial manner.

* "In the name of God, amen: Whereas fent in all par by the law and custom of the kingdom of England, it doth belong to the archbishop of Canterbury for the time being, and the other his fuffragans, brethren, and fellow bifhops, abbots, and priors, and all their other prelates whatsoever, who hold by barony of our lord the king, to be perfonally present in all parliaments whatfoever, as peers of the kingdom, and there to confult, treat of, ordain, conftitute, and determine of the affairs of the kingdom, and other things there ufually treated of, together with the rest of the peers of the faid kingdom, and others having intereft there, and to do all things, which there may happen to be done. In all and every of which, we William archbishop of Canterbury, primate of all England, and legate of the apoftolic fee, do protest for ourfelves, our fuffragans, and fellow bishops, and all the abbots, priors, and prelates aforefaid, and every one of them doth proteft by themselves, or by his proxy, if fo he was prefent, both publicly and expressly, that we

*Rot. Parl. 11 Ric. 2.

intend, and do intend, and every one of us will in this present parliament, and in all others, be present as peers of the faid kingdom, in the ufual manner, to confider of, treat, enact, conftitute, and determine, and. to do all other things with others, who have power of being present in the fame, our eftate and order, to every one of us in all things faved unto us entire. But because in this prefent parliament fome matters will be treated of, in which it is not lawful for us*, or any of us, according to the inftitutions of the holy canons, or canonic law, in anywife to be perfonally prefent, therefore for ourselves, and for every one of us, we protest, and every one of us here present doth protest, that we intend not, neither will, as by the law we cannot, neither doth any of us intend, nor will any of us in anywife be present in this prefent parliament, whilst any of those matters are debated, or fhall be debated of. But upon that account, we and every one of us will absent ourselves; the right of our peerage, and the right of every. one of us, being present in the faid parlia

* Note this diverfity: in their ecclefiaftical or clerical capacity they have obligations which in their lay capacity they do not avow; for though they be fubject to the canon law, they are alfo fully fubject to the municipal civil law, and in no manner exempt from it.

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right for their

fucceffors to be present in parliament, at

all times, and on all occafions.

ment, as to all and every thing there to be done agreeable to our eftate and order in all things to every one of us faved entire,

They claim the Moreover we protest, and every one of us doth proteft, that by reafon of our absence as aforefaid, we intend not, nor will, neither doth any of us intend or will, that the procefs had or to be had in this present parliament in the matters aforefaid, in which we cannot and ought not as aforefaid to be prefent, as to what relates to us, or any of us, fhall in time to come be in anywise impugned, weakened, or repealed.”

*" And forthwith the Viscount Beaumont, on the behalf of the faid lords fpiritual and temporal, and by their advice, affent, and defire, recited, faid, and declared to the king's highnefs, that this, that was fo decreed concerning the person of the faid duke, William de la Pool duke of Suffolk, proceeded not by their advice and counsel, but was done by the king's own demeanance and rule; therefore they befought the king, that this their faying might be enacted in the parliament roll, for their more declaration hereafter, with this proteftation, that it fhould not be, nor turn in prejudice nor derogation of them,

*Rot. Parl. 28 Hen. VI.

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their heirs, nor of their fucceffors in time coming, but that they have and enjoy their liberties and freedoms in cafe of their peerage hereafter, as freely and as largely as they or any of their ancestors had and enjoyed before this time."

The rights of the lords fpi

ritual in parlia

ment claimed

for ever.

It cannot be pretended, that the word Spiritual is here inferted without its full meaning, for the representatives of the Spiritual lords are described by the word fucceffors, as the representatives of the temporal lords are by the word heirs; and neither is applicable to the other. Now if this canon law or No difference ecclefiaftical ordinance were paramount to

the municipal law, from which they ac

between the rights of the lords fpiritual and temporal in

quired their right of fitting in parliament, parliament. then must it be allowed, that the bishops had no right to judge or vote in capital cafes ; and every act of parliament affecting the life of a perfon, must have been paffed without the advice and confent of the lords fpiritual; whereas no act appears upon our statute books, expreffed to have been enacted with the advice and confent of the lords temporal only, and therefore I conclude against Mr. Selden, and many others, that the conftitution knows of no difference of parliamentary duty, right, power, or jurifdiction, between the Spiritual and the temporal lords; and I

fhall

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Temporal lords.

fhall hereafter speak indifcriminately of their common rights, duties, and privileges, which the conftitution has vefted in them as peers of parliament.

*«The lords temporal confist of all the peers of the realm, (the bishops not being in ftrictness held to be fuch, but merely lords of parliament) by whatever title of nobility distinguished, dukes, marquiffes, earls, viscounts, or barons; of which dignities we shall speak more hereafter. Some of these fit by defcent, as do all ancient peers; fome by creation, as do all new-made ones; others, fince the union with Scotland, by election, which is the cafe of the fixteen peers, who reprefent the body of the Scots nobility. Their number is indefinite, and may be increased at will by the power of the crown; and once, in the reign of queen Anne, there was an instance of creating no less than Bill to limit the twelve together; in contemplation of which, paffed the lords, in the reign of king George I. a bill paffed and was thrown the houfe of lords, and was countenanced by

number of peers

out by the com

mons.

the then miniftry, for limiting the number of the peerage. This was thought by fome to promise a great acquifition to the constitution, by restraining the prerogative from

Black. Com. b. i. ç. 2,

gaining

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