MarginaliaThe letter of Philip king of France, to the bishops and prelates.PHilip by the grace of God kyng of Fraunce, to our wellbeloued Bishop of Eduens, gretyng and salutation. Reuerende father in God, right trusty and welbeloued we grete you well. The more sight and knowledge you haue in diuinitie and the holy Scriptures of God, with the practise and experience of other good qualities & vertues: you know the better a great deale, how that the clergie and layte of this our realme (as members of one body) ought to cleue and sticke together: & howe by their helpyng hand, vnitie and peace should be mayntained of all, and the contrary eschued & auoyded, euery estate cōtenting it selfe and not incroching one vpō an other. And because we are aduertised, how that our barons and officers (as well in time paste as of late) haue diuerselye in dyuers poyntes iniuried you, as semblablye you and yours in many causes haue wrongfully damaged them: by occasion wherof, the knot of vnitie & concorde which ought to haue florished among you, is quyte losed and vndone. To the end therfore by Gods grace some good reformation and redresse may be had herein: We most studious of vnitie and concorde require you, & by these our letters commaund you, to appeare personally before vs at Paris the xv. day of December next ensuing the date hereof: & there before vs to make relation of such wrong as ye haue receiued at the laytes handes. And we in lyke wise straightely charge and commaunde you, our Barōs, Bailiffes, and officers not to faile, but to make your personall appearaunces before vs, the day and place aboue writtē, and there to exhibite before vs a bill, of such complaintes wherewith you burden our prelates & clergy with their officials: that we with oure counsel consulting therupon, with due regarde may see redresse therin: wherby perpetuall loue and charitie may euer hereafter raigne and remaine among them for euer: Geuen at Paris the first day of September. an. 1329.

MarginaliaThe parliament conuened.At the day in the letters aboue specified, the prelates and Clergie assembled thē selues before the kyng at his palace in Paris, that is to witte: The L. Bituricen, the L. of Auxitan, the L. Turonen, the L. Rothom, and the L. Senon. all Archbishoppes: The L. Beluacen, the L. Cathalan. the L. Laudun. the L. of Paris. the L. Nouionon. the L. Carnoten. the L. Constan. the L. Andegauen. the L. Pictauen. the L. Melden. the L. of Cameracen. the L. of S. Fleri. the L. of Brioce. þ^e L. of Cabilion. and þ^e L. of Eduen, all Byshops. Where, after due reuerence done vnto the kings grace, there sitting in his owne person, with his Barons and counsel aboute hym: MarginaliaL. Peter speakes in the parliament.a certaine noble and wise person Lorde Peter de Cugnerijs (being one of the kynges counsell) rose vp and openly in þ^e Parliament house spake in the kings behalfe on this wise, taking for his Theame. MarginaliaThe theam of hys oration.Reddite quæ sunt Cesaris, Cesari, & quæ sunt Dei Deo: which is to say: giue and render vnto Cesar whiche is his, and vnto God whiche is Gods: MarginaliaThe oratiō deuided in two partes. Obedience to the kyngwhiche he very artificially prosecuted & applied, deuiding it into two parts. First that obediēce & reuerence is due vnto the kyng: MarginaliaDifference betwene the iuirisdiction of the state temporal and ecclesiastical.Secondly þ^t their ought to be a differēce betwen the iurisdictiō of the clergie and layte, so þ^t spiritual matters should be defined & ordered by the prelates and spirituall men: and temporall causes ruled and determined by the kyng, his Barons, and temporall men. Which all he proued by many reasons both of fact and lawe, as more fully appeareth beneath in the aunswere of the Bishop of Eduen: finally he concluded, that the clergie ought onely to deale and haue to do with spiritual matters: in defence wherof, the kings highnes would stand there good Lord & mainteyner. His oration beyng ended, he repeted certaine wordes in the Frenche toung which imported þ^t the kings wil & pleasure was in some pointes to renew the tēporal state & iurisdictiō: And therw^t exhibited a certaine bill in French, wherof also he gaue a copy to the prelates, conteinyng certein pointesand articles vnder written, the contentes whereof he affirmed not to apperteine to the order and iurisdiction of þ^e spiritualitie, but onely to the temporalitie: complainyng that the cleargie had wrongfullye proceded in the same. But notwithstāding the premisses, & for al this his complaynte, he sayd þ^t the prelates should haue tyme to consulte & deliberate therupon with the kyng. The copy of which Articles, w^t answer ensuing vpon the same, & the greuāces of the kingdome of Fraūce, wrought by the clergy, & exhibited to the kyng, here after foloweth.

Marginalia1
Articles in the parliament propounded, containyng the iust complaints of the laitie against the cleargy.
Causes reall.First the cognition of causes reall, whether they touch possessiō or their proprietie or not, by cōmon law aperteyneth to the iurisdiction temporall. But the prelates with their officials to the end to infringe the temporall iurisdiction, take vpon them the detrrmination of suche causes reall, especially concernyng possession and all other interdictes.

Marginalia2Item, when a temporall man is sued by any clerke or spirituall man, for the possession of his lande, obtaynyng an adiornament of the secular power, in the cause of nouite or otherwise: The prelates officials stoppyng hereby the temporall iurisdiction, at the instaunce of the clerke calleth by proces before them, both the secular iudge and the partie, inhibityng them to procede anye farther in the cause, vnder pain of excōmunication and forfaiture of a certaine summe.

Marginalia3Item, although the secular iudge haue the cognition of al lay mēs matters (except in spiritual causes) yet wil the bishops Officials at the instaunce of any partie, cal such before thē. And if þ^e tēporal men do excepte against their iurisdiction, alledging the incōpitensie of the iudge, or elles if they require the cause to be remitted to them (vnder whom there are) as the right iudges, yet doth the Officials refuse this to do, ye and by excōmunication compell the parties to proceede before them.

Marginalia4Item, the Byshops Officials at the instaunce of the clerkes, alledgyng that they are iniuried in matters of inheritaunce by a lay man, call by proces the layte. And if it be alledged that those causes stande vppon realitie, beyng so in dede, and for that consideration the cause to be remitted to the temporall law: Thys notwithstandyng the Officials prohibite them vnder payne of excōmunication or some great forfet, nor to procede but before them.

Marginalia5Item, the Bishops Officials take vpon them to here the plea of such contractes as either be conceiued in writings or made by worde of mouth in the temporall law: sendyng out their monition of excōmunication againste thē that stande bounde concerning the same contractes.

Marginalia6Item, the Byshops and prelates decree prouinciall counsels and Sinodall Statutes, enactyng and ordering therin many thinges to the highe and great preiudice of the temporall iurisdiction, wherin they ought to haue no cognition at all neither to intermeddle thē selues therw^t.

Marginalia7Item, the foresayd Officials take vpon them, before notaries to swere persons for performance of contractes and bargaynes (made by them in places vnder the iurisdiction temporall) concerning the sale of inheritaunce or otherwyse: incroching therby vpon their iurisdiction, whan verely they haue nothyng to doe with any contractes and obligations, but with such as are made and agreed vpon within the compasse of their owne seat and iurisdiction.

MarginaliaEx officio.
8.Item, the sayd officialls of their meere office, call before them the laitie, to aunswere to such matters of correction as shall be layde to their charge, the cognition wherof as they say doth appertayne to them. And when the sayd persons doe appeare before them, and denie the cryme obiected against them: the officials deteyne them and put them in prison, MarginaliaImprisonment pertaineth not to the cleargy.although in such cases, they are to be released: and that imprisonment appertaineth onely to the temporal power, and not to them.