Justice and mercy (eBook)

Moral theology and the exercise of law in twelfth-century England

Philippa Byrne (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2018
304 Seiten
Manchester University Press (Verlag)
978-1-5261-2536-1 (ISBN)

Infos

This study investigates justice and mercy in twelfth-century England, using theological texts, sermons, legal treatises and letter collections to explore how moralists approached questions of judgement and judicial ethics in the foundational period of English common law.

---

This book examines one of the most fundamental issues in twelfth-century English politics: justice. It demonstrates that during the foundational period for the common law, the question of judgement and judicial ethics was a topic of heated debate - a common problem with multiple different answers. How to be a judge, and how to judge well, was a concern shared by humble and high, keeping both kings and parish priests awake at night. Using theological texts, sermons, legal treatises and letter collections, the book explores how moralists attempted to provide guidance for uncertain judges. It argues that mercy was always the most difficult challenge for a judge, fitting uncomfortably within the law and of disputed value. Shining a new light on English legal history, Justice and mercy reveals the moral dilemmas created by the establishment of the common law.

Autor

Philippa Byrne is British Academy Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Oxford

Inhalt

Prologue: the vanishing adulteress
1 Introduction
2 The problem with mercy: the schools
3 The problem with mercy: the courts
4 Twelfth-century models of justice and mercy
5 Who should be merciful?
6 Judgement in practice: the Church
7 Histories of justice: the crown, persuasion and lordship
8 Love your enemies? Popular mercy in a vengeance culture
9 Conclusion
Bibliography
Index

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 2.1.2019
• Reihe/Serie: Artes Liberales
• Zusatzinfo: 3 charts
• Verlagsort: Manchester
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Sachbuch/Ratgeber ► Geschichte / Politik ► Mittelalter
• Themenwelt: Geschichte ► Allgemeine Geschichte ► Mittelalter
• Themenwelt: Geisteswissenschaften ► Geschichte ► Regional- / Ländergeschichte
• Themenwelt: Geschichte ► Teilgebiete der Geschichte ► Militärgeschichte
• Themenwelt: Geschichte ► Teilgebiete der Geschichte ► Religionsgeschichte
• Themenwelt: Recht / Steuern ► Rechtsgeschichte
• Schlagworte: Common Law • England • Judges • judgment • Justice • Law • Mercy • SCHOLASTICISM • Theology • Twelfth Century • Twelfth-century renaissance
• ISBN-10: 1-5261-2536-6 / 1526125366
• ISBN-13: 978-1-5261-2536-1 / 9781526125361