ClarenbadL See Klarbnbach.
Clarendon Constitntions, 1164. A struggle between the crown and the hierarchy in England be- gan with the elevation of Thomas k Becket to the ar- chiepiscopal chair (June, 1162). The pomp-loving courtier, brave warrior, and powerful statesman, the &vorite and confidant of Henry II, had become a se- vere ascetic, a zealous hierarcb, and the opponent of the king. At the council held by Alexander III in May, 1168, at Tours, Becket, with other English prel- ates, appeared, and was received with distinction by the pope. As soon as he returned, he attempted to execute the resolutions of the council in his province. He claimed certain possessions, which, as he asserted, bad been lon^ alienated from the see of Canterbury, snd protested against the levy of a universal tax on real estate which the king demanded for state purpo- ses. This already had occasioned a contest with the king, and a breach was almost effected at the Imperial Diet in Westminster, called by the king to reform the abases of the ecclesiastical courts, which were made inaccessible to the arm of justice. Cases of this kind bad often occurred within a few years, and the arch- bishop now again opposed the demands of the king snd the barons, while almost all the bishops answered in the affirmative to the question ot the king if they would ftirther support the " old customs of the king- dom," but with ijie addition of the dangerous clause, 9ako ordine mo eijure eccleske. At the prayers of the bishops and others high in office, perhaps also under admonitions from the pope, Becket also yielded at length.
To ratify the concessions made by the bishops with dae solemnity, and in general to settle the points at ittiie between Church and crown, the king, in Janua^ ly, 1164, summoned an assembly of prelates and bar- ons St Clarendon, a royal summer residence near Salis- bny. The attendance was large. Becket appeared, hot only to revoke the concessions he had made, and to declare them treason to the inalienable rights of the Church. But at last, overwhelmed by prayers and tbreats, Becket once more pledged his priestly word to ^Pport fiaithftaiy the ancient customs. The confer- ences were soon ehded. Thehr results were the Chren- *>» ConitUutioni, or, as they were called, conmdudmes '^^°'9'i^ in sixteen chapters, the contents of which are "nbstantially the following (with the judgment of the pope upon them appended in italics) : — 1. Disputes con- cerning the right of patronage between laymen, or be- ^«en clergymen and laymen, or between clergymen <^7i ihall be discussed and settled at the court of the
king. (OondemMdhy the pope.) 2. Churches belongfaig to the king*s fief cannot be given permanently away without his consent. (^Tolerated,) 8. Clerg3rmen ac- cused of any crime must, upon a summons from a royal judge, appear at the king's court, where it will be de- cided whether the matter is to be handed over to a civil or ecclesiastical court ; in the latter case, a delegate ap- pointed by the king's judge is to be present at the triiJ. If the accused is found guilty, or confesses, the Church shall not further protect him. (CoHdenmed.) 4. Arch- bishops, bishops, or high officials of the kingdom shaU not leave the kingdom without the king's permission; and, even in case of permission, must give security that on their journey they will undertake nothing to the disadvantage of the king or the kingdom. (Cbii- demned,) 5. Excommunicated persons need not give bonds to remain where they are, nor to promise by oath to do so, but only to give bonds or a pledge to abide by the decision of the Clmrch, that they may be absolved. (Condemned,) 6. Laymen can only be ac- cused by trustworthy and legitimate witnesses in the presence of the bishop, yet so that the archdeacon does n«t lose his right. In cases where no one appears as the accuser, the sheriff, at the command of the bishop^ is to assemble twelve respectable men from the neigh- borhood, who are to swear before the bishop to tell the truth according to their best understanding. (ToUr- ated.) 7. Vassals of the crown, and the officers of their households, shall not be excommunicated, nor their lands laid under interdict, without previous notice to the king or his judges, that they may decide if the case is to be handed over to a civil or ecclesiastical tribunal. (Condenmed,) 8. Appeals are to be made from the archdeacon to the bisiiop, from the bishop to the archbishop, and from him to the king, upon whose command the matter shall then be settled in the archi- episoopal court of justice. No further appeal allowed without the king's leave. {Condemned.) 9. In case of any dispute between a layman and clergyman con- cerning a tenement which the latter dedues to be a lay fee, if it prove upon trial before twelve respectable men to be a ^ fee, and not an ecclesiastical fee, the cause to be finally tried in the king's court, unless both claim tenure under the same bishop or baron, in which case the plea shall be in his court. (Condemned.) 10. If any one belonging to a royal court or demesne is summoned by an archdeacon or a bishop on account of some misdemeanor for which he is amenable to them, and he appear not, he may be put under an inr terdict, but under the ban only after a previous notifi- cation of the royal official of the place, and after the latter has vainly attempted to induce the accused to give the Church satis&ction. (Condemned,) 11. Arch- bishops, bishops, and vassals of the crown must, as holders of royal fiefs, appear before tHe judges and officers of the king, and preserve all the privileges and customs of the crown-fief, and be present also, like the other barons, at the proceedings of the royal court of justice, except at capital trials. (TolercOed,) 12. In case of a vacancy of an archbishopric, bbhopric, an ab- bey, or a priorate, the revenues shall accrue to the king. At the reappointment, the king shall assemble the ec- clesiastical dignitaries; the election shall take place in the royal chapel, with the king's consent, and the advice of the grandees of the kingdom assembled by him. In the same place the elect shall, while preserv- ing his ecclesiastical state, take the oath of fealty to the king, his feudal lord, before he is consecrated. (Condemned.) 18. If any baron or tenant in ccgnie should encroach upon the rights or property of a prel- ate, the king shall see justice done, and if any one en- croach upon the possessions of the king, the prelates shall treat with that person that he may give satisfac- tion. (Tolerated,) 14. Forfeited possessions the Church dare not refuse to make over to the king, as such be- long to him, whether they be inside or outside of the Church. (Tolerated,) IS. Pleas of debt are to be