Amercement
idea · 2 works · 7 mentions · 15 anchored passages
amercement · amerced · amercements · amerce · amerciament · amercietur · fine · in misericordia · misericordia
in the texts
Magna Carta: A Commentary on the Great Charter of King John
The penalty of a discretionary fine, whose assessment by royal Benches rather than by a baron's peers was a specific grievance addressed in Magna Carta.
When one of their own number was amerced or accused of any offence involving loss of liberty or lands, he might be compelled by the Crown, under Henry and his sons, to submit to have the amercement assessed, or the criminal proceedings conducted, by one of the new Benches (by a tribunal composed of some four or five of the King’s officials), in place of the time–honoured judgment of his peers asse …
The King could not amerce other people’s villeins harshly, although those on his own farms might be amerced at his discretion.
while chapters 20 to 22 adopt distinct sets of rules for the amercement of the ordinary freeman, the churchman, and the earl or baron respectively.
An Essay on the Trial by Jury
A monetary penalty required by statute to be assessed by one's peers according to the offense.
that is to say, every freeman saving his freehold, a merchant saving his merchandise, a villein his waynage, and that by his or their peers.
“Forasmuch as the common fine and amercement of the whole county in Eyre of the justices for false judgments, or for other trespass, is unjustly assessed by sheriffs and baretors in the shires, so that the sum is many times increased, and the parcels otherwise assessed than they ought to be, to the damage of the people, which be many times paid to the sheriffs and baretors, which do not acquit the payers;
A statute passed fifty-one years after Magna Carta, says that a baker, for default in the weight of his bread, “debeat amerciari vel subire judicium pilloræ,”—that is, “ought to be amerced, or suffer the sentence of the pillory.” And that a brewer, for “selling ale, contrary to the assize,” “debeat amerciari, vel pati judicium tumbrelli;” that is, “ought to be [92] amerced, or suffer judgment of t …