[very antient original (o),—but new modelled by statutes 3 Henry VII. c. 1, and 21 Henry VIII. c. 20,-consisting of divers lords spiritual and temporal, (being privy councillors,) together with two judges of the courts of common law; without the intervention of any jury. Their jurisdiction extended legally over riots, perjury, misbehaviour of sheriffs, and other notorious misdemeanors, contrary to the laws of the land. Yet this was afterwards, as Lord Clarendon informs us, stretched "to the asserting of all "proclamations and orders of state; to the vindicating denominated in our antient records starra or starrs, from a corruption of the Hebrew word shetar, a covenant (Tovey's Angl. Judaic. 32; Seld. Tit. of Hon. ii. 34; Uxor. Ebraic. i. 14). These starrs, by an ordinance of Richard the first, preserved by Hoveden, were commanded to be enrolled, and deposited in chests under three keys in certain places: one, and the most considerable, of which was in the king's Exchequer at Westminster; and no starr was allowed to be valid, unless it was found in some of the said repositories (Memorand. in Scacc. P. in the sixth year of Edward the first, prefixed to Maynard's Year Book of Edward the second, fol. 8; Madox, Hist. Exch. c. 7, ss. 4, 5, 6). The room at the Exchequer where the chests containing these starrs were kept, was probably called the starrchamber; and, when the Jews were expelled the kingdom, was applied to the use of the king's council, sitting in their judicial capacity. To confirm this, the first time the starchamber is mentioned in any record, it is said to have been situated near the receipt of the Exchequer at Westminster; (the king's council, his chancellor, treasurer, justices and other sages, were assembled en la chambre des esteilles pres la 66 resceipt al Westminster "-Claus. 41 Edw. 3, m. 13). For in process of time, when the meaning of the Jewish starrs was forgotten, the word star-chamber was naturally rendered in law French la chambre des esteilles, and in law Latin camera stellata; which continued to be the style in Latin, till the dissolution of that court. It is suggested by Mr. Christian (Bl. Com. vol. iv. p. 267), in reference to the above note of Blackstone, that in one of the statutes of the University of Cambridge, the antiquity of which is not known, the word starrum is twice used for a schedule or inventory. The statute is entitled De computatione procuratorum, and it directs that "in fine computi fiat starrum per modum dividendæ, in quo ponentur omnia remanentia in communi cistá, tam pignora quam pecunia, ac etiam arreragia et debita, ita quod omnibus constare potuit evidenter, in quo statu tunc universitas fuerit, quoad bona, fe." (Stat. Acad. Cant. p. 32.) Such inventories would be made at the king's Exchequer; and the room where they were deposited would probably be called the starchamber. (0) Lamb. Arch. 156. ["of illegal commissions, and grants of monopolies; hold"ing for honourable that which pleased, and for just that "which profited; and becoming both a court of law to "determine civil rights, and a court of revenue to enrich "the treasury; the council table by proclamations enjoining to the people that which was not enjoined by the "laws, and prohibiting that which was not prohibited ; "and the Star-Chamber, which consisted of the same "persons in different rooms, censuring the breach and "disobedience to those proclamations by very great fines, imprisonments, and corporal severities; so that any disrespect to any acts of state, or to the persons of "statesmen, was in no time more penal, and the founda"tions of right never more in danger to be destroyed (p)." For which reasons it was finally abolished by statute 16 Car. I. c. 10, to the general joy of the whole nation (q).] 66 4. [The High Court of Admiralty, held before the lord high admiral of England, or his deputy styled the judge of the admiralty,-is not only a court of civil, but also of criminal jurisdiction (r). This court hath cognizance of all crimes and offences committed either upon the sea (p) Hist. of Rebellion, b. 1 and 3. (q) The just odium into which this tribunal had fallen before its dissolution has been the occasion that few memorials have reached us of its nature, jurisdiction and practice; except such as, on account of their enormous oppression, are recorded in the historians of the times. There are, however, to be met with some reports of its proceedings in Dyer, Croke, Coke, and other reporters of that age and some in manuscript, of which Sir W. Blackstone possessed two: one from the fortieth year of Elizabeth, to the thirteenth of James the first; the other for the first three years of King Charles. And there is in the British Museum (Harl. MS. vol. 1, no. 1226) a very full, methodical and accurate account of the constitution and course of this court, compiled by William Hudson, of Gray's Inn, an eminent practitioner therein; and a short account of the same, with copies of all its process, may also be found in 18 Rym. Fœd. 192, &c. Hudson's Treatise of the Court of Star-chamber, is now published at the beginning of the second volume of Collectanea Juridica. (r) 4 Inst. 134, 147. As to the jurisdiction of the Court of Admiralty in general, vide sup. vol. III. p. 452 et seq. By 20 & 21 Vict. c. 77, s. 10, the judge of this court may, on the next vacancy, be the same person as the judge of the new Court of Probate. [or on the coasts, out of the body or extent of any English county; and by stat. 15 Ric. II. c. 3, of death and mayhem happening in great ships being and hovering in the main stream of great rivers, below the bridges of the same rivers, which are then a sort of ports or havens; such as are the ports of London and Gloucester, though they lie at a great distance from the sea.] And while this court, in the exercise of its criminal jurisdiction, [proceeded without jury, in a method much conformed to the civil law, the exercise of such jurisdiction was contrary to the genius of the law of England: insomuch as a man might be there deprived of his life by the opinion of a single judge, without the judgment of his peers. And besides, as innocent persons might thus fall a sacrifice to the caprice of a single man, so very gross offenders might, and did frequently, escape punishment; for the rule of the civil law is, that no judgment of death can be given against offenders, without proof by two witnesses, or a confession of the fact by themselves. This was accordingly always a great offence to the English nation; and therefore, in the eighth year of Henry the sixth, it was endeavoured to apply a remedy in parliament; which then miscarried for want of the royal assent. However, by the statute 28 Hen. VIII. c. 15, it was enacted, that] all treasons, felonies, robberies, murders, and confederacies on the sea, or within the jurisdiction of the admiralty, [should be tried by commissioners of oyer and terminer under the Great Seal: viz. the admiral, or his deputy, and three or four more, (among whom two common law judges are usually appointed;) and that the indictment being first found by a grand jury of twelve men, should be afterwards tried by a petty jury; and that the course of proceedings should be according to the law of the land.] By 39 Geo. III. c. 37, it was afterwards declared and enacted, that all offences committed on the high seas are offences of the same nature, and liable to the same punishments, as if committed on shore; and may be tried as ap pointed by the 28 Hen. VIII. c. 15: and by 46 Geo. III. c. 54, that all offences committed within the jurisdiction of the admiralty may be determined according to the common law, in any of his majesty's islands or dominions, under the royal commission, in like manner as is provided by the statute of Henry the eighth. It is under these authorities that offences within the jurisdiction of the admiralty are now triable(t); but their trial in England is also regulated by modern statutes, and particularly by 4 & 5 Will. IV. c. 36, 7 & 8 Vict. c. 2, and 24 & 25 Vict. cc. 96, 97, 98, 99, 100. By 4 & 5 Will. IV. c. 36-which first established the "Central Criminal Court," for offences committed in the metropolis and certain parts adjoining (u),—the judge of the admiralty is made, (together with the lord mayor of London, the common law judges, and others,) one of the judges of the central criminal court and it is provided (s. 22), that under any commission of oyer and terminer and gaol delivery, to be issued under the authority of that Act,-such judges, or any two or more of them, may hear and determine any offences committed or alleged to be committed on the high seas, and other places within the jurisdiction of the admiralty; and may deliver the gaol of Newgate, of any person detained therein for such offence. By the 7 & 8 Vict. c. 2 (x), reciting that it is expedient that provision should be made for the trial of persons charged with offences committed at sea, or within the admiralty jurisdiction, without issuing any special commission as required by 28 Hen. (t) See also 45 Geo. 3, c. 72, s. 114 et seq. And 12 & 13 Vict. c. 96, enacting that persons charged in any colony with offences committed on the seas, may be dealt with as though the offence had been committed within the local jurisdiction of such colony. See also 18 & 19 Vict. c. 91, s. 21. As to expenses of prosecution in the Court of Admiralty, see 7 Geo. 4, c. 64, s. 27. (u) As to this court, vide post, p. 395. (x) As to this provision, see R. v. Serva, 2 C. & R. 53; R. v. Jones, ib. 165; The Queen v. Cunningham, 28 L. J. (M. C.) 66. As to the power of justices of the peace, to issue warrants against persons charged with offences committed within the Admiralty jurisdiction, see 11 & 12 Vict. c. 42, s. 8. VIII. c. 15,-it is enacted, that any justices of assize, oyer and terminer, or gaol delivery, may also inquire of and determine all offences so committed; and that all indictments found, and trials and other proceedings before the said justices in such cases, shall be valid. And in each of the statutes of 24 & 25 Victoria above mentioned, (the Criminal Consolidation Acts, 1861,) there is contained a clause to the effect that all indictable offences mentioned in those Acts respectively (comprising larceny, malicious injuries to property, forgery, coinage offences and offences against the person) committed within the jurisdiction of the admiralty of England or Ireland,-shall be deemed to be offences of the same nature, and liable to the same punishment, as if they had been committed upon the land in England or Ireland; and may be dealt with and tried in any place in which the offender shall be apprehended or be in custody (y). [These four courts may be held in any part of the kingdom; and their jurisdiction extends over crimes that arise throughout the whole of it, from one end to the other;] as was also the case with regard to 5, the now disused Court of Chivalry (z). [What follow are also of a general nature; but yet are of a local jurisdiction, and confined to particular districts. Of which species are,― 6, 7. The Courts of Oyer and Terminer, and General Gaol Delivery (a); which are held before the royal commissioners,―among whom are usually two judges of the courts at Westminster,-twice in the year in every county of the kingdom (b);] with an exception to be presently stated, as to the metropolis and its vicinity. [These courts were mentioned in the preceding Book (c): and we then (y) See 24 & 25 Vict. c. 96, s. 115; c. 97, s. 72; c. 98, s. 50; c. 99, s. 36; and c. 100, s. 68. By c. 94, s. 9, a similar provision is inserted with respect to the trial of any persons becoming accessory to any felony within the Admiralty jurisdiction. :: (z) Vide sup. vol. 111. p. 459, n. (1), (a) 4 Inst. 152, 168; 2 Hale, P. C. 22, 32; Hawk. P. C. b. 2, c. 5, s. 6. (b) Vide post, p. 395, n. (o). (c) Vide sup. vol. 1. p. 430 et seq. cc 5 |