The Laws of Hywel Dda

Yesterday we learned about Hywel Dda ("Howell the Good"), the 10th-century Welsh ruler, and mentioned that the parliament of Wales is housed in a building called "Hywel's House." The reason for this millenia-old tribute is Hywel's legacy in transforming Welsh law.

Wales was originally a number of small kingdoms with their own laws and practices. Hywel brought most of the kingdoms under one rule. For the sake of convenience and fairness, he created a set of laws that would apply to all the territories over which he had influence. Or did he?

Known in Welsh as Cyfraith Hywel, the Laws of Hywel (the earliest copies we have are Latin versions from the early 13th century) have a prologue that explains how Hywel called on priests and lawyers to meet in Dyfed and create a common set of laws. This anecdote might not be true: since we have no earlier Welsh versions, there is a theory that the story of the gathering of lawyers and priests was created specifically to counter the objections of the then-current Archbishop of Canterbury, John Peckham. Peckham, acting on behalf of King Edward I, was very critical of the Welsh, their ruler Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, and the bishop of St. David's in Wales. The gathering of priests might have been a story concocted to suggested that Wales' legal system had Christian influence at the foundation.

Whatever the origin of these laws, cultural memory attributes them to Hywel. One of the features that stands out is recognition of the rights of women. A small sample from a 1915 English translation:

Chap. i. The laws of the women.

1. The first of them is: if a woman be given in marriage, she is to abide by her agweddi (marriage portion) unto the end of the seventh year; and if there be three nights wanting of the seventh current year, and they separate, let them share into two portions everything belonging to them.

54. If a man willeth to separate from his wife, and after he shall have separated, willet another wife; the first, that has been divorced, is free: for no man is to have two wives.

55. Every woman is to go the way she willeth, freely, for she is not to be revenant; and nothing is due from her, except her amobyr (marriage fee), and only one amobyr; for a woman owes no ebedi (a relief payable to the superior lord), only her amobyr; therefore, as a man is to pay only one ebediw, in like manner, a woman is to pay only one amobyr; for there is no ebediw from her, only her amobyr. [link]

Hywel died in 950, but the Law lived on...until 1284 and the Statute of Rhuddlan, that is, which was established by Edward I of England. To do that, however, Edward would have to conquer Wales, but that's a story we'll start tomorrow.

Between King and Archbishop

Antony Bek (c.1245 - 1311) was from a family of knights. He and his brother Thomas attended Oxford University at Merton College in the late 1260s, then entered the clergy. (They were younger sons; an older brother, John, inherited the family lands.)

Prince Edward went on a crusade in 1270 and took Bek with him. After the crusade, Edward in 1274 appointed Bek Keeper of the Wardrobe, an important position in a royal household. One month later, however, Bek was replaced by his brother Thomas and was made Constable of the Tower, responsible for managing the castle when the lord was away.

By 1275 Antony was named archdeacon in Durham as well as holding a few other religious positions. These were gifts that allowed him to collect revenues; he did not have to perform duties in those locations.

A trusted councillor, he was sent to Wales to negotiate a treaty with Llewelyn ap Gruffudd, the Prince of Wales. He was also sent to Aragon to negotiate marriage between Edward's daughter Eleanor to Alfonso III. He also went to Scotland in 1286 after the death of King Alexander III to act on behalf of Alexander's heir, Margaret of Norway, who was engaged to marry Edward's son.

His friendship with Edward allowed him to extend his temporal power when he became Bishop of Durham (see the coat of arms above) in 1283. He tried to control the Benedictine Priory in Durham, a dispute which went to the pope for arbitration and was decided in Ben's favor. Pope Clement V made Bek Patriarch of Jerusalem, which meant he was the most senior member of the clergy in England.

This angered the Archbishop of York, who had jurisdiction over the Priory. When Bek allowed the king's men to arrest two priests in 1293, the Archbishop of York, John le Romeyn, excommunicated him. This was a radical and drastic move against a bishop. Romeyn was hauled before Parliament, who decreed that Bek had been rightly acting in his secular role and not as a bishop, and so Romeyn did not have jurisdiction in this case. Romeyn was imprisoned and fined 4000 marks to King Edward.

Bek survived Edward I, performing the funeral service for him at Westminster Abbey. As the senior clergy in England he was asked to investigate the Templars in 1308 by Edward II. Bek's career had allowed him to gather enough wealth to build Durham Castle's Great Hall, and to expand Auckland Castle (a residence of the Bishops of Durham)and Somerton Castle Inherited from his mother, Eva de Gray).

Bek died 3 March 1311. There was some talk about canonization that went nowhere.

So...about this job he held for one month that was given to his brother, Keeper of the Wardrobe. Did he just manage some noble's clothing? There was more to it than that, which I will go into next time.