He called Parliament to gather at Westminster Hall (illustration) on 9 April 1258 to raise money. Three days later, Simon de Montfort and others refused the king's request to provide funds. They were given three days to reconsider, and so three days later several earls and barons and knights returned to Westminster, fully armed, to repeat their refusal and told the king he would get his money if he would submit to their policy demands.
Henry had little choice but to agree, and so a commission s formed, 12 chosen by Henry and 12 chosen by the opposition, to meet at Oxford in June and produce a set of changes. The result was the Provisions of Oxford.
The provisions re-organized government and could be called the first constitution. (The Magna Carta was not a reorganization of how government worked; it was a list of policies.) Under the Provisions, Parliament met regularly thrice each year, not just when the king wanted it. A council of 15 was created to manage appointments of ministers instead of having the king pick all his people. Parliament would oversee the council's actions.
Besides 15 members, the council would also include the justiciar, the chancellor, and the treasurer, and others. It was unlikely that the 15 would all be able to hang about the king all the time, so usually a few were around and would decide if any matter was important enough to summon the others. The chancellor, keeper of the king's seal, was forced to agree that he would not use the seal to approve an important grant unless a majority of the 15 greed. These checks and balances were unusual in a monarchy.
In an unusual move, the provisions were copied and sent to all the sheriffs of all the counties in three languages: Latin, French, and (Middle) English. The use of English was a signal of the barons' objection to all the French influences and advisors of the king.
The Provisons of Oxford were only supposed to be in effect for 12 years, until a more permanent and more wide-spread set of changes could be devised. They lasted for one year. I'll explain tomorrow.
