The National Register. — London, England, 1821-07-09 00:00:00

o Tu - tpt pationat Our ittno, ConiiMutton, anb liainil. No. 1,321.—V0L. xn .3 HER MAJESTY'S CLAIM to be CROWNED. PRIVY COUNCIL. Thorsdiv being the tune fixed for hearing the le till art:Jonems of liar Majesty's Counsel in support of the Queen's formal memorial to enjoy the ceremony of the c.iratiatit it, conjunction with the King. her Nal jesty's Attorney and Solicitor• General, Mr. 11 -ham and Mr Dell111:111 arrived at Whitehall at ten o'clock, and were immediate's , ushered into the council-room, where they were received by the following members of the council, who sat no the occasion.—The Lord Chan cellor, their Royal Highnesses the !bikes of York and Clarence ; the Dukes of ‘Velliil g ton, Montrose and Beaufort ; siarquisseaCamden, I lertford, and Cholinott (ldes ; Earls Donoughmore, liarrowby, Bathurst, and Bridgewater; and about thirty other Peers; the largest number of Privy Councillors ever known to attend a council—Chief dodoes Abbot sod Dallas, and the Carel Boron, the King's Attorney and Solicitor General, Mr. l'iernee, Sir James Macintosh, and a considerable num ber of . itietril•ers of the blou , e of Commons, were also present. Toe chamber was crowded to excess. At half-past ten o'clock the clerk of the mined pro ceeded to read het Majesty's three memorials to be heard Ly her counsel, and also the order made in compliance %vial) the Queen's anheation. Mr. BROUGHAM opened the pleading about half-past ten o'clock, the customary forms having been first gone through. lie was occupied for a considerable portion of time in tracing the Saxon SIICiiIfSSIOIIS through the ceremonial history of their coronations which were cele brated during their reigns. Ile;nursited the sante line of inquiry through the several Norman reigns' down to the vigil of King John, pointing out from the bearing of cir cumstances connected with the solemnized coronations the general policy which guided them, the principle of right as it regarded the QIICI.7IIS, which was established by them, together with tile motives and accidents which had caused any seeming interruption of the acknowledg ment of that right on particular occasions. Ile found • that down to the time of Henry 111. there bad been eight coronatiofisrnf Kings of England solemnized with out the coroesittieVo of their queens, and that there had been eight coronations oh queens, with or without kings, celebrated for those queens alone, and without any com mixture of the same solemnities petformed at the time on behalf of the hogs. There had been eight kings, including William Rufus, who died . unmarriecl,crowttud without queen, and in the same period of time had there been eight qtwens crowned without kings. Henry 111. WAS crowned in 1716, before he was married. Having wedded Eleanor, Jan. 14, 1220, she was crowned alone, iu about six clays after, the king himself being present to do the ceremony the more honour, not in the exercise of his power as soveleign of the realm, but as one of the higheat rank in the state; and according to Matthew Prior, the sword of Edward the Confessor, called the Sword Cortanea, was carried before him as a token of the authority of the constable of the palace, the particu lar function of which was, to prevent any thing from bcitig done wrong in the course of the ceremony. Ed ward the First'and Second were crowned without their querns. Edward the First was married to Anne in August, 1274. Edward the Second wedded Eleanor of France. and whe'n and where she was crowned, he (Mr. Brougham) had not been able to ascertain. That she was crowned lie had no doubt, and he conceived that he should be able presently to prove it to their lordships by unquestionable references. Edward 111. was crowneti alone, Jan. 26, 13VG. lie married Philippa .early in 1327, who was also crowned alone, April, 1327. — [The book of Westiniiists r, to which it was the nitra tion of the learned counsel to refer to those pans of his case upon which sufficient information was not other wise to be had, was now sent for.) -o.i the last men tioned coronation, be would produce a very curious and important document xisting ; it was the proclamation for Queeu Phillipa's coronation, itt which the Barons of the Cinque Ports were called on to +attend the ceremony, and perform snit and service, as they were bound to du at the king's coronation. The mcfama was in the very came toms as that which had been issued fur the conmaiiiiti of the kimr., and the very same services were to be mattered. Richard 11. was crowned July 16. 1377, and married Aline in 1383, January 14. who was crowned by herself on the e2d of the saner month. At the death of Anne be slurried Isabella, and in 1397 (as would he seen by the Close Roll in the 'Dower) I %ARAL' was crowned alone. The order remained w hick was Men issued to the sheriffs to MIIIIIIIOII all persons who, by the nature of their tenures or offices, were bound to do service at the king's coronation, to come forward amid do the likestreiees for ihe coronation of the V men con iasrt, in which the king was In l a ke n o part. In the Lotion Manuscripts hi the British, Museum, thou was a document of a most remarkable en:oat:ter, which he would tortitiois ill their lottlsisilis. lit particular he con sidered it of very great importatice to the elucidation of the soltFet before them; but lie did not know that he would have taken notice of it but for the general prin ciple which it contained. It was au order preseribing flit f Milli 11l which the Cololo4llPli of the Quern was lie celebrated, and cont.toted these %cry remarkable Words • MONDAY. ItJtV . 9, 1821. " Hens inities cadent mob isiCoronationaut Regionn tsi lit Cull UlOahu Regis, girt solo Coroatato." _ . Henry IV. was crowned 14th October, 1399. He was twice married. His first wife, Mary, died before he came to the throne. His Queen .lovainia was crowned with hint. Henry V. in 1413, the eighth yearof his reign, came (Mill Prance to attend the coronation of his Queen Cat het Me. The Close Roll of the Tower proved that she was crowned alone, and that suit and se:vice were performed for her arliTacen Consort, in the saw* manner as had been done fur the King. On the acces sion of Henry VI. he was an infant; he was twice crowned ; once in England, iii 1429, and attain in France, in 1431. He wasmarried after both coronations, and his Queen, Margaret, was crowned alone in 1445. Here he would, with their Lordships permission, step aside to consider what had been the rule and poet:dent of Scotland in these matters', where the saute custom with that which he had been describing had taken place, though the documents for the proof of it were by no means so clear or ix:acct. Hut this lie was prepared to maintain, that there was no instance in the history of Scaailand in which a Queen Consort had not been crowned with or without her husband. He stated this in the broadest terms, and lie put it on those who asserted the couttary, to disprove 111111. The 1C.13011 mid principle on which he gtomuled this assertion mainly was a very remarkable ciscuitistance in the statute law„ of Scotland, %vial iegard to the rialit of Queens Consort to coronation. lie held m his hand the Look which contlined the whole statute law of the kingdom, as it h id remained for one particular period of two centuries. The statute in question prescribed au oath of allegiance to be taken to toe Queen Consort ; and it was passed in the Bth Parliament of James I. of Scotland in the year 1429, and was to be found in chap. 1119 in the enact. menu of that year of his reign. In the folio edition of the statutes the terms of the oath were to be assumed as terms of succession, and were held to apply in !wits and successors throughout all tinte.—.lle roinid front Murray', Digeil of the Statutes with the Commentaries upon them, that the oath was held to lre of the sante nice and ins- portauce in all respects as the oath of allegiance taken to the King. That he had a right to refer to Scotch pri c.::- dents lie was fully prepared to maiiitaiii—since the Jet of Scottish union made the interests of the kingdoms the same. Besides which, lie had only to refer their land ships,niany of whom mug have brew personally engaged in them, to the debates on the first Regency in the last reign, in the report on which Scotch precedents were mentioned and reasoned upon the same as English pre dents. The learned counsel then returned to the English successions, and stated the particular circumstances be longing to the corona! ceremonies of Henry VII. upon which it is apprehended the strenAth of the oppoidte case will be rested. The learned getillinian then applied for permission to withdraw to consult the " Giber He:- galls," which was necessary to his argument, and which he could not have done before without permission 01 their I airdships. Mr. Brougham, Mr. Denman, and Dr. itishington their withdrew bur about half au hour, when NI r. 13ronghatn stated to their Lordships that he feared lie should require sit hour longer. Lords Llclon, Liverpool, and Sidniouth spoke of the uncertainty in which this kit the Court. They also wished to know, whether further counsel were to be heard for herklajesty, to ause otherwise the council could adjourn ri:l foZirlf el k. Mr. BROUG NA* telil • that it was essential to I • In consult the i.der liego ' idly before lie erotic' proceed with his arpliICIII; bun lifitaiculated that lie should be able to conclude his aril, int at the next hewing, whew ever that was granted. It was wily desired that her 114.isty's Solicitor General should be heard in further implant of the Queen's Iw:twirl'''. laird Et.trug.--I fea i LAC __ 1111 l Cil adjourn till to-morrow'. would yourarguments be finished in the course of the day? Mr. Buoudnamt.-1 certainly dunk so. Lord ELDON, after mistiliiiig with the Council for u short time, said that as theme was business in another place (the House of Lords), it was deemed most advisable to adjourn till Friday morning at ten e.'clock ; and if low are; ins or the Queen's mime! were nut concluded Ly . four o'clock, to ies 1111 l c their Within' in the inenii,g. Pile Crushed adjourned accordingly, at a quartet before two, till ten the next tit robing. DAT-IKIDAY, JULY 6. Tile 011111C11 re•ASSVIIIIIICd MIS 111011111)g 10 he IT lilt . COI 11111 l tatloll of the arg iiiii ent in support of her Maj,..say'a claiming to be crowned. 'rite Member.; of the C lined present were the saute who attended yesterday. At ahnut a Tinter pit .3 a teat the &buts were thrown open, and in a few • Mr. BROUGHAM eekAnlicti his address. lie recalled to their inetannies the statement witch he utad.• oil Thursday. and now it woottl be nis duly to ;Toy the facts to the Caw. lie had proved the e..fOloalmo Queens Consult to h•ute bc•rn a usage throughout all ages, and in no instance had a married King been Cruwile(l without the RoleiniOly of coronation being L'IL tended to the Quern. Theft was one exception winch II was Its linsicess to notice—lit al of Cll.lric, I. iu which lie had a fig,:lt to aa•utne .hat particular Luctonetances had led to Wu 4:actinic... lie wittcu4cd, however, that Piuci as he had shewn the coronation of Queens Consort to all past times, it must be nianikst 11l it if in one or tu 0 instances in the Succession of ages iii which he was not able to prove that circumstance, it would not hoc:diddle his arginnent. Supposing such a case as that of the wife of Charles I. supposing the cases of Qaecals Consort married after the coronation of their husbands—according to all forms of judicial proceeding—according to Jil usodes of legal decision, such cases cou.d nut Maki: siSgoSSUIS WS right of a Queen Consort to be crowned with her husband. Ile hau shewn that every mauled King, since the Revolution, had his Consort crowned with Min. There was one exception, that of George I which he would by and by explain. But supposing the want of uniformity made by this case•-•-supposing the explanation which he had to give most uusatislaciorily and inadequate to the purpose, still he would base a right to rely on what he had proved ; every tiling ought to be assumed in his favour to prevent the one exception front being of ally avail against the general rule, to bring it within the general rule and make it agree with the uniform current of cases. He would ask, in what other way could they be required to establish that or any other right connected with the solemnity of a coronation? in what way could any of the rights subjected to the decision of the Court of Claims be proved? No one denied the rights of the Barons of the Ciiique Ports to support the canopy over the King, anti to claim a portion of it afterwards. Why and how was that claim established Front immemorial usage. lie would like to hear any mail aasert, as a pin position of law, that the Barons were out entitled, be cause it could nut be proved they that they hail in souse instaitces not exercised that right. Ile would like to hear a lawyer state it as a true iiropositi (((( , that the tight was lost and forfeited, because the exercise of it could not in every instance be proved. Such a propositidn would he monstrous. contrary to any principle, legal or constitinional—contrary, therefore, to the fair mealtime, and inference of the case which lie was arguing. Tne Queen claimed a right which was proved to have been umformly enjayed—and the single exception, admitting it to exist, which was allowiog much, and admitting it to be not clearly explained, which was Hindi more, could not discountenance or overthrow that which had in all other instances been enjoyed. He should not trouble their Lordships with any recapitulation of the examples lie had adduced. This was the legal arg um ent iirstipport of her Majesty's claim to be crowned. He hid confined himself strictly to the waiter of law, with out any reference to the existing or attendant circum stances; and lie was happy to know lie was addressing lawyers, and posterity would hereafter took upon the first important decision upon this great question of the lawyers of the loth century widt . the utmost confidence. Mr. I)eNMAN intoned iaiely followed. He commenced by observing that if he had heen the first to argue this question, lie might Wye feared to have left any thing initotiched ; but a ter the address of his learned 'fiend lie approached the subject with opposite feelings—for he (eared lest he should throw unnecessary light upon that which was already sufficiently clear; but in a case of so momentous, gi eat, and moon:alit a nature—so inter woveo with the great institutions of the country--.. 50 interesting to the cause of kingly government, lie felt that he should be Inexcusable if lie did vations which were suggested to him even tinder the tbs. advantages in which he was placed. The learned gem. then very forcibly stated the general argument isi support of this claim, as derived from the nature oft he ceremony of the coronation, and e!uaLolltilell hynutnrcirnved usage. addition to the authorities which Mt. R had Timed, he referred 10 SCltiell's - 1 - 1111 S Of 110110111. lie obseiaed that not only the whittle cereu.orty of the coronation, brit the kin g ly government iiself, the law, and makers of the I.IW, derived their authority f the S.l 111 C cus tom, which was the Ibiutdanon of her M oessy's He observed on the unideasant siluatioo w d. high his ltsajesty would he placed. if, at the moment when lie took th e sole m n oath, to govern aecurdiog to law and custom, 01 the first subject of the realm; II wisest that cerenumy was performed, which owed its existence to custom alone, lie should exclude a part of it, which had always been abseiled when there was a Ito-00'1 that it could lit performed.—Mr Denman then urged a %a riciy of al4alitietits in favour of the claim, and having concluded his argot - nuns. the learned adsucatea and strangers withtbew. TItIRD DAY.—SATURDAY, JULY 7. At an early hour tin% morning the areames leading to the Conned Cdsasither. were thronged with strangers, anxious to hear the argument of the keiy,'s A 'Drury- General agaitit her Majesty's claim to be cruwned.— Long before ',lglu oclock the ante-mom was crowded. A little after ten oclock the Land Cli.seseellor areveil, its.l in a few mimeos ths.Q:seeit's Counsel wets called in. The Kiiia's A tioriley-U.Asei 41 was tlitai, warred to proceed, and conuiutird with his arAtint, to till a quails r after twelve, the Salieitoi Genet d followed 1 , and spoke to orposition to the claim fur about throe tissar•enr of all hour. At a Tinier after one Mr Braitchain ei , mnienced his reply, and haring colic! oiled. straii,sers withdrew. an chc rProakerpers trout the 7 owcr were ea'led The Council shortly after adjourned till l'ucsday, tea o'clock., • •6 S .. i 4 ) (1 rt. \ • of_ A I. 14a • r Yi rM i . i 11Ne