The Sun.
London, England, 1858-07-24 00:00:00

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OTAMPED

The . learned counsel havi,ng concluded hi.
addreso,
Tueir 1 ,rdships adjourned without naniiogla day
for the further consideration of ti*ease.

ftisim ; and-we could only
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England or any other couoti:y his had to sh6.w.•
emain. N;t only
other men Will fill their paces, but a different kind
ofjpower will ocoUpy -their throne ; a IFSN 1-01,21,d,
if It More Mort wild- in 'gilt at.tileir council board_
..5.111,y 'period is setting in ; and the morning is a
chill and cloudy one. Whatever the new day may
turnotir, the coming time ean.hardlyb3 so remark-
able, so dignified, so exemplary in a constitutional
sei;witie. e 1,1• tcicxnic)li'rseos
with tehtieviexatshaictaotnioonf 21
thgel cry, as
East
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mpaDy.

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LA W INTELI. IGENOE.---July 23.

HOUSE OF LORDS.

CO2.E.IITTE OF FRIVILEGS -THE BERKELEY PEER
AGE.

'The Haase of Lords assembled; this day as a com-
mittee for privileges,-on :he .claim, of Sic Maurice
'Frederick Fitzhardinge Berkeley, K. C.K.,. of BFrI
keley Castle, in • the county of Glencester, and
Vice-Adeekral'of the White, to the title, -honour,
and dignity of Baron Berkeley. .
Amongst the noble and learned lords present
were Lord Redesdale, chairman ; the Lord Chan-
cellor, Lord St. Leonard?, Lerd Cran.worth, rtre.
Mr. Fleming was counsel for Vie petitioner.
The Attorney-General, with whom was Mr.
Ben tiack,- watched the Case on behalf of the Crown.
Mr. Fleming, in opening the case, said he had
the honour tq appear at their lordships' bar as coun-
sel for the petitioner,'Sir Miurice Berkeley, who
preyed their lordships to acknowledge him as
Baron of Berkeley,
,and grant him a writ of sum-
mons. This was a.claim by 'prescriptioe, the peti-
tioner being seised as tenant for life in poeFession
of the Caitle of Berkeley and of the manors and
hereditaments which had from fme .beyond me-
mory constituted thelarony, and by the tenure of
-which his ancestors had enjoyed the title. If the
prescription could be once established, the,claimant
would be clearly entitled, 'unless the prescription
Wes contrary to. law, had been extinguished ,by a
statute, or lost by user. :conducting
this case he. should have", a great advan-
tage. This illustrious and pre-eminently his;
torical family had carefully preerved all their
records, so that be should ba able,' as it were, to
`produce before their lordships' house every Baron
of Berkeley, and to make Lim declare that ha held
the title by tenure, and as such was entitled to sit
in Parliament as a baron of the .realm. The peti-
tioner's predecessors had held the castle and manors
per baroniam. Robert Fitz-Harding having • dia.-
tinguished himself, the barony of Berkeley, and all
Berkeley Hernesse, was granted to him and his son
Maurice by Heery,ll. Robert Fitz-Harding was.
succeeded by his sin Maurice, who bore the name
Of Berkeley. It would be proved: Ly a' charter
dated Oat. 30,
.in the first year of the reign of her
son King Richard 1., Queen Eleanor, acting on his
behalf, granted and confirmed to Maurice and his
heirs Berkeley and all Berkeley Hernesse, to b 3
held in barony, as testified by the charters of her.
hand, King Henry, and her sea King Richard.
He died in 1193, and 'was succeeded by his son
directed
Eeeritegdlan d, R )hert Fitz-Maurice de Derke!ey, who gave l,'ooo/.
for livery of his inheritance. On Richard's return
be confirmed to Robert a charter which
that he and his heirs should hold the here-
di taments therein mentioned as peaceably and fully
es they were held in the time of King Henry, ilia
great grandfather of the King. R bert de Berke-
ley died without is eu e in the 4th year of Henry
and was succeeded by hiabrother Thomas, who, on
payment of 1001., which, according to tha then
state of the law, was tha' relief payable by 'a
baron, had livery of all his lands save the
Castle of Berkeley. But on giving hostages for
the safe keeping of the castle it was restored to
him. In 1241 be was summoned to attend

the King -into Gasoony, but was excused on the.
payment of fine and on sending his eldest son and
otherknights-to take part in the expedition. He
was succeeded in 1281 by his e'dst son, Maurice,
who did homage for his 'inheritance, and was sum-
moned with th 3 earls and barons and whers owing
service to the King to attend him in his war against
the Sco's. He was also sitcceeded by his eldest sne
Thomas de Berkeley, -who was summoned to Parlia-
ment in the 23d of Edward the First, and in all
succeeding Parliaments. H 3 was also summoned
to the coronation of E !ward the Second, and it
was admitted by the A,terney-General in certain
proceedings, on a quo warranto, taken in the
King's behalf, against Thomas de Berkeley, that ho
held the castle of Berkeley, and his other inherit-
ance, per baroniam ; and so it was found by inqui-
sition t kken after his death. He left issue his eon
and heir Maurice, who was sumincn d to Parlia-
ment during his father's lifetime, and who did
homage for the lands. On the 12th of November,
in the 15-h year of the reign of E 'ward the Second
Maurice and othei peers received a royal mandate
commanding them not to attmd a Parliament
called by the E .rl of Lancaster to meet at Don-
caster. Ho disobeyed this prohibition, and took
up arms iu the Earl's cause, whith was not success=
ful, and the King having seized- on the person of
Maurice, sent him a prisoner to the Castle of Wal-
lingford, where he died in 1326, and was succeeded

by his son Thomas,'who did hemage and obtained
livery of his inheritance in the Ist year of the
reign .of Edward HI. This Thomas, by a line,
entailed the castle and all the hereditatnents.
Before he made it, and after cards, he was sum-
moned, and was on several occasions .present as a.
peer of Parliament. In 1361 he was succeeded by
his son Maurice, who obtained livery of the estates,
which, in certain proceedings held in the Court of
Exchequer in Hilary Term, 37 Edward 111., were
found to constitute the barony of Berkeley. He
was regularly summoned, to Parliament until the
pa; iod of his death. Me had two sons, Thomas and
James, and was succesded by the former, who had.
livery of his inheritance Ho was summoned to
Parliament from the sth of. Richard 11. to sth
Henry V., and sat on several occasions in the House
of L )rds. He married Margaret, (laugh-et. and
heir of Warine de Lisle, of Kingston Lisle, and
succeeded in her right to very large estates. By
her he had issue one child, Elizabeth, who in her
father's life
,time married Richard Beauchamp,
Eirl of Warwick. She succeeded to all her father's
estates, and took possession of Berkeley Castle.
The right heir was janies Berkeley, the sm. of
James, brother of Thomas Lord Berkeley, but the
influence of the Earl and Countess of Warwick kept
him out of possession until th 91n of Henry the
Fifth, when he obtained livery bf the land; as heir
in tail, and was summoned to Parliament. He mar-
ried Isabella, daughter of Thomas Mowbray,
Duke
of Norfolk, and had issue by her William and
Maurine. James Lord Berkeley died iu 1463, and
was succeeded by his eldest son, William. He was
summoned to Parliament, and was created Vi-
count Berkeley in the 22d Eitvard the Fourth.
On the accession of King Richard the Third
he was created Earl of Nottingham. In 1485
he was made Earl Marshal of England, and in 1488
he was created Marquis of Berkeley, with limita-
tion of those dignities to the heirs male of his
body. Having taken a dislike to his brother. and
heir presumptive, Maurice, he settled the castlQ
hereditaments, on f+ilu•e of his 0411 issue, upon
ICH lioLtry and the heirs male of his body, with
remainder to his own heirs. Oa the death of the
Marquis without issue in 1491 the castle and here-
di tamenta constituting the barony devolved on the
King, so that Maurice Berkeley, the brother and
heir of the Marquis; continued to be, and acted in
every respect as, a commoner. This proved that
the title depended on the possession of the castle
and estates. SD his son Maurice was a commoner,
and at the coronation of Henry VIII. was made a
knight of the Bath. The King having summoned
a Parliament to meet at Westminster, in 1523,
created Sir Maurice Berkeley a peer. e was suc-
ceeded by h's brother, Thomas Berkeley, who was
admitted to be a peer, and in 1532 was appointed
by the King constable of Berkeley Castle. He was
succeeded by his son and heir, Thomas, who left
issue Henry Lord Berkeley, who, on the death of
King Edward VI. became entitled to the castle and
barony of Berkeley and the prescriptive pesrage
enjoyed by his predecessors. He died iu 1613,
and was succeeded by bis grandson, then 12 years
of age, whosubsequently took his seat in Parliament.
In the roll of the nobility of England of 1621 he
was placed next to the Lord Delaware. He
died in 1658, and was succeeded by his eldest
surviving son, George, who presented a petition
to the King, claiming precedence over Lord
Delawarr. The question thus raised was not
brought to an isue, owing to Lord Berkeley's
elevation as Viscount Dursley and Earl of Ber-
keley. The castle and barony descended in direct
succession to Frederick Augustus, Earl and Baron
of Berkeley, the petitioner's father, who died in
August, 1810, and was succeeded by his eldest son, .
who claimed the title of Baron Berkeley, but 10
having in 1831 been created Lord Segrave, and sub-
sequently Earl Fitzhardinge, did not prosecute the
claim.. He. died unmarried on the 19th of. October
last, and on his death the castle and hereditaments
constituting the barony devolved OR the petitioer.