English law English law is the common law list of national legal systems, legal system of England and Wales, comprising mainly English criminal law, criminal law and Civil law (common law), civil law, each branch having its own Courts of England and Wales, ...

, the assize of darrein presentment ("last presentation") was an action brought to determine who was the last patron to appoint to a vacant church

benefice A benefice () or living is a reward received in exchange for services rendered and as a retainer for future services. The Roman Empire used the Latin term as a benefit to an individual from the Empire for services rendered. Its use was adopted by ...

– and thus who could next appoint – when the plaintiff complained that he was deforced or unlawfully deprived of the right to appoint by the defendant.

Origins

In the

Constitutions of Clarendon The Constitutions of Clarendon were a set of legislative procedures enacted by Henry II of England in 1164. The Constitutions were composed of 16 articles and represented an attempt to restrict ecclesiastical privileges and to curb the power of t ...

of 1164,

Henry II of England Henry II () was King of England The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the form of government used by the United Kingdom by which a hereditary monarch reigns as the head of state, with the ...

laid down the principle that "If a dispute shall arise ... concerning

advowson Advowson () or patronage is the right in English law of a patron (avowee) to present to the diocesan bishop (or in some cases the ordinary if not the same person) a nominee for appointment to a vacant ecclesiastical benefice or church living, a ...

and presentation to churches, let it be treated and concluded in the court of the king". While a controversial element in his (generally controversial) demarcation of church and state, in practice advowsons remained lay property in England; and some time after the 1166

Assize of Clarendon The Assize of Clarendon was an act of Henry II of England in 1166 that began a transformation of English law and led to Jury trial, trial by jury in common law countries worldwide, and that established assize courts. Prior systems for deciding ...

– probably around 1179 – Henry introduced the writ of darrein presentment, to provide a speedy judgement in cases of advowson dispute. The Third Lateran Council of 1179 required that the local bishop appoint to church vacancies that had lasted longer than three months, thus injecting a new urgency into disputes over the right of presentation. By having a jury decide who had last presented to the church in question (in peacetime), and giving them (or their heirs) the current right of presentation, the new writ offered a swift and popular solution to a much litigated area.

Development

So popular indeed was the new assize that

Magna Carta (Medieval Latin for "Great Charter"), sometimes spelled Magna Charta, is a royal charter of rights agreed to by King John of England at Runnymede, near Windsor, on 15 June 1215. First drafted by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Cardin ...

would provide for easier access in section 18, which stated that "Inquests of ... darrein presentment shall not be held elsewhere than in the county in which they arise, and ... four times a year". Legal complications arising from changes in church tenure during the last holder's lifetime meant that darrein presentment would eventually be supplemented by the action ''

quare impedit In English law, ''quare impedit'' was a writ commencing a common law action for deciding a disputed right of presentation to a benefice, a right known as an advowson. It was typically brought by a patron against a bishop who refuses to appoint the ...

''. Like the other two petty assizes, darrein presentment was finally abolished in 1833.

Origins

Development

See also

References

Further reading