The Right of Sanctuary. name in the Sanctuary Register, the clerk of the court received four pence. Concerning this register, most of the entries are in Latin; a few however are in English, and here is a sample. " M. that John Sprot of Barton upon Umber in the counte of Lyncoln.jintleman com to Beverlay the ferst day of October the vij yer of the raen of Keng Herre vij, and asked the lybertes of Sant John of Beverlay for the dethe of John Welton, husbandman of the sam toon, and aknawleg hym selff to be at the kyllyng of the saym John wt a dager the XV day of August." At one period the custom prevailed of compelling refugees, if forty days passed without their coming to terms with those they had injured, to abjure the country, and to swear that they would not return without the king's license. The following is an ex ample of the oath of confession and abjura tion: "This hear thou, Sir Coroner, that I, M. of H., am a robber of sheep or of any other beast, or a murderer of one or of mo, and a felon of our lord, the King of England; and because I have done many such evils or robberies in his land, I do abjure the land of our Lord Edward, King of England, and I shall haste me towards the port of such a place which thou hast given me; and that I shall not go out of the highway; and if I do, I will that I be taken as a rob ber and a felon of our lord the King; and that at such a place I will diligently seek for passage, and that I will tarry there but one flood and ebb, if I can have passage; and unless I can have it in such a place, I will go every day into the sea up to my knees, assaying to pass over; and unless I can do this within forty days I will put my self again into the church as a robber and a felon of our Lord the King; so God me help and His holy judgment." It seems that this abjuration act sent too many skilled artisans out of the country, so Henry VIII substituted another act therefor, which ordained that the criminal, instead of
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abjuring the realm, should abjure his liberty to go free therein, and should abide for life as a sanctuary person abjured, in some refuge appointed by the coroner. He was also to be branded on the thumb with an A, that he might be known among the King's subjects to have abjured. As among the Greek rulers, so among the kings of England, the institution of sanctuary was held in fluctuating regard. Some looked upon it as an inviolable right of the church, others maintained that it was a right subservient to law. Notorious among the latter was Henry II, who, according to Knyghton, snatched delinquents from the very altar without scruple. One of the most flagrant breaches of the ancient privilege occurred in 1378. Sir John Shackle and Sir Robert Haule, having escaped from the Tower, took refuge in Westminster. They were pursued by Boxhall, constable of the Tower, and Sir Ralph Ferrers with fifty armed men. Mass was being celebrated when the pursuers came up, but regardless of time, place, or the rights of sanctuary, they burst into the church after the fugitives. Shackle escaped, but Haule was intercepted. He fled round the choir twice, his enemies hacking at him as he ran, until, pierced with twelve wounds, he sank dead at the prior's stall. Sir Robert was regarded as a martyr to the desecrated rights of the abbey, and he was honored with a burial within its walls. He was the first to be laid in the south transept, and was followed a few years later by Chaucer, who was interred at his feet. The dastardly deed of Boxhall and Ferrers created such a sensation that the abbey was shut up for four months, and Parliament was suspended lest its assembly should be polluted by sitting within the desecrated precincts. Among the refugees to Westminster were several representatives of royalty. Queen Elizabeth, widow of Edward IV, took sanctuary there with her son, against the malice
