The Role of the Judiciary in the 17th Century

Join us for a captivating talk on the reputation and role of the judiciary during the reigns of James I and Charles I by Dr. Monaghan, Principal Lecturer in Law and Director of the Constitutions, Rights and Justice Research Group at the University of Worcester. Dr. Monaghan is a distinguished scholar of constitutional law, accountability, and human rights, with numerous publications to his credit.

Dr. Monaghan will explore how judges both challenged and upheld royal authority in a time of profound constitutional conflict.

The discussion will begin with the esteemed Sir Edward Coke CJ, the most prominent judge of the era, who famously opposed royal prerogative in the Case of Proclamations (1611), declaring that “the king hath no prerogative but that which the law of the land allows him.”

The talk will then focus on later events, including the Five Knights’ Case (1627) and Hampden’s Case (1637), which revealed the judiciary’s increasing complicity in Charles I’s controversial use of royal prerogative. This growing tension led to the judiciary becoming adversaries of the Long Parliament, setting the stage for the English Civil Wars.