The Assize of Northampton, largely based on the Assize of Clarendon of 1166, is among a series of measures taken by King Henry II of England which solidified the rights of the knightly tenants and made all possession of land subject to and guaranteed by royal law. The Assize of Clarendon was an act of King Henry II of England of 1166, whereby trial by jury became the norm in England, replacing unfair alternatives such as trial by combat. ... Events Marko III succeeds Yoannis V as patriarch of Alexandria. ... Henry II of England, depicted in Cassells History of England, Century Edition, published circa 1902 Henry II (March 5, 1133 – July 6, 1189), ruled as Duke of Anjou and as King of England (1154–1189) and, at various times, controlled parts of Wales, Scotland, eastern Ireland, and western France. ...
The assize is believed to have been passed at a council held in Northampton in January 1176. The assize contained severe penalties for various offences and gave the justices substantial powers at the expense of the sheriffs. The assize is connected with the reorganisation of itinerant justices and contains instructions for six groups of justices appointed to tour the country. Later clauses deal with the introduction of important new legislation, chiefly the king's right to have certain cases brought into his court. This article is about Northampton, England. ... Events May 22 - Murder attempt by the Hashshashin on Saladin near Aleppo Raynald of Chatillon released from prison in Aleppo May 29 - Frederick Barbarossa is defeated in the Battle of Legnano by the Lombard League leading to the pactum Anagninum (the Agreement of Anagni) September 17 - Seljuk Turks defeat Manuel... Sheriff is both a political and a legal office held under English common law, Scots law or American common law, or the person who holds such office. ...
The Assize of Northampton is also the first official document to contain information on the possessory assizes of mort d'ancestor and novel disseisin.
ASSIZE OF NORTHAMPTON, a short code of English laws issued in 1176, is drawn up in the form of instructions to six committees of three judges each, which were to visit the six circuits into which England was divided for the purpose.
As compared with the earlier assize it prescribes greater severity of punishment for criminal offences; arson and forgery were henceforth to be crimes about which the jurors are to enquire; and those who failed at the ordeal were to lose a hand as well as a foot.
The royal bailiffs were to answer at the exchequer for rents of assize and all the perquisites which they made in their offices, and apparently the duty of enforcing this provision was entrusted to the justices.
Northampton is a large market town and a local government district in central England on the River Nene, and the county town of Northamptonshire, in the English East Midlands region.
Northampton is the most populous district in England not to be a unitary authority, a status it failed to obtain in the 1990s local government reform.
Northampton's growth was accelerated in the 19th century, first by the Grand Union Canal, which reached the town in 1815 and later the coming of the railways.