Editing Henry III of England (section)

=== Kingship, government and law ===
[[File:Heinrichus tercius.jpg|thumb|upright=1.8|Engraving of Henry's [[Great Seal of the Realm|great seal]]]]

Royal government in England had traditionally centred on several great offices of state, filled by powerful, independent members of the baronage.<ref name=Carpenter2004P353>{{Harvnb|Carpenter|2004|p=353}}</ref> Henry abandoned this policy, leaving the post of justiciar vacant and turning the position of [[Chancellor of the Exchequer|chancellor]] into a more junior role.<ref>{{Harvnb|Carpenter|1990|pp=407–408}}</ref> A small royal council was formed but its role was ill-defined; appointments, patronage, and policy were decided personally by Henry and his immediate advisers, rather than through the larger councils that had marked his early years.<ref>{{Harvnb|Carpenter|1990|p=409}}</ref> The changes made it much harder for those outside Henry's inner circle to influence policy or to pursue legitimate grievances, particularly against the King's friends.<ref name=Carpenter2004P353/>

Henry believed that kings should rule England in a dignified manner, surrounded by ceremony and ecclesiastical ritual.<ref name="Jobson 2012 2">{{Harvnb|Jobson|2012|p=2}}</ref> He thought that his predecessors had allowed the status of the Crown to decline, and sought to correct this during his reign.<ref name="Jobson 2012 2"/> The events of the civil war in Henry's youth deeply affected him, and he adopted [[Anglo-Saxon]] king [[Edward the Confessor]] as his [[patron saint]], hoping to emulate the way in which Edward had brought peace to England and reunited his people in order and harmony.<ref>{{Harvnb|Carpenter|1996|pp=76, 97–99}}; {{Harvnb|Carpenter|2004|p=353}}; {{Harvnb|Ridgeway|2004}}</ref> Henry tried to use his royal authority leniently, hoping to appease the more hostile barons and maintain peace in England.<ref name=ODNB/>

As a result, despite a symbolic emphasis on royal power, Henry's rule was relatively circumscribed and constitutional.<ref name=ODNBCarpenter1996PP7699>{{Harvnb|Carpenter|1996|pp=76, 99}}; {{Harvnb|Ridgeway|2004}}</ref> He generally acted within the terms of the charters, which prevented the Crown from taking extrajudicial action against the barons, including the fines and expropriations that had been common under John.<ref name=ODNBCarpenter1996PP7699/> The charters did not address the sensitive issues of the appointment of royal advisers and the distribution of patronage, and they lacked any means of enforcement if the King chose to ignore them.<ref>{{Harvnb|Carpenter|1990|p=3}}</ref> Henry's rule became lax and careless, resulting in a reduction in royal authority in the provinces and, ultimately, the collapse of his authority at court.<ref>{{Harvnb|Carpenter|1996|p=105}}; {{Harvnb|Ridgeway|2004}}</ref> The inconsistency with which he applied the charters over the course of his rule alienated many barons, even those within his own faction.<ref name=ODNB/>

[[File:1351065-Great Hall, Winchester Castle (2).jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|The Great Hall of [[Winchester Castle]], constructed by Henry]]

The term "[[Parliament of England|parliament]]" first appeared in the 1230s and 1240s to describe large gatherings of the royal court and parliamentary gatherings were held periodically throughout Henry's reign.<ref>{{Harvnb|Carpenter|1996|pp=382–383}}</ref> They were used to agree upon the raising of taxes which, in the 13th century, were single, one-off levies, typically on [[movable property]], and intended to support the King's normal revenues for particular projects.<ref>{{Harvnb|Carpenter|2004|p=355}}</ref>{{Efn|In addition to taxes, the other main source of royal income was the royal manors, which produced revenue through a system called the county farms, traditionally collected through the local sheriffs.<ref>{{Harvnb|Jobson|2012|pp=2–3}}</ref> In 1236 this system was reformed, to avoid the risk of money being misappropriated by the sheriffs; revenues increased by roughly 10 per cent but were still inadequate to support Henry's policies in Europe.<ref name="Jobson 2012 3">{{Harvnb|Jobson|2012|p=3}}</ref>}} During Henry's reign, the counties began to send regular delegations to these parliaments and came to represent a broader cross-section of the community than simply the major barons.<ref>{{Harvnb|Carpenter|1996|pp=390–391}}; {{Harvnb|Carpenter|2004|p=356}}</ref>

Despite the various charters, the provision of royal justice was inconsistent and driven by the needs of immediate politics: sometimes action would be taken to address a legitimate baronial complaint, and on other occasions, the problem would simply be ignored.<ref>{{Harvnb|Carpenter|1996|pp=26, 29, 37, 43}}</ref> The royal [[Eyre (legal term)|eyres]], courts which toured the country to provide justice at the local level, typically for those lesser barons and the gentry claiming grievances against the major lords, had little power, allowing the major barons to dominate the local justice system.<ref>{{Harvnb|Carpenter|1996|p=105}}</ref>

The power of royal sheriffs also declined during Henry's reign. They were now often lesser men appointed by the exchequer, rather than coming from important local families, and they focused on generating revenue for the King.<ref>{{Harvnb|Carpenter|1996|pp=153–155, 177–181}}</ref> Their robust attempts to enforce fines and collect debts generated much unpopularity among the lower classes.<ref>{{Harvnb|Carpenter|2004|pp=352–353}}; {{Harvnb|Ridgeway|2004}}</ref> Unlike his father, Henry did not exploit the large debts that the barons frequently owed to the Crown, and was slow to collect any sums of money due to him.<ref>{{Harvnb|Carpenter|2004|p=343}}; {{Harvnb|Carpenter|1996|pp=88–89}}</ref>