Significance
HENRICUSDei gratiaRexAnglie etFrancie etDominusHibernie Omnibus ad quos presentes littere pervenerint salutem. Sciatis quod cum nos per humilem supplicacionem nobis ex parte Johannis Ratheby Maioris Civitatis nostre Lincolnie ac Civium et inhabitancium ejusdem Civitatis nobis presentatam intellexerimus qualiter nobiles progenitores nostri predecessoribus eorundem Maioris et Civium Civitatem predictam ac suburbia et procinctus eiusdem vna cum diversis libertatibus et franchesiis habendum et tenendum sibi et successoribus suis imperpetuum concesserint Reddendo inde annuatim feodi firmam Centum et quaterviginti librarum ad terminos Pasche et Sancti Michaelis Qualiter eciam prefati Maior Cives et inhabitantes quolibet tempore solucionis quintedecime et decime Centum libras soluunt et quamquam nos de gracia nostra speciali ac auctoritate parliament! nostri prefatos Maiorem Ciues et inhabitantes de certa parcella solucionis huiusmodi decimarum et quintarumdecimarum penitus exoneraverimus et acquietaverimus dicta tamen Ciuitas nostra quid[em] per retraccionem mercatorum eiusdem ac per m'agnam pestilenciam ibidem a longo tempore contiriuatanl ac alia mundi infof tunia adeo depauper-ata existif quod vix ducenti Ciues ibidem morantur quorum aliquis onus solucionis feodi firme predicte minime valet supportare sive sustinere. vltra illos qui huiusmodi onus ante hec tempora sustinuerunt et stipportarunt, de. gratia nostra speciali ac consideracione premis-sorum necnon pro eo quod dicta Ciuitas nostra adeo depauperata et dimiriuta exisfit in releuamen succursum et confortacionem eiusdem Civitatis* et inhabitancium predictorum et specialiter in supportacionem dneris predicti concessimus et licenciam dedimus pro nobis et heredi* bus nostris quantum in nobis est prefatis Maiori ac Ciuibus' quod ipsi et successores sui Maiores et Ciues Ciuitatis predicte terras tenerhehta et redditus ad valorem Centum et viginti librarum per annum vltra reprisas que tarn de nobis quam de aliis in capite tenentur de quibusr cumque personis sibi placueririt perquirere possint et tenere sibi et successoribus suis imperpetuum de capitalibus dominis feodorum illorum-per' servicia inde debita et Consueta et'eisdem"Maiori et Ciuibus quod ipsi et successores sui terras et tenertienta predicta cum pertihentiis a prefafis persohis fecipere possint et tenere 'sibi et successoribus suis predictis vt predictum est imperpetuum absque aliquo impedimenta impeticione sive perturbacidne nostri heredum vel successorum nostrorum Justiciariorum Escaetorum Vicecomitum Coro-natorum Balliuorum aut aliorum Omciariorurh slue Mihistrorum nostrorum heredum vel successorum nostrorum predictorum aut aliorum quorumcumque Statuto de terris et tenementis ad manum mortuam hon ponendis edito non obstante et absque aliquo fine vel feodo ad opus nostrum heredum vel successorum nostrorum predictorum in hac parte capiendo siue soliiendo. Et vlterius de vberiori gratia nostra eoncessimus prefatis Maiori ac Ciuibus Ciuitatis predicte et inhabi-tantibus eiusdem Ciuitatis ac suburbiorum et procinctus eiusdem quod ipsi de solucione quarumcumque deciniarum et "quintarumdecimarum et. cuiuslibet parcelle earundem nobis heredibus vel successoribus nostris predictis aliquo modo exnunc concedendai durante termino quadraginta annorum penitus' sint quieti et exdnerati, aliqua ordina-cione prouisione siue restriccione incontrarium facta slue prouisa facienda siue providenda in aliquo non obstante. ' In cuius rei test!1 monium has litteras ..nostras fieri fecimus patentes.
Lincoln’s charters have been studied by scholars, and there is a lot of scholarship on charters and seals in general which can reveal the significance of this charter.
The seal attached to the charter is known as ‘The Great Seal of England’, also known as “the key of the realm”, the seal used by the monarchs of England. The seal was so important that counterfeiting it was considered treason; it was essential for governing the country, serving to authenticate documents issued by the king and his government – “little of importance could formerly be done without it” (Lyte, 1926, p. 1). English monarchs began sealing documents in the way this charter was sealed in the mid-11th century (McEwan, 2015, p. 320) and The Great Seal continues to exist today, so it is an important part of the country’s history.
A charter is an instrument of law produced in the name of the monarch and gives specific privileges to the person or organisation it is given to (Birch, 1911, p. ix). This charter, granted to the city of Lincoln by Henry VI in 1447 at the request of the city’s mayor John Ratheby, exempted the people of Lincoln from the full payment of a standard tax (the ‘tenths and fifteenths’, one 10th the value of all personal, moveable belongings owned by lay people in the city, one fifteenth for rural inhabitants), because at that time the city had been devastated by plague and its merchants had left (Birch, 1911, pp. xxxvi-xxxvii).
Depiction of Henry VI from an illuminated manuscript.
Image source: British Library - http://www.bl.uk/catalogues/illuminatedmanuscripts/record.asp?MSID=18385