particulars, but the main features are
the same in all. The king's minister was set aside, John was recognised as
the head of the kingdom, and new appointments made to judicial, fiscal,
and military offices. The Archbishop of Rouen, who attended the council,
seeing the turn affairs had taken, no longer hesitated to produce the
letters under the king's sign manual appointing a new commission for the
government of the kingdom.

(M106)

The same day that witnessed the fall of Longchamp was also a memorable one
in the annals of the City of London; for immediately after judgment had
been passed on the chancellor, John and the assembled barons granted to
the citizens "their commune," swearing to preserve untouched the dignities
of the city during the king's pleasure. The citizens on their part swore
fealty to King Richard, and declared their readiness to accept John as
successor to the throne in the event of his brother dying childless.(151)

(M107)

This is the first public recognition of the citizens of London as a body
corporate; but so far from granting to them something new, the very words
_their_ commune (_communam suam_) imply a commune of which they were _de
facto_, if not _de jure_ already in enjoyment. How long the commune may
have been in existence, unauthorised by the crown, cannot be determined;
but that the term _communio_ in connection with the city's organization
was known half a century before, we have already seen;(152) and, according
to the opinion of Giraldus Cambrensis, there is no valid distinction
between the words _communio_, _communa_ and _communia_.(153) Bishop
Stubbs, however, hesitates to translate _communio_ as "commune," the
latter being essentially a French term for a particular form of municipal
government. He prefers to render it "commonalty," "fraternity," or
"franchise," although he goes so far as to allow that the term "suggests
that the communal idea was already in existence as a basis of civic
organization" in Stephen's reign, an idea which became fully developed in
the succeeding reign.(154) He is also in favour of dating the foundation
of the _communa_ in London from this grant by John and the barons,(155)
and in this view he is supported by Richard of Devizes, who distinctly
states that the _communia_ of London was instituted on that occasion, and
that it was of such a character that neither King Richard nor Henry his
father would have conceded it for a million marks of silver, an