icts and
a higher one for urban districts, because the burgesses had
greater wealth and much of it was hard to uncover because it was
in the possession of customers and debtors. It was usually 1/10 th
for towns and royal domains and 1/15 th in the country. This amount
of money collected by this tax increased with the wealth of the
country.

The king takes custody of lands of lunatics and idiots, as well as
escheats of land falling by descent to aliens. Henry III took 20s.
from his tenants-in-chief for the marriage of his daughter, and
two pounds for the knighting of his son.

By 1250, the king was hiring soldiers at 2s. per day for knights,
and 9d. a day for less heavily armed soldiers, and 6d. a day for
crossbowmen. Some castle-guard was done by watchmen hired at 2d.
a day. Ships were impressed when needed. Sometimes private ships
were authorized to ravage the French coasts and take what spoil
they could.

While King Henry III was underage, there was much controversy as
to who should be his ministers of state, such as justiciar,
chancellor, and treasurer. This led to the concept that they
should not be chosen by the king alone. After he came of age,
elected men from the baronage fought to have meetings and his
small council in several conferences called great councils or
parliaments (from French "to speak the mind") to discuss the
levying of taxes and the solution of difficult legal cases, the
implementation of the Magna Carta, the appointment of the king's
ministers and sheriffs, and the receipt and consideration of
petitions. The barons paid 1/30 th tax on their moveable property
to have three barons of their choice added to the council.
Statutes were enacted. Landholders were given the duty of electing
four of their members in every county to ensure that the sheriff
observed the law and to report his misdemeanors to the justiciar.
They were also given the duty of electing four men from the county
from whom the exchequer was to choose the sheriff of the year.
Earl Montfort and certain barons forced King Henry III to summon a
great council or parliament in 1265 in which the common people
were represented officially by two knights from every county, two
burgesses from every borough, and two representatives from each
major port. So the King's permanent small council became a
separate body from parliament and its members took a specific
councilor's oath in 1257 to give faithful counsel, to keep
secrecy, to prevent