168 APPENDIX TO LECTURE III. The Romans having scaled the walls, apprehended some treachery, by reason of the death-like silence that prevailed around the fortress; but soon discovered the slaughtered bodies and learned the dreadful occurrence from the mouths of two women and five children, who, by concealing themselves, had escaped the fulfilment of the fatal compact.-Josephus' Wars, Book vii. Chaps. 8, 9. E. “Ricardus Malebisse, r. c. de XX. Marcis, pro rehabendâ Terrâ suâ usque ad adventum Domini Regis; quæ saisita fuit in manu Regis, propter occisionem Judaeorum Eborac. Et ut Walterus de Carton and Ricardus de Kukeneia Armigeri ejus habeant Pacem Regis usque ad adventum ejus." Mag. Rot. 4 R. I. Rot. 4. b. Everwich. F The following Hebrew Shtar was adduced by the learned John Selden, of the sixteenth century, in order to prove that the title "Sir" was considered part of the possessor's name, so that the Jews of England retained it in their contracts without translating it. מטה מודה הודאה גמורה שפטרתי אני החתום ומחלתי לשי' אדאס משטרטונא וליורשיו ולבאים מחמרו כל מן תביעה ועיעור שיש לי ושיכול להיות ליער המלון כשטנמירא הקטנה בפלך מידלשצע שהאדס הנקו' מחזיק זאת לדעת בקרקע ובאהו ובמרעה ובאגס עם כל האפורטניציע שמקדם היה לשי' אשטייבוא APPENDIX TO LECTURE III. 169 מקינרוט בכן שלא אני ולא יורשי ולא שום אחר בעבורי יכולין לתבוע או לערער על שי' אדאם הנקו' או על יורשיו או על הבאים מכחו על המלון הנקו' עם כל האפורט ניצע הנקו' בעלילת שום חוב שהיה אשטייבנא הנקו' חייב לי או לשום יהודי אחר מבריאת עולם עד סופו ואם שום יהודי בעולם יבא לתבוע או לערער על שי' אדאם הנקו' או על יורשיו או על הבאים מחמרו על המלון משטנמירא הנקו' עם האפורטנצע הנקו' בעלילת שום חוב שהיה אשטייבנא מקינדוט הנקו' חייב לי או לשום יהודי אחר בעולם מבריאת עולם עד סופו עלי ועל יורשי בתראי להגינם ולהצילם ולפוטרס נגד כל המעיערים וזאת התמתי היים דניקול The above shtar, or starr, was very indifferently copied by Selden, and so badly transcribed by Dr. Tovey, that a reference to the original became absolutely necessary, and which was after a little trouble obtained. The original has also a Latin note as follows: "Istud starrum fecit Hagm. fil. Magistri de London, Domino Adæ de Stratona, de acquietantia de STANMERE de omnibus debitis in quibus S. de Cheynduit ei tenebatur. Ita quod idem Judæus nec hæredes sui nihil exigere possint de prædicto Ada nec hæredibus suis ratione terræ de Stanmere de prædictis debitis." "The following specimen of the second kind is a charter of release, made by one Aaron, a Jew of Lincoln, to William Fossard, so early as 1176, A. D., or 22 H. 2, long before the exchequer of the Jews was established. "Sciant omnes legentes et audientes Litteras has, I 170 APPENDIX TO LECTURE III. quod ego Aaron Judæus de Lincolnia, attestatione hujus meæ Cartæ quietum clamavi Willielmum Fossard de toto debito quod ipse vel pater ejus mihi debuerunt; et testificor, quod ipse est quietus de debito quod debuit vel mihi vel Josceo de Eboraco, vel cæteris Judæis subscriptis, viz., Kersun Elyae, Samsoni, Isaac, Judæo Pulcelle, vel ipsi Pulcelle vel Deuecresse de Danemarchia, usque ad festum S. Michaëlis anni Incarnationis Domini millesimi centesimi LXXVI. Hanc quietam clamantiam feci ei pro mille et CC. et LX. marcis unde Monachi de Mealse adquietaverunt eum versus me. Et sciendum quod quasdam Cartas hujus debiti jam reddidi, et eas si quas adhuc penes me habeo quamcitius potero reddam.-Mag. Rot. 9. R. I., Rot. 4. b. Everwichseira." Maddox, in his "Formula Anglicana," gives the following as a specimen of a Jewish shtar, or starr, in the French language. It is a general release from a certain Jew, Fitz-Hagyn by name, who acted as attorney for his father, to a certain John de Say. "Jeo ke suy ensele de suz, reconnuse verreye reconusaunce et testimoine pur mon pere Hagyn le fiz mestre Moss, ke Sire Johan de Say et ses auncestres et ses Heyres quites sunt de mun Pere avaunt dit, et de ses heyrs, et de tuz ses enfaunz, et de moy, et de mes heirs, et de mes assignes, de totes dettes, demaundes, chalendes, et plegages, ke eus a nus esteint tenuz, par Chartre u par nule Cirographe, u autre estrument; fetes avaunt ke cest Estar, del commencement du Secle dek a la fyn. Et si seit trove Chartre, u taille, u autre estrument, sur le nun le avaunt dit Sire Johan, u akeun de ces auncestres, u akeun de ses heires, e en le nun mun pere avaunt dit, u akeun de APPENDIX TO LECTURE III. 171 ses heires, u akeun de sez enfaunz, u en mun nun, u akeun di mes auncestres, u de mes heires, en la Huche nostre Seynur le Rey, u de hors, fetes avaunt ke cest Estar fu feyt; Je reconus et tesmoyne pur mun pere avaunt dit, et pur tuz ses heirs, et pur ses enfaunz, et pur moy, et pur mes heires, et pur mes enfaunz et assignes, ke quites seent a tuz jurz, et ren ne vaylet. E Jo et mes heires warrantirum aquiterum et defenderum le avaunt dit Sire Johan de Say, et ses heires, enver mun pere avaunt dit, et envers tuz ses heires, et ses assignes de tuttes dettes ke la avaunt dit Sire Johan a eus esteynt tenuz avaunt cest Estar fu fet, du comencement du secle dek a la fin. Act le Venderdi prochein apres la Seinte Lucy, lan du Regne le Re Edeward le fiz le Rey Henry, secund. E ceo ke jeo ay reconu, ai ensele cum aturne mun pere avaunt dit en ceste chose. "JACOB LE FIZ HAGIN." G. "Court of Star-Chamber (camera stellata), a famous, or rather infamous English tribunal, said to have been so called, either from a Saxon word, signifying to steer or govern; or for its punishing the crimen stellionatus, or cosenage; or because the room wherein it sat-the old council-chamber of the palace of Westminster (Lamb. 148), which is now converted into the lottery-office, and forms the eastern side of the new palace-yard-was full of windows; or (to which Sir Edward Coke, 4 Inst. 66, accedes), because haply the roof thereof was at the first garnished with gilded stars. As all these are merely conjec 172 APPENDIX TO LECTURE III. tures (for no stars are now in the roof, nor are any said to have remained there so late as the reign of Queen Elizabeth), it may be allowable to propose another conjectural etymology, as plausible, perhaps, as any of them. It is well known that, before the banishment of the Jews under Edward I., their contracts and obligations were denominated in our ancient records starra, or starrs, from a corruption of the Hebrew word shetar, a covenant. These starrs, by an ordinance of Richard the First, preserved by Hoveden, were commanded to be enrolled and deposited in chests, under three keys, in certain places; one, and the most considerable, of which was in the king's exchequer at Westminster; and no starr was allowed to be valid, unless it were found in some of the said repositories. The room at the exchequer, where the chests containing these starrs were kept, was probably called the star-chamber, and when the Jews were expelled the kingdom, was applied to the use of the king's council, sitting in their judicial capacity. To confirm this, the first time the starchamber is mentioned in any record, it is said to have been situated near the receipt of the exchequer at Westminster (the king's council, his chancellor, treasurer, justices, and other sages, were assembled en la chaumber des esteilles presta resceipt at Westminster, Clause 41, Edw. III. m. 13). For in process of time, when the meaning of the Jewish starrs were forgotten, the word star-chamber was naturally rendered in law French, la chaumbre des esteilles, and in law Latin, camera stellata, which continued to be the style in Latin till the dissolution of that court.' Encyclopædia Britannica. |