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S 945

A.D. 978 x 1016. Writ of King Æthelred declaring that his priests in St Paul's minster are to have their sake and soke within borough and without, and as good laws as ever they had in the days of any king or bishop. English

Archive:

London, St Paul's

MSS:

1. Oxford, Bodleian Library, James 23 (S.C. 3860), p. 32(s. xvii)

Printed:

Gibbs 1939, p. 2; Harmer, Writs, no. 52; Kelly, St Paul's, London, p. 191, Transcription of Old English text of the charter

Translated:

Kelly, St Paul's, London, pp. 191-192, Translation of the Old English text of the charter into Modern English

Comments:

Kelly, St Paul's, London, p. 39, Spurious document purporting to be granted by King Aethelred II, possibly revealing memory of connection between him and St Paul's, London, p. 47, Document of St Paul's, London forged after the Norman Conquest that purports to be from the Anglo-Saxon period, p. 74, Discussion of the difficulty in ascertaining the authenticity of this writ due to its short length, p. 192, Discussion of the probability that this writ is spurious, although the lack of comparable evidence makes this a complicated issue; Chaplais 1966a, p. 171, dubious but no decisive argument against authenticity, may be abbreviated version of a writ of S 1104 (= 1973, p. 56); Barraclough 1954, p. 197 and n. 23, genuine; Gelling, ECTV, no. 234, probably spurious; Harmer, Writs, pp. 235-7, 468, authenticity uncertain; Sharpe 2003, p. 252, authenticity questionable

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  • Metadata

    Text

    • Æþelred kinc grete mine <biscopes> . 7 mine eorles . 7 ealla mine þeinas of þam sciram þær mine preostas on Pales mynstre habbað land inne freondlice . 7 ic cyþe eow þæt ic wille , þæt hig beon heora saca , 7 heora socna weorða æiþer gebinnan burh 7 butan . 7 swa godera laga wyrþe . nu swa ful 7 swa forð swa hig betste wæron on æniges kinges dæge. oþþe on æniges <biscopes> on eallum þingan.
  • Metadata

    Translation

    • [I] King Æthelred send friendly greetings to my <bishops> and my earls and all my thegns in the shires where my priests in St Paul’s minster hold land. And I inform you that it is my will that they be entitled to their sake and soke both within the burh and outside and entitled now to as good laws in all things, as fully and completely, as they ever were in the days of any king or any <bishop>.
  • Metadata

    Old Text

    • Æˇelred kinc grete mine [biscopes] 7 mine eorles 7 ealla mine ˇeinas of ˇam sciram ˇær mine preostas on Pales mynstre habba∂ land inne freondlice 7 ic cyˇe eow 7 ic wille ˇæt hig beon heora saca 7 socna weor∂a æiˇer ge binnan burh 7 butan 7 swa godera laga wyrˇe nu swa ful 7 swa for∂ swa hig betste wæron on æniges kinges dæge oˇˇe on æniges [biscopes] on eallum ˇingan.