Britton

The author of a treatise on the law of England, in Law French, supposed to have been written or published under the direction of Edward I. Lord Coke makes him to be the same person with John Breton who was Bishop of Hereford and a judge, in the reigns of Henry III. and Edward I. 8 Co, pref. 10 Co. pref. This opinion has been disputed by others, (though it has the support of the old chronicler Florilegus, otherwise called Matthew of Westminster,) on the ground that the treatise itself * makes mention of several statutes known to have been passed after this Bishop of Hereford's death, which took place A. D. 1276. Hengham, p. 129, note, cited in Wingate's Britton, pref. 2 Reeves* Hist, Eng, Law, 281. Another opinion is, that the work was written by a judge of the same name with the bishop, and who was a contemporary of Bracton. Hengham, ub. sup. Lord Coke's statement that the bishop published his work in the fifth year of Edward I. can hardly be correct, as the old accounts agree that he died in the third year of that reign. It is reasonably certain, however, that he wrote the work, and that it was published after his death, with additions comprising the statutes above referred to. WingaU*s Britton, pref. The author's name has been variously written, Britton, Briton, Le Breton, Bretaun, and Beektcn; a circumstance not uncommon at that early a^e. The same name has also been given to the work itself; thus, Florilegus above mentioned says of the Bishop of Hereford, that "be wrote a book upon the laws of England, which is called Le Bretoun." Pitseus observes that he compiled from various authors a great volume of laws, which he called Lex Anglicana, or Breton, According to Balseus, the title was De Zegibus Anglkanis; according to F. Godwin, De Jurihus Anglicanis. Wingate, in his edition, (1640), gives it the name of the author, Britton, The later edition by Kelham (1762) is published under the title of The Ancient Pleas of the Crown. From the similarity of the subject matter, as well as some resemblance in the name, this treatise is generally considered as a mere abridgment of "the great work of Bracton, interspersed with some new matter. It is not, however, without claims to the character of an original production, and seems to have originally stood higher than Bracton as an authority. It is composed of one hundred and twenty-six chapters, written in the true French of the time, embracing various heads of civil and criminal law and practice; and commences in the king's name: — Edwarde, par la grace de Dieu, roy Dengleterre et seigniour de Irlaunde, a touts ses feals et ses leaus, et set sujets de Engleterre, et de Irlaunde, pees et grace de sauvacyon; (Edward, by the grace of God, king of England and lord of Ireland, to all his faithful and hege people and his subjects of England and of Ireland, peace and grace of salvation.) A marked feature of the work, as distinguished from that of Bracton, is the absence of all reference to the civil biw. The text of Britton has been greatly corrupted and mutilated. Hence the remark of Montague, 0. J., that the book contains many errors. Plowd. 58, arg. Wingate, in his edition of 573 pages, (or 287 folios) 12mo. has given a list of 650 corrections, or substituted readings.