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ers and the government, who perceived them as potentially riotous and subversive. In fact such activity was illegal under COMMON LAW and older statutes, but in 1799, in the shadow of revolution in France, it was decided to expedite prosecutions by using summary trials. An amending act in 1800 provided for arbitration. In 1824, after a campaign by Joseph HUME and Francis PLACE, the Combination Acts were repealed, but a series of strikes brought new restrictions in 1825.

commission

Usually created by a royal WARRANT and issued under the GREAT SEAL, a commission conveyed the power of the royal PREROGATIVE to a person or group, enabling them to act in a particular capacity. Among the best known, from the 14th century the commission of the peace was issued to each county, naming JUSTICES OF THE PEACE who were empowered to act as local judges and administrators. The royal judges had commissions of OYER AND TERMINER, which gave them powers to act on the ASSIZE circuits. A commission of array was issued to enlist troops for royal service, and a parliamentary commission was issued to collect taxes. A commission was the source of authority for any number of (new) royal offices or courts, e.g., the Elizabethan Court of HIGH COMMISSION for overseeing ecclesiastical causes.

commission of inquiry

In the 19th century the increase in parliamentary oversight of the executive was reflected in the evolution of the commission of inquiry. There had been a long tradition of using investigative powers by committees of both houses of PARLIA- MENT, both in the special area of official conduct (impeachment) and in SELECT COMMITTEEs which prepared legislation. There were many cases after 1780 where government offices and procedures were being examined, from the 18th-century committees on finance to the 19th-century inquiries into government records, courts of law,

poor laws, and municipal corporations. Since these investigations might encroach on powers seen as immune from scrutiny, a royal commission of inquiry, embodying the power of the royal PREROGATIVE, provided sufficient authority to empower commissioners to summon witnesses, take testimony under oath, request documents, and report their findings to Parliament. The commission of inquiry continues to be used by governments to study, marshal evidence, and provide a basis for initiating legislation on any complicated or controversial question.

Committee of Both Kingdoms

In the early months of the CIVIL WAR, the English and Scottish rebels created a military alliance

(the SOLEMN LEAGUE AND COVENANT), a forum for

discussing a church settlement (the WESTMIN- STER ASSEMBLY) and a joint executive body, called the Committee of Both Kingdoms. This body had to face the difficult task of planning strategy for the armies of England and Scotland while it tried to coordinate the many regional and local leaders from both countries. The latter problem could not be solved until the creation of the NEW MODEL ARMY in 1645. The joint direction of operations ended after CHARLES I surrendered in 1646 and tried to make a separate settlement with the Scots.

common law

The English legal system as it has functioned since the 13th century. Common law consists of the legal principles developed by the judges, who make decisions by referring to similar cases previously decided. The law was “common” in the sense that the king’s courts superseded the numerous local jurisdictions from about 1170, and uniform justice became available in the king’s courts. Suitors had access to a variety of WRITs that could be invoked, providing a hearing before the judges, in local and central courts. The counterparts to common law were statute law, made in PARLIAMENT; equity, or the law of

the Court of CHANCERY; canon law, the law of the church; and its near relative, CIVIL LAW (Roman), which was used in ADMIRALTY courts.

See also COURTS OF LAW; LAW.

Common Market See EUROPEAN

ECONOMIC COMMUNITY.

Common Pleas, Court of

The first royal court settled in a permanent meeting place was in Westminster in the early 13th century. Court rolls survive from 1223, and the first chief justice of the court was appointed in 1272. The court heard cases between the king’s subjects, and these matters of property assured it of having more business than any other royal court. It had an appellate jurisdiction over local courts, but for a time it was subject to the authority of the Court of KING’S BENCH. The Serjeants-at-Law long had sole right of audience in the court. In 1873 the court was merged with other royal courts in the

new HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE. See also COURTS OF LAW.

Commonwealth of England

The republican government of England between the reigns of CHARLES I and CHARLES II (1649–60). In January 1649 PARLIAMENT declared that “the people are, under God, the original of all just power.” After Charles I’s execution, the monarchy was abolished along with the HOUSE OF LORDS, and in May a commonwealth was formally declared. Supreme power lay with the HOUSE OF COMMONS, which supplied 31 of the 40 members of the Council of State, the executive of the new government. The fact that military operations continued in IRELAND, SCOTLAND, and at sea meant that the ARMY’s voice, and especially that of General Oliver CROMWELL, became dominant. After experimenting with the Independent Parliament (1653), Cromwell endorsed a PROTECTORATE, in which he assumed executive

powers. The Commonwealth constitution collapsed in 1659 amid feuds between army officers and members of Parliament, leading to the RESTORATION of Charles II.

Commonwealth of Nations See BRITISH

EMPIRE AND COMMONWEALTH.

commutation

The conversion of feudal obligations (labor and payments in kind) to cash payment. The process varied from one MANOR to another, but it was completed by the 16th century.

Congregationalists

A major dissenting Protestant sect, committed to the autonomy of each individual congregation, also known as separatists or independents. Robert BROWNE, Henry Barrow, and John Penry were early leaders, and the last two were hung for their beliefs. They subscribed to the Calvinist concept of the priesthood of all believers. The Congregationalist sect grew during the period of

the CIVIL WAR and the COMMONWEALTH OF EN-

GLAND. After a quiet period in the 18th century, there was rapid growth in the early 19th century, the creation of a number of theological colleges, and the formation of the Congregational Union of England and Wales (1831). In 1972 they joined with the Presbyterian Church of England to form the United Reformed Church.

Congress of Berlin See BERLIN, CONGRESS OF.

Connolly, James (1868–1916)

Irish union leader

Born in EDINBURGH, Connolly joined the British ARMY. After he organized the Irish Socialist Republican Party in 1896, he spent the years 1902–10 in the United States, where he established the Irish Socialist Federation. In 1910 he

returned to IRELAND and set up the Irish Transport and General Workers’ Union. He fought in the EASTER REBELLION, was badly wounded, and was strapped to a chair for his execution by a firing squad.

Conrad, Joseph (1857–1924) writer

Born to Polish parents in the Ukraine, Conrad came to ENGLAND after a long career as a merchant seaman. In 1878 he landed in Suffolk with no knowledge of English. He became a naturalized British subject in 1886, and he retired from the sea to write in 1894. Among his works were

The Nigger of the “Narcissus” (1897), Lord Jim

(1900), his highly-regarded short story “The Heart of Darkness” (1902), Nostromo (1904), and

The Secret Agent (1907). His great novel Chance

(1913) was a triumph that marked him as a major modern author.

conscription

While other European states had long had large armies of conscripts, Britain prided itself on a volunteer force, and it relied on volunteers to fill the ARMY ranks until 1916, during WORLD WAR I. A bitter debate preceded enactment of the drafting of single men (January 1916) and married men (May 1916). Over 2 million were conscripted by 1918, but the law was not extended to IRELAND until the later year, and it only succeeded in worsening the already unstable political situation there. In 1939 conscription was enacted at the start of WORLD WAR II, and was extended to include unmarried women in 1941. Extended into the postwar period, the NATIONAL SERVICE program was only ended in 1960.

Conservative Party

Successor to the TORY Party (which still provides the nickname), the Conservative Party was formed in the 1830s after the REFORM ACT of

1832. Sir Robert PEEL led the aristocrats, gentry, and middle-class supporters of traditional institutions and values, who were afraid the recent reform measures might lead to others which would endanger the established institutions of the country. After Peel supported the repeal of the CORN LAWS in 1846, there was a period of realignment (1846–67) during which time a new LIBERAL PARTY began to form, and the Conservatives regrouped behind the leadership of Benjamin DISRAELI. When he and William GLADSTONE conducted their vigorous electoral and parliamentary debates (1865–80), they created or solidified the notion of a “two-party system,” even though scholars will point out that such a “system” never existed, and that third parties— Irish, labour, and Social Democratic, for exam- ple—have been a constant feature. In the later 19th century Conservatives were joined by

ERAL UNIONISTS—those who opposed IRISH HOME

RULE—and by the turn of the century the party was renamed the Conservative and Unionist Party. As the franchise broadened, the party came to represent business leaders, middle-class shopkeepers, and professionals as well as aristocrats. In the later 20th century, after the dramatic performance of the LABOUR PARTY in the 1940s, Conservatives accepted the WELFARE STATE and allied measures, until the election of Margaret THATCHER in 1979. Her governments reversed much of the progressive agenda of the previous 30 years, and with John MAJOR succeeding her as PRIME MINISTER, her party remained in power for a record period of time (1979–97).

constable

Initially the name of the king’s officer in charge of the military (lord high constable), the term was applied to local law enforcement as in the petty constable of a PARISH, the high constable of a hundred, or the military governor of a castle. In modern times, the POLICE constable is the basic rank of the professional police; the chief constable is the head of a police area, and constabulary is the inclusive term for county or regional forces.

Constable, John (1776–1837) artist

A miller’s son, raised in Sussex, Constable studied at the ROYAL ACADEMY, but his subjects were predominantly the landscapes he knew so well. He was not highly regarded in ENGLAND and had a better following in France, but today he is recognized as one of the premier English artists of the 19th century.

constitution

A set of rules for the operation of any government. The British constitution is unwritten, in the sense that there is no single master document containing all of the basic rules. There are, however, numerous documents and many unwritten CONVENTIONs that add up to a considerable body of rules. The former category contains all acts of PARLIAMENT and rulings of the COURTS OF LAW. Conventions include the rule that the monarch must act on the advice of ministers and that a government losing a VOTE OF CONFI-

DENCE in the HOUSE OF COMMONS is expected to

resign or call a general election. Indeed, most facets of CABINET government, including ministerial responsibility, are conventions and have no force in law.

continental system

In 1806 Napoleon Bonaparte issued his Berlin Decrees, ordering all continental ports closed to British ships. The British retaliated in 1807 and said that the ports of France and her allies were closed, and that all ships were liable to seizure, even neutrals. While the latter point was the cause of the WAR OF 1812, the power of the British NAVY eventually broke the system.

conventicle

A meeting for worship in violation of acts of UNI- FORMITY. A Conventicle Act was first passed in 1593. The better known act of 1664 was aimed at preventing the formation of congregations by

ministers who left the church after the Act of Uniformity in 1662. Violators were subject to fine or imprisonment. The act was later suspended by the TOLERATION ACT of 1689.

convention

There are two basic meanings in British history:

(1) a rule or practice accepted by long usage (see CONSTITUTION); (2) a formal meeting, either regular or irregular. In the first instance, there were bodies such as the Convention of Royal Burghs in SCOTLAND, dating from the 13th century. There were also “convention” parliaments which met in 1660 and 1689; as they were not summoned by a king, there being none present, they were convened by general consent, so their acts had to be ratified by a royally summoned PARLIAMENT. Finally, there were several occasions when radical groups met in convention, inspired by American and French examples, as in the meetings of

UNITED IRISHMEN, UNITED SCOTSMEN, and CHARTISTS

(1793–1848).

convocations

Meetings of the clergy of the provinces of CAN- TERBURY and York, containing the hierarchy and the lower clergy. The latter met separately, chaired by an elected member. The acts of convocation (canons) governed the church, but in 1532 the clergy submitted to HENRY VIII, surrendering independent authority. Because of controversy in early 18th-century convocations, they were dissolved in 1717. A revival of meetings began in the 19th century, with legal recognition in 1872. A General Synod was formed in 1970.

Cook, Captain James (1728–1779) explorer

A seaman who rose in the ranks by his exceptional skills as a navigator, Cook provided charts aiding the campaign to take Quebec (1759). He took command of the Endeavour for its voyage to Tahiti in 1768, during which he charted the

Engraving of Captain James Cook, 1821 (Library of

Congress)

coasts of NEW ZEALAND and AUSTRALIA. In his voyage in Resolution (1772–75) he disproved the idea of a great southern continent and discovered Tonga and the New Hebrides. On his last voyage he sailed the northwest coast of the Americas in search of the elusive NORTHWEST PASSAGE. He was killed in a fight with natives in Hawaii.

Cooper, Anthony Ashley See SHAFTES-

BURY, ANTHONY ASHLEY COOPER, FIRST EARL OF.

cooperative movement

Begun in the 19th century as a means to defend workers from the worst features of industrial capitalism, the cooperative movement was a plan to unite groups of working families in a

common fund to provide necessities. It was actually one of the later projects of the radical Robert OWEN, whose more ambitious efforts had indifferent success in the 1820s and ’30s. A shop in Rochdale, Lancashire, in 1844 was the first in which members paid a subscription and divided the profits from the sale of goods. The movement had phenomenal growth in the later 19th century, and it went beyond retailing into manufacturing and banking, then formed a union (1869) and a political party (1917).

See also SOCIALISM.

copyhold

A form of land tenure which originated on manorial estates. The tenant held a copy of the entry in the manorial roll describing his holding. This entitled him to hold the land on the terms prescribed, giving him much more security than a leasehold tenant. Most tenants held in this manner by 1500. From 1926 a copyhold became the same as a FREEHOLD, and copyhold tenure was abolished.

See also MANOR.

copyright

The ownership of works of art or literature and of the right to reproduce them. The first copyright act was in 1709, in which authors were given exclusive rights to books for 14 years, renewable for another 14. In 1814 and 1842 the term was extended, and other acts brought the protection to artwork, plays, and music. After further extensions, the term is now 70 years after an author’s death.

corn laws

Laws that protected the domestic producers of grains in general (not just maize) by controlling or banning imports. These laws became a subject of serious concern during the wars with France (1793–1815), at which time ENGLAND had become a net importer of food. In 1815, with a

great deal of marginal LAND still under cultivation because of the high prices of wartime, PAR- LIAMENT enacted a law that banned imports until the price in the domestic market reached a certain level. In 1828 this was changed to a sliding scale of duties, which were lowered in later years of crisis. The law was nonetheless a hated symbol, the ANTI-CORN LAW LEAGUE campaigned against it, and the IRISH FAMINE ended it in 1846.

Cornwallis, Charles Cornwallis, first marquis (1738–1805)

soldier, administrator

A commander in the American war of independence, Cornwallis’s surrender at YORKTOWN in 1781 was the final act of that conflict. He became the governor-general of INDIA in the wake of the scandals under Warren HASTINGS, and he introduced judicial and revenue reforms. He next

took up the post of LORD LIEUTENANT of IRELAND

in 1798 and put down the IRISH REBELLION of that year. He also helped to implement the Act of UNION in 1801. After negotiating the Peace of Amiens (1802), he returned to India and died there soon after.

corporation

A legal entity, either a corporation sole (an individual successively holding an office, such as a BISHOP) or a corporation aggregate (such as the group of persons forming a MUNICIPAL CORPORA- TION or the members of a company). A corporation can be created by the sovereign or by statute; it has a seal, it can sue or be sued, and it can hold property and make bylaws.

Cort, Henry (1740–1800) iron manufacturer

Born to a mason in Lancaster, Cort went to LON- DON at age 25 and became an agent for the NAVY. He purchased guns and developed a knowledge of ironmaking. He patented a method of “puddling” iron, using a coal-fired furnace to render

it more malleable. Pig-iron production went from 40,000 tons in 1786 to 10 times that amount in 1820. Cort, however, did not profit from the boom, because his career was marred by illegal transactions with the navy, and by the time he was cleared, his patent rights had been lost. He later received a small pension from the government.

council

A body of advisers and administrators. The Crown kept a group of senior advisers, the curia regis under the Normans, the

under the TUDORS. The Crown also used special regional bodies, such as the Council of Wales and the Council of the North in the 16th century. The rebels in the 1650s used a Council of State as the executive power. The RESTORATION era saw the rise of the cabinet council, precursor to the modern CABINET, still in law a body of royal advisers.

The term council was borrowed for local government and other uses—e.g., county councils created by the Local Government Act of 1888, which displaced the governmental authority of JUSTICEs OF THE PEACE. The Greater London Council was created by statute in 1965, abolished in 1986, and restored in 1999.

county

A territory within the countries of the British Isles, derived from older Celtic, Norse, or AngloSaxon kingdoms (e.g., Kent, Sussex, Essex). The basis for a county also might have been a fortified town or an earldom. The county formed the unit for TAXATION, law enforcement, the MILITIA, and administration. English counties had a SHER- IFF who held a COUNTY COURT; his authority shifted to JUSTICES OF THE PEACE from the 15th century, and from 1549 the county was brought under closer royal control by a LORD LIEUTENANT, who was responsible for the county militia.

County units were introduced into WALES by the English Crown after the 13th century, and they extended to all of Wales by the acts of 1536