One célebrated philosopher has endeavoured to prove the natural equality of mankind, by obferving, that the weakest has ftrength enough to kill the ftrongeft, either by fecret machina❝tions, or by confederacy with others, that are in the fame dan"ger with himself." Hobbes's Lev. c. xiii. From fuch a doctrine, supported by fuch reafons, we cannot be furprised at the confequences, when an attempt is made to reduce it to practice. Subordination in every fociety is the bond of its's exiftence; the highest and the lowest individuals derive their ftrength and fecurity from their mutual affiftance and dependence ; as in the natural body, the eye cannot fay to the hand, I have no need of thee; nor again, the head to the feet, I have no need of you. Milton, though a favourer of a republic, was fo convinced of the neceffity of fubordination and degrees, that he makes Satan, even when warring againft heaven's King, addrefs his legions thus ; If not equal all, yet free, Equally free; for orders and degrees B. 5. 1.790. True liberty results from making every higher degree acceffible to those who are in a lower, if virtue and talents are there found to deferve advancement. In this happy country, the fon of the lowest peasant may rise by his merit and abilities to the head of the church, law, army, navy, and every department of the ftate. The doctrine, that all men are, or ought, to be equal, is little less contrary to nature, and deftructive of their happiness, than the invention of Procruftes, who attempted to make men equal by ftretching the limbs of fome, and lopping off thofe of others. And till a neighbouring nation adopt more true and rational principles of government, there is every reafon to apprehend that their streets will ftream with blood, and general mifery pervade their land. CHAPTER THE THIRTEENTH. OF THE MILITARY AND AND MARITIME STATES. THE HE military state includes the whole of the foldiery; or, fuch perfons as are peculiarly appointed among the reft of the people for the fafeguard and defence of the realm. In a land of liberty it is extremely dangerous to make a diftinct order of the profeflion of arms. In abfolute monarchies this is neceffary for the fafety of the prince, and arifes from the main principle of their conftitution, which is that of governing by fear: but in free ftates the profeilion of a soldier, taken fingly and merely as a profeffion, is justly an object of jealousy. In these no man fhould take up arms, but with a view to defend his country and it's laws: he puts not off the citizen when he enters the camp; but it is because he is a citizen, and would wish to continue fo, that he makes himself for a while a foldier. The laws therefore and conftitution of these kingdoms know no fuch state as that of a perpetual standing soldier, bred up to no other profeffion than that of war: and it was not till the reign of Henry VII, that the kings of England had fo much as a guard about their persons. In the time of our Saxon ancestors, as appears from Edward the confeffor's laws, the military force of this kingdom was in the hands of the dukes or heretochs, who were conftituted through every province and county in the kingdom; being taken out of the principal nobility, and such as were most remarkable for being "fapientes, fideles, et animofi." Their duty was to lead and regulate the English armies, with [409 a very unlimited power; "prout eis vifum fuerit, ad honorem ] coronae et utilitatem regni." And because of this great power they were elected by the people in their full affembly, or folkmote, in the fame manner as fheriffs were elected: following ftill that old fundamental maxim of the Saxon conftitution, that where any officer was intrufted with fuch power, as if abused might tend to the oppreffion of the people, that power was delegated to him by the vote of the people themfelves. So too, among the antient Germans, the ancestors of our Saxon forefathers, they had their dukes, as well as kings, with an independent power over the military, as the kings had over the civil ftate. The dukes were elective, the kings hereditary for fo only can be confiftently understood that paffage of Tacitus, "reges ex nobilitate, duces ex virtute "fumunt;" in conftituting their kings, the family or blood royal was regarded; in chufing their dukes or leaders, warlike merit: juft as Cæfar relates of their ancestors in his time, that whenever they went to war, by way either of attack or defence, they elected leaders to command them. This large fhare of power, thus conferred by the people, though intended to preferve the liberty of the subject, was perhaps unreafonably detrimental to the prerogative of the crown: and accordingly we find a very ill ufe made of it by Edric duke of Mercia, in the reign of king Edmund Ironfide; who, by his 2 c. de beretochiis. : LL. Edw. Confeff. ilid. See also Bede, eccl. bift. 1. 5. c. 10. c De morib. Germ. 7. "Quum bellum civitas aut illatum. "defendit aut infert, magifiratas qui ci "bello praefint deliguntur." De bell. Gall, 1. 6. c. 22. office of duke or heretoch, was entitled to a large command in the king's army, and by his repeated treacheries at last transferred the crown to Canute the Dane. It seems univerfally agreed by all hiftorians, that king Alfred firft fettled a national militia in this kingdom, and by his prudent difcipline made all the subjects of his dominion foldiers but we are unfortunately left in the dark as to the particulars of this his fo celebrated regulation; though, from what was last observed, the dukes feem to have been left in poffeffion of too large and independent a power: which en- [410] abled duke Harold on the death of Edward the confeffor, though a ftranger to the royal blood, to mount for a short space the throne of this kingdom, in prejudice of Edgar Atheling the rightful heir. UPON the Norman conqueft the feodal law was introduced. here in all it's rigour, the whole of which is built on a military plan. I fhall not now enter into the particulars of that conftitution, which belongs more properly to the next part of our commentaries; but fhall only obferve, that, in confequence thereof, all the lands in the kingdom were divided into what were called knights' fees, in number above fixty thousand (1); and for every knight's fee a knight or foldier, miles, was bound to attend the king in his wars, for forty days in a year (2); in which space of time, before war was reduced to a fcience, the campaign was generally finished, and a kingdom either conquered or victorious. By this means the king had, without any expenfe, an army of fixty thousand men always e The Poles are, even at this day, fɔ tenacious of their antient conftitution, that their pofpolite, or militia, cannot be compelled to ferve above fix weeks, (1) 60,215. (2) We frequently read of half a knight, or other aliquot part, as for fo much land 3 knights and a half, &c. were to be returned; the fraction of a knight was performed by a whole knight who ferved half the time, or other due proportion of it. ready at his command. And accordingly we find one, among the laws of William the conqueror, which in the king's name commands and firmly enjoins the personal attendance of all knights and others; " quod habeant et teneant fe femper in "armis et equis, ut decet et oportet: et quod femper fint prompti "et parati ad fervitium fuum integrum nobis explendum et pera"gendum, cum opus adfuerit, fecundum quod debent de feodis et « tenementis fuis de jure nobis facere." This perfonal service in procefs of time degenerated into pecuniary commutations or aids, and at last the military part (3) of the feodal system was abolished at the restoration, by ftatute 12 Car. II. c. 24. In the mean time we are not to imagine that the kingdom was left wholly without defence in cafe of domeftic infurrec tions, or the profpect of foreign invafions. Besides those, who by their military tenures were bound to perform forty days [411] fervice in the field, firft the affife of arms, enacted 27 Hen. II, and afterwards the ftatute of Winchefter ", under Edward I, obliged every man, according to his eftate and degree, to provide a determinate quantity of fuch arms as were then in ufe, in order to keep the peace: and conftables were appointed in all hundreds by the latter ftatute, to fee that fuch arms were provided. Thefe weapons were changed, by the ftatute 4 & 5 Ph. & M. c. 2. into others of more modern fervice: but both this and the former provifions were repealed in the reign of James I. While thefe continued in force, it was usual from time to time for our princes to iffue commiffions of array, and fend into every county officers in whom they could confide, to muster and array (or fet in military order) the inhabitants of every diftrict; and the form of the i Stat. 1 Jac. I. c. 25. 21 Jac. L fc. 53. See Co. Litt. 75, 76. Hoved. A. D. 1181. c. 28. I (3) The military or warlike part of the feudal fyftem was abolifhed, when perfonal fervice was difpenfed with for a pecuniary commutation, as early as the reign of Henry II. But the military tenures ftill remained till 12 Car. II. c. 24. See 2 vol. p. 77. commiflion |