Page:Select Essays in Anglo-American Legal History, Volume 1.djvu/327

 9. HOLDSWORTH: THE LAW MERCHANT 313 had been freely developed in the court of Admiralty, and not in the Courts of Common Law. (6) Civil Jurisdiction. We have seen that under the Tudors the court of Admi- ralty claimed a wide jurisdiction. It seemed inclined to dis- regard altogether the limitations which statutes had imposed upon it. The extent of the jurisdiction which it claimed will appear from a list of the cases which, during this period, were brought before the court. ^ It practically comprised all mer- cantile and shipping cases. " All contracts made abroad, bills of exchange (which at this period were for the most part drawn or payable abroad), commercial agencies abroad, charter parties, insurance, average, freight, non-delivery of, or damage to, cargo, negligent navigation by masters, mar- iners, or pilots, breach of warranty of seaworthiness, and other provisions contained in charter parties ; in short, every kind of shipping business was dealt with by the Admiralty court." ^ The Admiralty court was, in fact, regarded as one of the recognised tribunals of the Law Merchant.^ In addi- tion, the court exercised jurisdiction over various torts com- mitted on the sea, and in public rivers, over cases of collision, salvage, fishermen, harbours and rivers, and occasionally over matters transacted abroad, but otherwise outside the scope of Admiralty jurisdiction.* We have seen that during Elizabeth's reign the Common Law Courts began their attack upon the Chancery and the Council. It was not to be expected that they would tamely acquiesce in the encroachments of the Admiralty. Moreover, as we have seen, they were able to base their attack upon a statutory basis. The Common Law Courts had issued writs of prohibition, based upon these statutes, from an early period. It is prob- able, however, that during the earlier part of the Tudor period the statutes had been largely disregarded;^ and, as Mercatoria, 303, 304 (Pt. III. c. xiv). » Select Pleas of the Admiralty (S. S.) i Ixvii. " even marria^ contracts and wills made abroad are occasionally met with as the subject of suits in Admiralty." 'Above.
 * Select Pleas of the Admiralty (S. S.) i Ixv-lxxi. Cp. Malynes, Lex
 * Malynes, Pt. III. c. xiv.
 * Select Pleas of the Admiralty (S. S.) i Ixx. In the 16th century