Your Headborough is the elected executive representative of the Precinct.

"The subdivision of hundreds into tythings seems to be most peculiarly the invention of Alfred the Great. The civil division of the territory of England is into counties, of those counties into hundreds, of those hundreds into tythings or towns.

One of the principal inhabitants of the tything is appointed to preside over the rest, being called the tun-gerefa or reeve, the headborough. Once elected, the headborough continues in office until an election is called.

THE DECLARATION OF OFFICE

l Swear that I shall well and truly serve the Office of Headborough for the Precinct of Covent Garden in the City of London until another be chosen in in my room, or I shall be legally discharged thereof: Her Majesty's Peace in my own Person I shall keep, and see it kept in all others, as much as in me lies, and do all other things belonging to my Office, according to my knowledge and Power, So help me God.

LEGAL INFORMATION

THE OFFICE OF HEADBOROUGH

Lord Coke, 4 Inst 249, and Norton's Historical Account of London, pg77:

Lord Coke observes that the wardmote in the City of London is derived from ward and mote, that is, the ward court, and adds, "In London the precincts are as towns, and the wards are as hundreds"

GENERAL DESCRIPTION:

Hue and Smollett Abridged, 1842:

Ten householders formed a tithing, who were answerable for each other's conduct, and over whom a head-borough was appointed to preside.

Each Tything had a President, r Burgh-holder, [Headburough] who took care to hold a Court when occasion required. Every Tything was as it were a little Republic which exercised a judicial Power within the Precincts of its own Territories . Thoyras, History of England Vol 1. 1732

Every hundred had its president, reeve, or hundred-man; every tithing its president, reeve, headborough Pike, A History of Crime in England, 1876

NOT ABOLISHED IN THE CITY OF LONDON

In the City of London, the Office of Head-borough still exists:-

By 5 and 6 Victoria c 109, no petty constable, head-borough, borsholder, tithing man, or peace officer of the like description, shall be appointed for any parish, township, or vill, within the limits of that act at any court leet or tourn, except for the performance of duties unconnected with the preservation of the peace and with the execution of that act. This act does not apply in the City of London.

Commentaries on the Laws of England, Volume 1

By Sir William Blackstone

The office of head-borough...appear[s] to be, in the nature and extent of their powers and duties, precisely similar to that of the petty constable, but to have sprung from a different origin, and to have existed in a far more remote period of our history. ..We find them occupying a conspicuous situation under the institutions of the Anglo-Saxons.

"The subdivision of hundreds into tithings seems to be most peculiarly the invention of Alfred." The civil division of the territory of England is into counties, of those counties into hundreds, of those hundreds into tithings or towns.

One of the principal inhabitants of the tithing is annually appointed to preside over the rest, being called the tithing man, the head-borough, and in some counties the borsholder...

."Constables of tithings, which are at this day commonly called petit-constables,or tithing-men, and were anciently called chief pledges, were by the common law, and not first ordained by the Statute of Winchester, cap6; for that statute does not say that there shall be such officers constituted, but clearly seem to suppose that there were such before the making of it. ( 2 Hawk. Pl. C. 61 cap.10. f. 33)"1

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A borholder, headborough, or borough-head, tithingman, trithingman, or the chief pledge, has the same authority in many cases as the petit constable. (John Comyn's 'Digest of the Laws of England', Vol 4. 1793 pg.694)

THE OFFICE OF HEADBOROUGH IN THE CITY OF LONDON:

THE TERM HEADBOROUGH IS CORRECT FOR LONDON – that the City sought exclusion from the abolition proves this itself.

Aldgate South Precinct:-

"Benjamin, who was a hatter by trade, held a number of other minor law enforcement posts, including head-borough of Aldgate lower precinct. "

The Wards of London, Henry Thomas 1828

The officers belonging to St. James's Duke's Place, consisting of a minister, two constables, two head-boroughs, and fifteen jurymen. This parish, which is a precinct of itself, formerly enjoyed great privileges.

London's Livery Companies and Metropolitan Government, C.1500-1725 Joseph P Ward, 1992:-

In 1593, the constable and head-boroughs of the precinct of St Martin le Grand requested.....

Summary of the Duties of a Justice of the Peace out of Sessions:

Henry James Pye, 1827:-

Blowing of horns.—Persons in the city of London, and liberties thereof, or within the limits and parishes aforesaid, blowing horns, or using any other noisy instruments, for the purpose of hawking, selling, or distributing any articles whatsoever, any constable, head-borough, patrol, watchman, or other person, may apprehend every person so offending, and convey him before any justice...

Any constable, head-borough, patrol, watchman, or other person, may apprehend every suspected person or reputed thief, and convey him before any justice; and if it shall appear upon oath that such person is a person of evil fame, and a reputed thief, and not giving a satisfactory account. of himself, and of his way of living; and it shall also appear to the satisfaction of the justice, that there is just ground to believe that such person was in the park, field, street, highway, river, dock, creek, quay, warehouse, avenue, or other place, with intent to commit felony, such persons shall be deemed rogues and vagabonds, and convicted accordingly.

The Pictorial Handbook of London , John Weale, 1854:-

The space within the walls was shared out in marks, or wards, to which additions were afterwards made. In each of these wards an alderman was chosen. At a later time, these wards were further shared out into what are now called precincts.

The precinct is the same as the township or parish elsewhere, the ward is the hundred, and the city a shire, folkland, or commonwealth.

At the present time the precinct commonly has its common-councilmen, its inquestmen, clerk, beadle, constable, or head-borough, oveseers of the poor, and tax collectors, as well as its church establishment.

In some parts, too, the precinct jurisdiction is not kept up, or is merged with the parish. The ward has an alderman, common-councilmen (of whom one is deputy alderman), a full inquest, ward clerk, and ward beadle. The city has its Lord Mayor, Court of Aldermen, Court of Common Council, Sheriffs, and other chief Officers.

A New Guide for Constables, Headboroughs, Tythingmen Gent J.P 1692:-

LEGISLATION:

The Constables Protection Act 1750 (still in force).

c. 44 (Regnal. 24_Geo_2)

Action not to be brought against constable till demand made of copy of warrant, &c.

No action shall be brought against any constable, head-borough, or other officer, or against any person or persons acting by his order and in his aid, for any thing done in obedience to any warrant under the hand or seal of any justice of the peace, until demand hath been made or left at the usual place of his abode by the party or parties intending to bring such action, or by his, her, or their attorney or agent, in writing signed by the party demanding the same, of the perusal and copy of such warrant, and the same hath been refused or neglected for the space of six days after such demand; and in case after such demand and compliance therewith, by showing the said warrant to and permitting a copy to be taken thereof by the party demanding the same, any action shall be brought against such constable, head-borough, or other officer, or against such person or persons acting in his aid for any such cause as aforesaid, without making the justice or justices who signed or sealed the said warrant defendant or defendants, that on producing and proving such warrant at the trial of such action the jury shall give their verdict for the defendant or defendants, notwithstanding any defect of jurisdiction in such justice or justices; and if such action be brought jointly against such justice or justices and also against such constable, head-borough, or other officer or person or persons acting in his or their aid as aforesaid, then, on proof of such warrant, the jury shall find for such constable, headborough, or other officer, and for such person and persons so acting as aforesaid, notwithstanding such defect of jurisdiction as aforesaid; and if the verdict shall be given against the justice or justices, that in such case the plaintiff or plaintiffs shall recover his, her, or their costs against him or them, to be taxed in such manner by the proper officer as to include such costs as such plaintiff or plaintiffs are liable to pay to such defendant or defendants for whom such verdict shall be found as aforesaid.

Mirror of Justices, 39 and also page 41. re City of London.

OATH/DECLARATION

Is the oath needed? No.

King v Corfe Mullen 1 Barn. & Adol.211. it was held that a man gained a settlement as a tithing-man, although he was not sworn in; and it was there said by the Court "There can be no question that he executed the office de facto; nor indeed can there be any that for some purposes, at least, he executed it de jure. A month is given for the taking of the oath, yet the year commences from the appointment. Can it then be said that the party is not in office till he is sworn? And the oath of a tithing man was described as an oath of sanction, which might be taken at any time after entering on the office."

Note: The Promissory Oaths Act has abolished this oath.

THE OATH:

You shall Swear that you shall well and truly serve the Office of Headborough for the Precinct of Covent Garden in the City of London until another be chosen in in your room, or you shall be legally discharged thereof: Her Majesty's Peace in your own Person you shall keep, and see it kept in all others, as much as in you lieth, and do all other things belonging to your Office, according to your knowledge and Power, So help you God.

THE OATH WILL BE REPLACED WITH A DECLARATION:

"I do solemnly and sincerely affirm that I shall well and truly serve the Office of Headborough for the Precinct of Covent Garden in the City of London, until another be chosen in in my room, or until I shall be legally discharged thereof: Her Majesty's Peace in my own Person I shall keep, and see it kept in all others, as much as lies in me to do so, and do all other things belonging to my Office, according to my knowledge and Power.

So help me God."

NATURE OF THE OFFICE:

MANNER OF APPOINTMENT

Resiants of a private leet lying within the hundred are liable to serve the office of tithingman of that leet. 2

He may be elected at the court without being present. He may not refuse the office.

PERIOD OF APPOINTMENT

The office of head-borough appears to be of a freehold nature, determinable at the end of the year, or at any time by removal for any misconduct; but it is not actually determined, until there is a formal removal, or a successor is appointed and sworn.3

OATH

A head-borough (similarly to the petty constable) may take the oath of office before the court leet. (The precinct court is a private leet.)4

The form of the oath in Burn's Justice is:

"You shall well and truly serve our Sovereign Lord the Queen in the office of Headborough for the Precinct of Covent Garden in the Ward of Portsoken in the City of London, for the year ensuing, or until another be sworn in your stead, according to the best of your skill and knowledge. So help you God."

Although sworn at the leet, he ought not to be sworn to serve the lord of the leet, for he owes no manner of duty to him, which is not part of his duty to the King.

If a man be chose head-borough at a leet, he may be indicted for not taking his oath, but then he ought to be warned to go before a justice of the peace to take his oath.5

REMOVAL FROM OFFICE:

A Constable (also:Tythingman) elected by the Inhabitants of a Hamlet, according to Custom, and sworn in the Leet, cannot be displaced by the Justices of the Peace; but the Lord that approved of the choice may for just Cause remove him.6

As some of the Precincts used to elect their own inquest juries,it is clear that the Precinct is in the nature of an inferior Court Leet. "The Superior Leet shall not meddle in the inferior of matters inquirable there, unless it be in case of omission" (Hale Chief Justice, Freem. Rep. 348,349. pl 433. Mich. 1675. Keene's Case)7

NOT AN OFFICE OF TRUST:

Curtis v Graham [1864]

"The Office of Head-borough seems to be somewhat in the nature of that of a constable, and an oath is required by which, amongst other things, the party taking it swears that he will truly serve Her Majesty the Queen and also, I think, the lord of the Manor in which the district is situate, to the best of his ability.

Some discussion arose with regard to this office of head-borough. The case of Rex v De Mierre, 5 Bur. Rep. Was referred to. On looking at that case, all that can be drawn from it is, that it was held that the office of constable, not head-borough, was an office of trust."

CONSERVATOR OF THE PEACE

Everythe headborough has similar powers to a petty-constable, who, within the limits of their several Towns (i.e. within the limit of the Precinct only) is a Conservator of the Peace (at the Common Law) by virtue of his office.

(See Affray and Forcible Entry)8

A Petty Constable may do what he can to keep the Peace; but he cannot take Surety of the Peace at the request of any man. 'And ex Officio they may cause such as in their presence are about to make an affray, to find sureties to keep the Peace; and that as well before the Affray, as after. (Cromp.6. & 222,12 H.7 fol 18a & hic postea)9

NO POWER TO PUNISH ALONE:

The Office of Constable is distinct and (as it seemeth) is of more and greater authority and respect than these other, as you may see by the Statute of 39 Eliz.4. where the Headborough is to be assisted in the punishment of rogues, with the advice of the Minister and one other of the Parish, whereas the Constable alone of himself, as well as the Justices of the Peace, may appoint or cause Rogues to be punished.10

Head-boroughs, where a constable is, cannot meddle, because Constables be Head-Officers, and Head-boroughs are but as assistants to the Constable in all services of his Office when the Constable is present.

IN ABSENCE OF A CONSTABLE:

In towns where there be no constables, and that the...head-boroughs..be the only Officers for the Peace; as also in such cases where the power or authority of the Head-borough is declared to be equal with the power of the Constable; in all such cases and things their Office and Authority are in a manner all one. (See the Stat 1 Jac cap 7. Lamberts Offic del Const. 4,6,9.)11

AFFRAY OR ASSAULT:

If any man shall make an Affray or Assualt upon another in the presence of the Head-borough, or if any man in the presence of the constable shall threaten to kill, beat or hurt another, or shall be in a fury ready to break the Peace; in every of these cases the Constable or Headborough may commit the Offenders to the Stocks, or to some other safe custody for the present, (as his or their quality requireth) and after may carry them before some Justice of the Peace,or to the Gaol) until they shall find surety for the peace.12

CANNOT TAKE SURETY:

He cannot take a surety of himself; for he cannot take recognizance nor bail, for he is no Officer of Record; and if he shall take an obligation,how the same shall be certified, and into what Court, he said he knew not (Anderson CJ dissenting in Skarret's Case (An.35 Eliz.Rot.1458)

but Walmsley J, Owen J and Beamond J held that although a constable cannot take surety for the peace by recognizance or bail, yet he may take an obligation,according to the book of 10 E4. And if the affray be in their presence, they are Conservators of the Peace, and therefore may use such means for keeping of the Peace by taking Surety by Obligation. And that before Justice of the Peace were, the Peace was preserved, and that by the Constables. And that the Statute which ordained Justices of the Peace, did not take away the authority of the constable.13

"But he cannot take Sureties by Recognizance, because he is no Officer of Record, and therefore such Bond shall be taken in his own name, and not in the Name of the King, and shall be certified at the Sessions (Cro. Eliz. 375, 376 )14

CAN COMMAND THE ASSISTANCE OF OTHERS

Every of these Conservators of the Peace are (by the ancient Common Law) to imploy their own valour, and may also command the meet help, aid and force of others, or arrest and pacify also such who in their presence, and within their jurisdiction and limits, by word or deed, shall go about to break the Peace.15

NO AUTHORITY TO DEAL WITH RIOTS, FORCIBLE ENTRY OR DETAINERS

These Conservators of the Peace are only to meddle with Affrays, Assualts and Batteries, or Threatenings to break the Peace, done in their presence; but not with Riots, or Forcible Entries,or Detainers.16

NEGLIGENCE

If a Conservator of the Peace, being required to see the Peace kept, shall be negligent therein, he may be inndicted and fined for the same.17

ARBITRATION COURT

In the administration of justice, the head-borough summoned his tithing to assist him in deciding any trivial difference which occurred among the members. (Hume and Smollett's History of England, pg 23)

Parish Law: Or, A Guide to Justices of the Peace, Joseph Shaw:-

In some of the Western parts of England you shall see that there are many Tithing Men in one Parish, there only one of them is a petty constable for the King, and the rest do serve as the ancient tithing men did; and in such case, where there are two or more tithing men; and one of them is chosen at the Leet, to execute the Office of Constable, and the rest of them have been used time out of mind, to do nothing about the office of constable, but to do other things; in such case the custom of the place may and must be continued, and such tithing men shall not be compelled to do more than by custom they have used to do otherwise; and in all other places all these officers are comprehended under this word Constable, and all these offices are contained within this office.

Township Offices:-

We now come to what I have termed the township division of our subject. And we at once see before us a group of names belonging to Anglo-Saxon polity as distinct from all others.

The Borsholders, Head-boroughs (Head-borrows), and Tithingmen, belong to that system of mutual pledging known Borsholders, as frith-borh, or frank-pledge. 3 By an article in the etc laws of Edward the Confessor, founded upon a previous enactment of Canute, all men are bound to combine themselves in associations of ten. Each association has a head-man, 'a capital pledge,' bors-ealdor, to manage the business of the ten ; 4 and a previous statute of Edgar applies the general law to every man both within Burgh and without.

Now of this institution in its fullest growth there is no definite trace before the Norman Conquest. 5 The laws of Athelstane, of Edgar and of Canute only lead up to the result which we see in full practice under the Normans, and this fact lends a very material argument to the contention of Mr. Coote that this system was founded upon that of the milites stationarii of the Romans. 1

The Roman institutions that were intermixed with the Anglo-Saxon received their full complement under the Normans, and where there was room for them to develop, the existing machinery soon applied itself to the movement.

The Act of 5 & 6 Vict. cap. 109, abolished the popular election of these old local officers, and it is not a little curious that we find so few remnants of the old system among our municipal boroughs. They seem to have passed away with the necessity of the case, except in many of the boroughs of Kent. With reference to this county, Sir Francis Palgrave points out that, acting upon the general law of Athelstane, the local witenagemot enacted a bye-law which is very similar to the later Frank- pledge. This was done as an expedient to diminish the responsibility of the superior lord, who, under Athelstane's law, was to be the pledge that none of his men would commit theft.

If the lord's eorls were so numerous that he could not reasonably undertake the charge, then he was to appoint a Reeve in each township who would be answerable to him ; but if the praepositus found any ceorl whom he could not trust, then the suspected party was to find twelve of his kinsmen who would be pledges of his good abearing. 2

Now 'borsholders' are only found in the Kentish boroughs named in the Index, while the head-borough is found in Northamptonshire and Surrey, and the tithingmen in "Worcestershire, Somersetshire, Surrey, Berks, Bucks, and Hants. Before, however, leaving this group of old township offices, let The Provost me for a momen to advert to the title of Provost.

It was said above that the Mayor succeeded to this office inmost of our old municipal boroughs ; and yet we meet with it as one of the most important of the old township offices. The Provost, says Mr. Toulmin Smith, is merely one inclusive name for what occurs under the various denominations of tythingman, head-borough, bors-holder, chief-pledge, constable, boro-reeve, etc} He was the head man of the town, before churchwardens assumed that position as representatives of the ecclesiastical influences.

We meet with him when the provost and four men represented the old township in the Hundred and Scirmoot ; we meet with him later on when Parliament declared that in every parish the four men and the provost should be answerable for one man-at-arms ; and finally as the Provost in Eyre he had to be present at the periodical local criminal courts. 1 Thus, I think, we have an important link in the development of municipal boroughs from the old township.

I shall not pause at the Ale-conners, Ale-founders, Ale-tasters, Beadle, 2 Bellman, Bread-weighers, Constables, Crier, other Town and the like, because they are so well known as offices belonging to the township and their duties are almost defined by their titles.

But upon the subject of Minstrels and Minstrels Waits there is something more to be said. The only and Waits boroughs which possessed either of these offices in 1835 were Bristol, Chester, Leeds, Lincoln, Nottingham, and York. 3 Mr. Wheatley, in his Introduction to Bishop Percy's Reliques, 4 says "that waits were formerly attached to most corporate towns, and were, in fact, the corporation minstrels.

They wore a livery and a badge and were formed into a sort of gild. No one, even were he an inhabitant of the town, was suffered to play in public who was not free of the gild. Besides singing out the hours of the night, and warning the town against dangers, they accompanied themselves with the harp, the pipe, the hautboy, and other instruments. They played in the town for the gratification of the inhabitants, and attended the Mayor on all state occasions. 5 At the Mayor's feast they occupied the 'minstrels' gallery.' " , But it must not be supposed from this that the Minstrel belongs to the municipality only. In truth he appears here only as an historical survival, or, may be, revival.

Mr. "Wheatley, quoting from Sir "Walter Scott's Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border, carries the question of their origin a step further back into the past history of local institutions. " It is certain," writes Sir "Walter Scott, " that till a very late period the pipers, of whom there was one attached to each border town of note, and whose office was often hereditary, were the great depositaries of oral, and particularly of poetical tradition. These town pipers, an institution of great antiquity upon the borders, were certainly the last remains of the minstrel race.

The town pipers received a livery and salary from the community to which they belonged ; and in some burghs they had a small allotment of land, called the 'Piper's Croft.' " ' The mention of this last custom of allotting land for payment carries us, in point of fact, to Aryan history for traces of their origin.

As we shall see later on, each officer of the old village-community was paid by an allotment to his family of a piece of cultivated land ; 2 and instances are not wanting that early Teutonic society also possessed this custom. When, therefore, we know that the Hindoo village possessed its hereditary poet or minstrel ; that the Celts both of Ireland 3 and Scotland 4 are known to have had the same institution amongst them ; that the Icelanders almost down to modern times possessed a village story-teller ; may we not conclude that in the minstrels and waits belonging to the municipalities and larger towns of historical times we see a not unimportant relic of that far-off period when all history was oral — said or sung — when the village poet preserved traditions which we gladly collect and enshrine in our literary archives as Folk-lore ?

TITHING COURT IN GENERAL

An account of the constitutional English policy of congregational courts.

Granville Sharp, Old Jewry, July 27, 1784:-

Only the ten householders in every tithing who paid scot and lot, and were answerable for the payment of all national as well as provincial and parochial burthens. These only were the men who had a judicial capacity, and were called altogether by the chief freeborg, or headborough, on all occasions, to consult and determine, on every question or extraordinary business, within the extent of their division. All the individuals of the division, indeed, were suitors in the tithing court, and might there be present, and amenable thereto for offences; for the decenna, or tithing courts, were of admirable use in promoting justice, and deciding differences and quarrels amongst neighbours. The learned author of the Notes on Fortescue, (folio edit, in 1741, p. 106,) speaking of "the court of the freeborough or tithing," adds, " wherein" (says he) "the tithingman, or headborough, was the judge." They are intituled, in the laws of the Confessor, "justiciarii," (justices ;) for such was their jurisdiction and office within their tithing. It is necessary, however, for the proper understanding of the chapter wherein this is mentioned, to be previously informed that the Latin noun, "friborgus," of the masculine gender, does not properly signify a free-borough, tithing, or association of ten men, but rather one individual free-borgess of that society; but when the society or association itself is to be collectively understood, the word is generally, though not always, expressed in the neuter gender, "friborgum," as Dr. Cowel rightly expresses in his Interpreter, on the word froborgh, alias fridburgh, &c.

...In all these various divisions of the people, regular courts were anciently held for the maintenance of peace and right, and for adjusting all differences amongst neighbours, without expense; for there was no cause or contest of such magnitude and importance, for which a popular court of proportionable dignity could not be found in the larger divisions of wappentakes, tithings, and shires, to adjust and determine it; whereby tedious and vexatious lawsuits, and the ruinous expenses attending them, were happily avoided.

History of the Original Constitution of Parliaments

T.H.B. Oldfield, 1797:-

Tything Courts were held every week...

The ancient mode of dividing great cities was by wards, each of which was governed by an alderman, an officer of great authority among the Anglo-Saxons, having all the powers of our modern justices of the peace; and what is of more importance, he was always elected by the house-holders of the ward over which he presided.

This ancient mode of division by no means interfered with the lesser divisions of hundreds and tythings; so far from it, the the government of the wards is not commplete without them. The Lord Mayor's [original] precept to the aldermen, to this day, to hold courts of frankpledge (The Wardmote Court), prove they were not without the regular divisions of tythings to give them effect.

Accounts and Papers of the House of Common

1846:- The Tithing Court was devised for the decision of petty suits between neighbours. Rep v. 13. King Henry I made provision for restoring the ancient local courts.

1A General Abridgment of Law and Equity, Charles Viner, pg 428

2The Office of Constable. Willcock. 1840 pg 18

3The Office of Constable. Willcock. 1840 pg 22

4The Office of Constable. Willcock. 1840, Section 2, note 54.

5A General Abridgment of Law and Equity, Vol 5 Charles Viner, pg 432

6A General Abridgment of the Common Law: Alphabetically , Volume 2, Part 1. Knightley D'Anvers pg 148

7A General Abridgment of Law and Equity, Vol 5 Charles Viner pg 429.

8The Country Justice: Containing the Practice of the Justices of the Peace, Dalton, 1705.

9The Country Justice: Containing the Practice of the Justices of the Peace, Dalton, 1705.

10The Country Justice: Containing the Practice of the Justices of the Peace, Dalton, 1705.

11The Country Justice: Containing the Practice of the Justices of the Peace, Dalton, 1705.

12The Country Justice: Containing the Practice of the Justices of the Peace, Dalton, 1705.

13The Country Justice: Containing the Practice of the Justices of the Peace, Dalton, 1705.

14A General Abridgment of the Common Law: Alphabetically , Volume 2, Part 1. Knightley D'Anvers pg 148

15The Country Justice: Containing the Practice of the Justices of the Peace, Dalton, 1705.

16The Country Justice: Containing the Practice of the Justices of the Peace, Dalton, 1705.

17The Country Justice: Containing the Practice of the Justices of the Peace, Dalton, 1705.