The Justices of the Peace were officials with both administrative and judicatory powers who represented the Crown in the English (and Welsh) counties, the most important geographical divisions of local government. The origins of the office in England date back to the 14th century, when the justices assumed the task of maintaining the King’s peace in place of the older county and hundred courts. Over the course of the 16th century, the Justices of the Peace became by degrees the most important organ of local administration, particularly as the off…
Justice of the peace(943 words)
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Asch, Ronald G., “Justice of the peace”, in: Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online, Editors of the English edition: Graeme Dunphy, Andrew Gow. Original German Edition: Enzyklopädie der Neuzeit. Im Auftrag des Kulturwissenschaftlichen Instituts (Essen) und in Verbindung mit den Fachherausgebern herausgegeben von Friedrich Jaeger. Copyright © J.B. Metzlersche Verlagsbuchhandlung und Carl Ernst Poeschel Verlag GmbH 2005–2012. Consulted online on 08 December 2023 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2352-0272_emho_SIM_019492>
First published online: 2015
First print edition: 20190124
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