Article: Common and civil law? Taking possession of the English empire in America, 1575-1630 (1).

Most historians inform us that the legal foundations of the English empire in America were based on the common law. Founded on ancient custom and interpreted by important writers such as Ranulf de Glanvill, Henry de Bracton, and--in the Tudor and Smart period--William Lambarde, Edward Coke, and Matthew Hale, this unique legal code provided all that the English needed to know about taking possession of property. (2) This argument has much to be said for it, particularly when examining the various colonial charters issued between about 1575 and 1630. In this respect, the work of Viola Barnes and Charles Andrews, and more recently Patricia Seed and Christopher Tomlins is ...

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