The Statute of Marlborough

When Simon de Montfort returned to England from France, he perceived Henry III to be a weak king and with the barons aching for a fight, it was de Montfort who stepped in to take charge.

In 1258 this action culminated in the Provisions of Oxford, a law that served to limit Henry’s power. Henry’s refusal to
accept the Provisions of Westminster the following year saw Montfort’s power base grow rapidly, and by 1263 he was all
​but wearing the crown. ​

The following year at the Battle of Lewes, Henry, his son the future Edward I, and Richard, Duke of Cornwall were taken prisoner but another year later the tables were turned. At the Battle of Evesham, Simon de Montfort died a grisly death, but Henry's troubles were not over yet. ​

By 1267 the problems between Henry and his barons, which were based on the 1258/9 provisions, had still not settled down
and a new set of laws were needed. On the 18th or 19th of November 1267 in a Parliament at Marlborough the twenty-nine chapters, that made up the Statute of Marlborough, were passed. Of this parliament Walter of Gisborough, a 14th-century chronicler and ​priest from the Augustinian Priory in Yorkshire wrote:

​
“And the King held his parliament in the octave of St Martin at Marlborough, where on the advice of discreet persons
and by the unanimous voice of his great men he made many statutes for the betterment of his realm and the manifestation
​of common justice, which are called the Statutes of Marlborough.”

In 2014, over seven hundred years after these laws were passed only two are in force, one, that bans an individual from seeking redress for nonpayment of debts without approval of the law, the second stops tenants from selling off their land.