THE
CASE
OF
THE
Old
Governors
of
the
FREE
GRAMMAR-SCHOOL
in
BIRMINGHAM
in
the
County
of
WARWICK
,
Appellants
,
against
a
DECREE
made
in
the
Court
of
CHANCERY
,
in
the
Name
of
the
Attorney-General
,
at
the
Relation
of
the
New
Governors
.
KIng
Edward
the
Sixth
,
per
An.
for
the
Support
of
the
said
School
:
And
gave
them
Power
to
Elect
a
School-master
and
Usher
,
and
New
Governors
,
as
often
as
any
of
the
Old
should
die
or
leave
the
said
Town
,
(
special
Provision
being
made
by
the
said
Letters-Patents
,
That
none
but
the
Residing
Inhabitants
of
that
Town
should
be
capable
of
the
Government
.
)
And
further
,
by
the
said
Letters-Patents
it
was
provided
,
That
the
Governors
,
by
the
Consent
of
the
Lord
Bishop
of
the
Diocess
for
the
time
being
,
should
have
Power
to
make
Orders
as
well
for
the
Government
of
the
said
School
,
as
for
the
Application
of
the
Rents
arising
out
of
the
said
Lands
.
The
successive
Governors
of
the
said
School
,
ever
since
the
Foundation
thereof
,
having
taken
great
care
to
chuse
able
School-masters
successively
to
that
Place
,
and
having
by
their
Industry
and
Prudence
improved
the
Rents
of
the
said
Lands
,
by
Building
and
otherwise
,
from
One
and
twenty
Pounds
per
Annum
,
to
about
Three
hundred
Pounds
a
Year
;
by
means
whereof
this
School
has
for
several
Years
last
past
been
a
great
Nursery
of
Learning
,
and
thereby
a
Publick
Advantage
to
the
Kingdom
,
which
have
been
in
a
great
measure
occasioned
by
the
Encouragement
some
poor
Scholars
of
that
School
received
from
the
said
Governors
,
out
of
the
improved
Rents
,
by
the
Consent
of
the
Bishop
of
the
said
Diocess
,
towards
their
Maintenance
at
the
University
.
Which
Methods
continued
until
the
latter
end
of
the
Reign
of
King
Charles
the
Second
,
at
which
time
the
then
Secretaries
Letter
was
brought
by
a
Neighbouring
Gentleman
of
that
Country
,
directed
to
the
Governors
,
purporting
,
That
King
Charles
the
Second
required
a
Surrender
of
their
Charter
;
to
which
if
they
complied
,
the
Bearer
told
them
,
they
might
continue
Governors
,
and
have
a
new
Charter
,
with
greater
and
more
ample
Priviledges
:
But
upon
refusal
,
he
also
told
them
what
a
severe
Prosecution
they
must
expect
from
his
then
Majesty
;
And
at
the
same
instant
prevailed
with
some
of
the
most
unwary
Governors
to
joyn
in
an
Instrument
for
the
Surrender
of
their
Charter
.
This
Surrender
was
never
Inrolled
:
But
after
King
Charles's
Death
,
in
the
First
Year
of
King
James
the
Second
,
a
New
Charter
was
granted
,
wherein
the
Person
that
brought
the
said
Letter
,
and
thereby
procured
the
said
Surrender
,
is
made
a
Governor
,
together
with
several
other
Persons
of
his
Acquaintance
,
inhabiting
far
distant
from
the
said
Town
,
and
in
other
Counties
,
and
not
above
Five
of
the
said
Governors
therein
named
are
inhabiting
within
the
Town
:
In
which
last-granted
Charter
the
King
reserved
a
Power
to
himself
of
Removing
or
Displacing
any
of
the
said
Governors
and
Masters
of
the
said
School
at
his
Pleasure
.
Upon
this
,
the
Old
School-master
is
removed
,
although
he
had
for
many
Years
together
acquitted
himself
in
an
extraordinary
manner
in
that
Employment
,
and
greatly
to
the
satisfaction
of
the
Inhabitants
,
for
whose
Benefit
the
Charity
was
designed
,
and
a
New
Master
brought
thither
in
his
room
,
against
the
Good-will
and
Inclination
of
the
Inhabitants
of
the
said
Town
,
whereby
their
Children
are
neglected
,
and
the
poor
Scholars
are
totally
deprived
of
their
Subsistence
and
Exhibitions
formerly
received
in
the
University
.
The
Inconveniency
of
which
New
Charter
was
soon
felt
in
another
manner
,
it
being
totally
in
his
then
Majesty's
Power
;
and
the
Town
having
generally
a
great
aversion
to
Popery
,
when
not
one
Inch
of
Ground
could
be
procured
in
that
Place
,
from
any
of
the
Inhabitants
,
to
build
a
Popish
Chappel
on
,
for
the
propagating
that
Religion
,
a
long
Lease
is
made
of
part
of
the
School-Lands
for
that
purpose
,
and
a
Chappel
erected
accordingly
on
the
same
.
Thus
stood
the
state
of
the
School
until
Their
present
Majesties
(
the
Great
Restorers
of
our
Ancient
Liberties
and
Privileges
)
happy
Accession
to
the
Crown
;
at
which
time
the
said
Surrender
not
being
Inrolled
,
your
Petitioners
,
the
Old
Governors
,
were
advised
to
,
and
did
act
as
formerly
;
and
being
obstructed
by
the
New
Governors
,
they
brought
their
Ejectment
at
Law
,
and
did
recover
therein
;
and
thereupon
the
New
Governors
,
immediately
by
Petition
,
applied
themselves
to
the
then
Lords
Commissioners
of
the
Great
Seal
,
for
liberty
to
Inroll
the
said
Surrender
,
but
were
denied
the
same
,
upon
hearing
Counsel
on
both
sides
:
And
thereupon
the
said
New
Governors
Petitioned
the
House
of
Commons
,
for
leave
to
bring
in
a
Bill
,
to
be
passed
into
an
Act
of
Parliament
,
for
Settling
the
School
upon
the
New
Foundation
;
and
the
same
was
referred
to
a
Committee
:
Who
,
upon
an
Examination
thereof
,
reported
to
the
House
,
That
they
saw
no
Cause
to
bring
in
a
Bill
;
and
the
same
was
thereon
rejected
.
That
the
New
Governors
,
who
are
the
Respondents
,
having
met
with
these
Disappointments
,
then
exhibited
their
Bill
in
Chancery
,
From
which
Decree
the
Old
Governors
have
Appealed
to
the
Right
Honourable
the
House
of
Peers
,
for
the
Reversal
thereof
.