At the time, all printing presses had to be officially licensed. Initially it served the valuable role as a “conciliar court” which was convened at short notice to deal with urgent matters. S.B. In 1884 The Grolier Club issued a deluxe limited edition reprint of this decree as their first publication, printed by the De Vinne Press, New York. From this time forward, the Court of Star Chamber became a political weapon for bringing actions against opponents to the policies of King Henry VIII, his Ministers and his Parliament. 1637. King Charles I used the Court of Star Chamber as Parliamentary substitute during the eleven years of Personal Rule, when he ruled without a Parliament. In America, due to the constitutional separation of powers, the main powers of select committees are often used to enhance public debate, but often leave the accused without legal representation, and hence the term “star chamber” is used to characterise the proceedings. On 17 October 1632, the Court of Star Chamber banned all "news books" because of complaints from Spanish and Austrian diplomats that coverage of the Thirty Years' War in England was unfair. “The Star Chamber” reached such a level of infamy during the reign of Charles I that the term “Star Chamber” still exists in our idiom today. The decree also limited the number of master printers to twenty, and specifyied the number of presses, journeymen, and apprentices each could have. Baker, J.H. -Eds, Thanks for reading! The sort of matters coming before it would now constitute offences such as conspiracy, libel, forgery, perjury, riot, conspiracy, and sedition. Many crimes which are now commonly prosecuted, such as attempt, conspiracy, criminal libel, and perjury, were originally developed by the Court of Star Chamber, along with its more common role of dealing with riots and sedition. The defendant's answer to an indictment was not accepted unless it was signed by counsel. When counsel refused to sign the answer, for whatever reason, the defendant was considered to have confessed. During his imprisonment in Fleet, he was cruelly treated. A Decree of the Star Chamber Concerning Printing July 11, 1637. "[15], This article is about the court. In 1640, the King’s personal rule ended and he was forced to reconvene Parliament. This is a pejorative term and casts doubt on the legitimacy of the proceedings. The first reference to the "star chamber"[b] is in 1398, as the Sterred chambre; the more common form of the name appears in 1422 as le Sterne-chamere. Change ), You are commenting using your Facebook account. [2][3] Gold stars on a blue background were a common medieval decoration for ceilings in richly decorated rooms: the Star Chamber ceiling itself is still to be seen at Leasowe Castle, Wirral, and similar examples are in the Scrovegni Chapel in Padua and elsewhere. William Prynne, for example, was a puritan who published a number of tracts opposing religious feast days and entertainment such as stage plays. In his examinations in the Star Chamber, he refused to take the oath known as the ‘ex-officio’ oath** (on the ground that he was not bound to incriminate himself), and thus called in question the court’s usual procedure. 17 October – the court of Star Chamber prohibits all "news books" because of complaints from Spanish and Austrian diplomats that coverage in England of the Thirty Years' War is unfair. ( Log Out /  Award winning historical fiction author, Alison Stuart, is a former lawyer with experience in the military and emergency services. Last updated October 11th, 2020, making it a general offense to print, import, or sell "any seditious, scismaticall, or offensive Bookes or Pamphlets, The Grolier Club issued a deluxe limited edition reprint of this decree as their first publication. "Star Chamber" can also, rarely, be used in its original meaning, for instance when a politician uses parliamentary privilege to examine and then exculpate or condemn a powerful organisation or person.