ABSTRACT
The rule of law was fundamental to the thought of the age, and to the way men acted and behaved. Human law included law for the regulation of relationships between private persons, 'laws politic' for the maintenance of government, and international law or 'the Law of Nations'. The royal Council formed itself into a special Court of Star Chamber to hear private petitions alleging riots and breaches of the peace, while even ordinary Council business was often quasi-judicial. The social and economic historian is concerned less with law and government in their own right than with their implications for society. Just as the increasingly elaborate criminal law could not prevent crime, so an increasingly large body of common and statutory law on civil matters was not necessarily coherent. The Privy Council also developed a more coherent strategy towards social and economic problems, sending out circular letters to the localities to gather information, explain policy and demand effective action.
