王权强化视域下英国国王遗嘱研究(1066—1485)

The Study of English King’s Will from the Perspective of Kingship Enhancement(1066-1485)

11—15世纪的英王遗嘱不仅如普通遗嘱一样是处理遗产的重要文件,而且是彰显君主权威、强化王权的有效工具,主要涉及丧葬安排、遗赠以及确定王位继承等方面。英王通过丧葬安排彰显君主至高地位,把大笔遗产分给王位继承人和遗嘱执行人等,为其巩固君主地位提供物质基础。最为关键的是,在长子继承制尚未确立时,英王尝试行使君主特权以遗嘱安排王位继承,避免因王位继承引起贵族叛乱、王权削弱。

The King’s will of England from the 11th century to the 15th century was not only an important document to deal with the inheritance, just like the ordinary will, but also an effective tool to show the authority of the crown and strengthen the kingship. The King’s will mainly involves funeral arrangements, property bequests and debt treatment, and the determination of the succession to the throne. The England King demonstrated the high status of the monarch through funeral arrangements, and distributed a large amount of inheritance to the heir and the executors, so as to provide material basis for consolidating the status of the monarch. Most importantly, when the primogeniture was not established, the King tried to exercise the King’s privilege to arrange the succession of the throne by will, so as to avoid the rebellion of the nobility caused by the succession of the throne and weaken the Kingship.