Hello everyone and welcome back to the History of England, episode 80, which had originally

been called gathering clouds, but in fact we call it In We Doldal because I had to tell

you it's something of a meandering episode, could I formally apologise in advance?

Can I also apologise for any strange noises you might hear in the background? There is

something of a gale washing around the walls of my shed.

Anyway, when Edward returned, in 1289 he was at the height of his power and general awesomeness.

He had improved the government of Gaskiny, and he had achieved a position as a statesman

of European renown. Throughout this period and throughout the war with Wales, Edward's

Parliament had continued and he had continued to legislate. Another Statute of Westminster

and a Statute of Winchester were enacted in 1285, implementing legal reforms. The same year saw

the Statute of Merchants, which implemented a method of debt recovery that helped the development

of trade. In the background, the quo warrento proceedings to recover royal rights went on unabated.

All these legal reforms have given Edward a high reputation as a legal reformer, so much so

that the historian Janks called him the English Justinian. Actually, there's not a lot of evidence

to suggest that Edward had much to do with a lot of the legislation. Robert Bennell is a much

more likely candidate, and it is interesting to note that the legislation pretty much comes to an

end with the death of Bennell in 1292. But hey, Edward was the king, he could have next any of

this stuff, and it was his commitment to Parliament to provide the impetus and forum for all of this

to happen, so I figure he deserves a certain amount of credit. Edward seems not to have been very

happy though with what he found when he arrived home from Gaskiny. Presumably, he must have been

developing a sense of grumpiness while he was away, because he started laying about him pretty

much as soon as he arrived home. His grump was aimed at a number of royal officials, and the problem

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