One of the provisions of the statute of 12 & 13 W. III. (passed in 1700) for settling the succession in the House of Hanover, was, " That no person who shall hereafter come to the possession of this crown shall go out of the dominions of England, Scotland, or Ireland, without consent of parliament" This clause, however, was repealed in 1710, by 1 George I., stat. 2, c. 51. The repealing act was passed to gratify the king, whose " impatience to visit his German dominions," says Coxe in his `Life of Walpole,' i. 77, "now became so great as totally to overcome every restraint of prudence and suggestion of propriety, and imperiously to demand indulgence." " The ministry," continues the historian, " were considerably embarrassed on this occasion, and drew up a strong remonstrance representing the inconvenience which would result from the projected journey. The remonstrance, however, not only failed of success, but so far exasperated the king, that he declared he would not endure a longer confinement in this kingdom.
It ass theogist more respectful to his majesty to obtain a repeal of the restraining el-on at once, than to ask parliament merely for the leave of .baene.; and the tell pained through all its stages In both !louses nahout a dia.rating voice, the Tories being favourably disposed to the l'amelPle. and the Whigs averse or frightened to offend the king. Ilia realty, who was at variance with his eldest son, now interposed another difficulty, refusing to intrust the government during his shame. to the place, without joining other persons with lain in the evenniesion, and also limiting hi. authority by the most rigorous reetria-troos. l'poo this point. however. be yielded at but to the repre sentations of the ministers, who «secluded a long expoeition of reasons against his leaving the kingdom at all at that crisis by stating that, " upon a careful perusal of the precedents, finding no instance of persons being joined in conunirnion with the Prince of Wales" In the appoint ment of a regency." and few, if any, restrictions upon such commission'," they were of opinion that the constant tenor of ancient practice could not conveniently be receded from. (Coxe, ii. 51-54.1 Upon this the king submitted to give the prince the sole direction of affairs ; " yet," mays Coxe, quoting from the work called' The Political State of Great Britain; " ho appointed him Orrordicia of tAc Realm clad Licatcscat, aq .4lice unknown in England since it was enjoyed by Edward the Black Prince." In point of fact the title given to the prince in the original Latin commission was Cedar Ile psi nootri ct Loess horns, which were the words that had been commonly used In all such commisaions down to the reign of Henry VIIL, with this difference only, that one 4 the two titles (more frequently Cusses Room() was alone employed.
The earliest use of the term regret ap1esrs to have been in the com mission from Henry VIII. to Queen Katherine Parr, when he went over to Boulogne in 1514, in which she Is styled Rectrix mat ONbernatrix Rigid eastri. Queen Mary, the wife of William III., whose case is the next that occurs, seems, as already stated, to have had no commission ; and, being queen regnant in her own right, she was not even popularly styled regent.
%When George I. went abroad, in May, 1719, ho intrusted the govern meat du his absence not to a regent, or any single person, but to thirteen justices, composed of the Archbishop of Canterbury and the principal officers of state. The comudesion begins by reciting that hie majesty had "determined, for divers weighty reasons, speedily to go In parsec beyond the amt.." The persons commiasioued are appointed to be" our guardians and justices (.huticiara must be the Latin term) .4 our said kingdom of Great Britain, and our lieutenants in the same, during our absence out of our said kingdom, or till further signification .1 our pleasure ; " and they were authorised, four being made a quorum, 'to execute the office and place of guardians, kc., and to order, do, and perform all and every act and acts of government and administration of government, and all other matters and things whatseever, which, by ' virtue or rumen of the aforesaid of or place, have been usual, or may be lawfully entered, done, or performed." Power is afterwards specially given to keep the pence, to cause the Laws and customs of the kingdom to be observed by all, to punish criminals, to hold the parliament then existing, to summon and hold other parliaments, to summon and hold the Privy Council; with the advice of the Privy Council, to issue pro chunatione, "and to do and perform all other thing which have been usually done, or may be done, by us, by or with the advice of the ' wen ; " appoint anabamadors, to make and conclude treaties; to confer, grant, and present to all benefices, to issue commands under the privy seal for and concerning the collection, levying, and disposal of the revenue; to command the army ; to execute martial law in time of war, if that should happen; to command and employ the naval farces of the kingdom ; to appoint to and discharge from all offices at the dimmed of the crown ; to grant pardona for high treason and all other crimes mei offences; and finally, to do all there thing. hi Ireland a. well as In Great Britain.