AN APPEAL To the House of COMMONS, Desiring their answer: whether the Common-people shall have the quiet enjoyment of the Commons and Waste Land; Or whether they shall be under the will of Lords of manors still.  
Occasioned by an Arrest, made by Thomas Lord Wenman▪ Ralph Verny Knight, and Richard Winwood Esq; upon the Author hereof, for a Trespass, in Digging upon the Common-Land at George's Hill in Surrey.  
By Gerrard Winstanly, John Barker, and Thomas Star, In the Name of all the poor oppressed in the Land of ENGLAND.  
unrighteous Oppression kindles a flame; but Love, Righteousness, and Tenderness of heart▪ quenches it again.  
Printed in the Year, 1649.   

AN Appeal to the House of Commons, Desiring their answer; Whether the Common-People shall have the quiet enjoyment of the Commons and Waste Lands: Or whether they shall be under the will of Lords of manors still.  
SIRS,  
THe cause of this our Presentment before you, is, An Appeal to you, desiring you to demonstrate to us, and the whole Land, the equity, or not equity of our cause; And that you would either cast us by just reason under the feet of those we call taskmasters, or Lords of manors, or else to deliver us out of their Tyrannical hands: In whose hands, by way of Arrest, we are for the present, for a Trespass to them, as they say, In digging upon the Common-Land. The settling whereof, according to Equity and Reason, will quiet the minds of the oppressed people; it will be a keeping of our national Covenant; it will be peace to yourselves, and make England the most flourishing, and strongest Land in the 〈◊〉 and the first of Nations that shall begin to give up their Crown and sceptre, their Dominion and Government into the hands of Jesus Christ.  
The cause is this, we, amongst others of the common peopl●● that have been ever friends to the Parliament, as we are 〈◊〉 red our enemies will witness to it, have ploughed and digged upon George's Hill in Surrey, to sow corn for the succour of man, offering no offence to any, but do carry ourselves in love and peace towards all having no intent to meddle with any man's enclosures, or propriety, till it be freely given to us by themselves, but only to improve the Commons and waste Lands to our best advantage, for the relief of ourselves and others, being moved thereunto by the Reason hereafter following, not expecting any to be much offended, in regard the cause is so just and upright.  
Yet notwithstanding, there be three men (called by the people Lords of Manors) viz. Thomas Lord Wenman, Ralph Ve●ny Knight, and Richard Winwood Esquire, have arrested 〈◊〉 for a trespass in digging upon the Commons, and upon the Arrest we made our appearance in Kingston Court, where we understood we were arrested for meddling with other men's Rights; and secondly, they were encouraged to arrest us upon your Act of Parliament (as they tell us) to maintain the old Laws; we desired to plead our own cause, the Court denied us▪ and to fee a Lawyer we cannot, for divers reasons, as we may show hereafter.  
Now Sirs, our case is this, for we appeal to you, for you are the only men that we are to deal withal in this business▪ Whether the common people, after all their taxes, freequarter, and loss of blood to recover England from under the Norman yoke shall have the freedom to improve the Comon●, and waste Lands free to themselves, as freely their own, as the enclosures are the propriety of the elder brothers? Or whether the Lords of Manors shall have them, according to their old Custom from the King's Will and Grant, and so remain taskmasters still over us which 〈◊〉 the people's slavery 〈◊〉 Conquest.  
We have made our appeal 〈◊〉, to settle this matter in the Equity and Reason of it, and to pass the sentence of freedom to us you being the men with whom we have to do in this business, in whose hands there is power to settle it, for no Court can end this controversy▪ but your Court of Parliament, as the case of this Nation now stands.  
Therefore we 〈◊〉 you to read over this following Declaration, wherein we have declared our Reason, that the Commons and waste lands is the common peoples, and that in equity you ought to let them quietly enjoy them, as the elder brothers quietly enjoy their enclosures. The profit of this business to the Nation, the quitting of the hearts of the poor oppressed that are groaning under burdens and straits and the peace of your own hearts, to see the pear of the Nation settled in his platform, will much countervail the spending of so much time.  
Sirs, you know, that the Land of England in the land of our Nativity, both yours and ours, and all of us by the righteous Law of our Creation, aught to have food and raiment freely by our righteous labouring of the earth, without working for hire, or paying rent one to another.  
But since the fall of man from that righteous Law. The Nations of the world have rise up in variance one against another, and sought against murdered, and stolen the land of their Nativity one from another, and by their power of their conquests, have 〈◊〉 set up some to rule in tyranny over others, and thereby have enslaved the conquered, which is a burden the whole Creation hath, and yet does groan under. The teeth of all Nations hath been set on edge by this four grape, the covetous murdering sword.  
England, you know, hath been conquered and enslaved divers times, and the best Laws that England hath, (viz. Magna Charta) were got by our Forefathers importunate petitioning unto the Kings, that still were their taskmasters; and yet these best laws are yokes and manacles, tying one sort of people to be slaves to another; Clergy and Gentry have 〈◊〉 their freedom, but the common people still are, and have been left servants to work for 〈◊〉 like the Israilites under the Egyptian Task masters.  
The last enslaving yoke that England groaned under, (and yet is not freed from) was the Norman, as you know; and since William the Conqueror came in, about six hundred years ago, all the Kings that still succeeded, did confirm the old laws▪ or else make new ones, to uphold that Norman conquest over us; and the most favouring laws that we have, doth still bind the hands of the enslaved English from enjoying the freedom of their creation.  
You of the Gentry, as well as we of the Comonalty, all groaned under the burden of the bad Government, and burdening laws under the late King Charles, who was the last successor of William the Conqueror: you and we cried for a Parliament, and a Parliament was called, and wars, you know, presently begun, between the King, that represented William the Conqueror, and the body of the English people that were enslaved.  
We looked upon you to be our chief council, to agitate business for us, though you were summoned by the King's Writ, and chosen by the freeholders, that are the successors of William the conqueror's soldiers; you saw the danger so great, that without a war England was like to be more enslaved, therefore you called upon us to assist you with plate, 〈◊〉, freequarter, and our persons; and you promised us, in the name of the Almighty, to make us a free people; 〈◊〉 on you and we took the National Covenant with joint consent, to endeavour the freedom, peace and safety of the people of England.  
And you and we joined purse and person together in this common cause; and will the conqueror's successor, which was Charles, was cast out; and thereby we have recovered ourselves from under that Norman yoke; and now unless you and we be merely besotted with covetousness, pride, and slavish fear of men, it is, and will be our wisdom to cast out all those enslaving laws, which was the Tyrannical power that the 〈◊〉 ●rest as down by: O shut not your eyes against the light, darken nor knowledge, by dispute about 〈◊〉 men's privileges, when universal freedom is brought to be tried before you, dispute no further when truth appears, but be silent, and practise it.  
Stop not your ears against the secret mourning of the oppressed, under these expressions, lest the Lord see it, and be offended, and shut his ears against your cries, and work a deliverance for his waiting people some other way then by you.  
The main thing that you should look upon is the Land, which calls upon her children to be freed from the entanglement of the Norman taskmasters, for one third part lies waste and barren, and her children starve for want, in regard the Lords of Manors will not suffer the poor to manure it.  
When William the Conqueror came in, he took the land from the English, both the Enclosures from the Gentry, and the Commons and waste lands from the common people, and gave our land to his Norman soldiers.  
Therefore seeing we have with joint consent of purse and person conquered his successor, Charles, and the power now is in your hand, the Nations Representative; O let the first thing you do, be this, to set the land free. Let the Gentry have their enclosures free from all Norman enslaving entanglements whatsoever, and let the common people have their Commons and waste lands set free to them, from all Norman enslaving Lords of manors, that so both elder and younger brother, as we spring successively one from another, may live free and quiet one by, and with another, not burdening one another in this land of our Nativity.  
And this thing you are bound to see done, or at least to endeavour it, before another Representative succeed you; otherwise you cannot discharge your trust to God and man, for these Reasons,  
First, if you free not the Land from entanglement of all Norman yokes, or ●●ther bondages, so that the people 〈◊〉 well as another may enjoy the benefit of their 〈…〉 to have the land free to work upon, that they may eat their bread in righteousness; that is to say, let the Freeholders have there freedom to work quietly in their enclosures, and let the common people have their Commons and waste lands 〈◊〉 to themselves. If you establish not this seeing power now is in your hand, you will be the first that break Covenant with Almighty God.  
For you swore in your National Covenant to endeavour a Reformation according to the Word of God, which Reformation is to restore us to that primitive freedom in the earth, in which the earth was first made and given to the sons of men, and that is to be a common treasury of livelihood to all, without working for hire, or paying rent to any, for this is the Reformation according to the Word of God before the fall of man, in which there is no respect of persons.  
And seeing in particular you swore to endeavour the freedom, peace and safety of this people of England, shutting out no sort from freedom; therefore you cannot say that the Gentry and Clergy were only comprehended, but without exception, all sorts of people in the land are to have freedom, seeing all sorts have assisted you in person and purse, and the common people more especially, seeing their estates were weakest, and their misery in the wars the greatest.  
Therefore let the Gentry and Freeholders have their enclosures freed from all entanglements of Fines, Heriots and other burdens, and let the common people have their Commons and waste lands freed from entanglements of the Norman Lords of manors, and pluck up all Norman Tyranny by the roots, and so keep your Covenant that you, and all 〈◊〉 of people may live in peace one among another.  
Secondly, if this freedom be not granted quietly, you will pull the blood and cries of the poor oppressed upon heads; First, because you have taken their money in taxes, and freequarter from them, whereby they are made worse able to live then before the wars. Secondly, because in your low estate, when you called upon us to come and help a bleeding dying Nation, and we did come with purse and person, and underwent great hardship, and you still promised us freedom in the end, if in case you and we prevailed over the Norman successor, and we have prevailed.  
And if now, while the price is in your hand, you should still leave us under the Norman Lords of Manors, and will not quietly suffer us to plant ourselves upon the Commons, and waste land, which is ours by the law of our Creation, and which is ours now by conquest from under our oppressor, for which we have paid taxes, given freequarter, and adventured our lives; the Common-land now is as freely the common peoples, as you can say the enclosures are your propriety.  
If you deny this freedom, than you justly pull the blood and cries of the poor oppressed upon you, and are Covenant-breakers, and will be proved double hypocrites: First, to Almighty God, in breaking Covenant with him, for in his Name you made the Covenant. Secondly, to men, in breaking Covenant with them, for the matter of the Covenant was the freedom, peace, and safety of the people of England, taking in all sorts of people.  
Thirdly, if you do not set us free from the Norman yoke, now after you have taken our Taxes and freequarter from us, whereby we have dearly bought our Freedom, and you thereupon promised freedom, and you have power now to give it, for if you speak the word the Norman yokes will be broke, and all sorts will rejoice in freedom and righteousness; but if you will not, you give a just occasion to the common people of England, never to trust the fair words of a Parliament any more, as you were always very slow in trusting the King, when he swore by the word of a King, because you found that subtlety and Self lay under, and no reality.  
And truly the hearts of people are much falling from you, for your breach of Promises when you have power to keep them, and for your neglect of giving them their freedom, and removing burdens; and what danger may ensue by that to yourselves, and the Nations, you know how to judge; and for our parts we are sorry to hear the muttering of the people against you.  
O that there were a heart in you to consider of these things, and act righteousness, how sweetly might you and the people live together: If you grant this freedom we speak of, you gain the hearts of the Nation; if you neglect this, you will fall as fast in their affections as ever you rise: I speak what I see, and do you observe; slight not that love that speaks feelingly, from the sense of the Nations burdens.  
Fourthly, if still you should establish the old Norman laws, and confirm Lords of Manors in their ancient Custom, and oppressing power over the Common-people, you would now at length, after the wars with King Charles are over, take part with such (as is known very well) as have been either flat enemies, or ambidexters all along the wars, and will cast such as have been your true friends at the feet of the Nations enemies, to be still oppressed by their cruelty. Surely if these Lords and freeholders have their enclosures established to them in peace, is not that freedom enough? Must they needs have the Common land likewise? As Ahab, that was restless till he had Naboth's Vineyard, and so in the midst of their abundance, yet will eat the bread out of the poors' mouths. O, the land mourns in her children, under the hard hearted covetousness of these men.  
Fifthly, If you establish the old Norman laws, That Lords of Manors shall still have the Commons and waste lands, than you are the maintainers of the old Norman Murder and Theft still; for Lords of Manors came to be Tyrants over the poor enslaved English, by the Murder and Theft of William the Conqu●rour, and downwards to this day they have held title to their Royalties therefrom, and from the will of the King; for when he had conquered, he turned the English out, and gave their land to his Norman soldiers.  
Sixthly, If you establish the old Norman laws, and this especially▪ That the Lords of Manors shall still be Lords of the Common land and the Common people be still enslaved to them, than you pull the guilt of King Charles his blood upon your own heads; for than it will appear to the view of all men, That you cut off the King's head, that you might establish yourselves in his Chair of Government, and that your aim was not to throw down Tyranny, but the Tyrant. But alas, the King's blood was not our burden, it was those oppressing Norman laws, whereby he enslaved us, that we groaded under.  
Let it not be said in the ears of posterity, That the Gentry of England assembled in Parliament, proved Covenant-breakers, Oaths, Protestations, and promise brekkers to God, and the Common people, after their own turn was served; and killed the King for his power and government, as a thief kills a true man for his money. I do not say you have done so, but for shame dally no longer, but cut off the bad laws, with the King's head, and let the poor oppressed go free, as well as the Gentry and Clergy, and you will find more peace. Let the Common land be set free, break the Norman yoke of Lords of Manors; and pull not the cries and blood of the poor oppressed upon you  
Seventhly, Know this, That if ever you, or any Parliament of England, do England good, you must make all your laws in the light of equity and reason, respecting the freedom of all sorts of people; but if you respect some sort of people, to wit, the Gentry, and Clergy, and give freedom to them; for they, by virtue of your Act of Parliament, establishing the old Norman laws, do arrest and trouble me and others, for digging upon the Commons, whereas by virtue of the Victory over the King, in regard I have to my estate given free quarter and taxes for England's liberty, as they have done, I have as much right to the Common land as they; therefore I say, if the Gentry and Clergy must have their Norman power established to them, and the Common people, that are more considerable for number and necessities, be left still under the yoke, you will be proved the foolish builders.  
Surely if you found out the Court of Wards to be a burden, and freed Lords of manors, and Gentry from paying Fines to the King; and freed their children from the slavery of falling Ward; Let the common People be set free too from paying homage to Lords of Manors; and let all sorts have freedom by virtue of this Conquest over the Norman successor● And seeing you took away the will of the King from enslaving Lords of manors, Take away the will of Lords of manors from enslaving the Common People.  
Thus sirs, we have made our Appeal to you, as the only men that must and can give sentence of freedom in this controversy, and that you will not leave us in the cruel hands of Lords of manors, the successors of the Norman taskmasters; For there are but three ways that Lords of Man●●● can lay claim to the Common land, and yet all three are too weak to build a just title upon:  
First, if they can prove, that the Earth was made by Almighty God peculiarly for them, and not for others equal with them, than we have trespassed in digging upon their rights; but the Earth was made as free for us as for them; therefore they have trespassed against us their fellow-creatures, in troubling us by their tyrannical Arrest, and hindering us from our righteous labour.  
Secondly, if they say, that others sold or gave them the title to the Commons, by way of Inheritance; They are to prove by what Authority any other had from the pure Law of our Creation, to give away or sell the Earth from the use of any of their fellow creatures, it being the common store-house of livelihood for all, without respect of persons.  
He that sells the Earth, and he that buys, doth remove the landmark from the third person, because the land that is bought and sold, belongs to the third man, as well as to the other two that buys and sells; and they two persons that buys and sells, and leaves the land that is bought for an inheritance to their children, excluding others, they murder the third man, because they steal away his livelihood from him; for after a man hath bought the land, and paid money for it to another, he saith, this is my land, I have paid for it: But the third man comes in, and saith, the land is mine, equal with you by the law of Creation; And so he that is the buyer, he begins to draw his sword, and to fight; and if he conquer, he rejoices, and says, the land is now mine indeed, I have bought, and I have conquered. But thou covetous person, so long as there is another man in the world besides thee, and him whom thou hast killed, the Earth belongs to him as well as to thee; And this is the case of the Nations of the world, and thus propriety came in, and hath been left as an Inheritance to Children; which is the burden the Creation groans under.  
Here we see who are thieves and murderers; even the buyers and sellers of land, with her fruits, these are they that take away another man's right from him; and that overthrows righteous propriety, to uphold particular propriety, which covetousness the God of this world hath set up.  
But thirdly, if Lords of Manors say, as it is truth, that they hold title to the Commons by custom, from the Kings will, as they do, this is as bad as the other; for we know the King came in by conquest, and gave the land to these forefathers, to be taskmasters over the conquered English. But if you say, that these later Kings were chosen by the people, it is possible it might be so, but surely it was when his greatness overawed them, or else they would never have chosen him to enslave them, and to set taskmasters over them.  
But seeing the Common People have joined person and purse with you, to recover yourselves from under the tyranny of Kings, and have prevailed; the Common people now have more truer title to the common lands, than the Lords of Manors, for they held title by Conquest and sword of the King (we now the common people have recovered the land again by conquest and sword in casting out the King) so that the title of Lords of Manors is broke.  
Therefore now the Common people have more true title to the Common land, than Lords of Manors have, in regard they have recovered themselves out of slavery by taxes, free quarter, and conquest, yet we shut them not out, but let them take part with us as fellow creatures, and we with them, and so honour our Creator in the work of his own hands.  
Thus we have declared our Cause without flattery to you; if you leave us in the hands of oppression, and under the power of the old tyrannical laws, know this, that we suffer in pursuit of o●● national Covenant, endeavouring a Reformation in our place and calling, according to the word of God, and you shall be left without excuse.  
Set the Land free from Oppression, And righteousness will be the Laws, Government, and strength of that People.  

These are some of the NORMAN Laws which William the Conqueror brought into ENGLAND.  
FIrst, he turned the English out of their Lands, and placed his Norman soldiers therein, and made those that had the greatest portion, Lords, and Barons, and gave them a Royalty to the Commons, to hold from his Will, as a custom, whereby the common people should not plant themselves anywhere in the Land, upon any Common-land, but some Lord of Manor or other should know of it, and hinder them, as these three that have arrested us, viz. Wonman, Verny, and Winwood, Lord, Knight, and Esquire, the three Estates of the Norman Gentry, will not suffer us to dig quietly upon George's Hill, but seek to drive us off, having no more claim thereunto but an ancient Custom, which they hold from the King's Will, where by they have, and still would tyrannize over the people: And this is the rise and standing of Lords of Manors.  
Secondly, another Norman Law is this▪ William the Conqueror caused the Laws to be written in the Norman and French tongue; and then appointed his own Norman people to expound and interpret those Laws, and appointed the English people to pay them 〈◊〉 Fee for their pains, and from hence came in the trade of Lawyers; he commanded likewise that noman should plead his owncause, but those Lawyers should do it for them.  
Thirdly, William the Conqueror broke that good and quiet course of ending controversies in a neighbourhood, and commanded the people to come up to Westminster star to the four Terms every year to have their Causes tried.  
Fourthly, William the Conquer or brought in the paying of Tithes to the Clergy, in thankfulness to the Pope, and Clergies good services in preaching for him, and so to persuade the people to embrace him.  
These are some of the Norman Laws and burdens, which if removed, it would be much ease and quiet to this Nation.  
FINIS.