Amerce

v.; also 4–5 amercy, 5 -sy, 5–6 amercie, 6 amearse, 8 ammerce. [orig. amercy, a. AFr. amerci-er (not in continental Fr.), f. à to, at + merci:—L. mercēdem, which passed through the senses of ‘wages, remuneration, a gift in recompense, a gift generally, a gift offered gratuitously (already in Gregory the Great), a present, a favour, grace, MERCY.’ From the phr. estre à merci to be at the mercy of any one, was formed estre amercié, at first always passive (as in Magna Carta), and then the active amercier (in Britton c. 1292). Britton has estre en nostre merci synonymous with estre amercié. ‘To be amerced’ was thus orig. to be at the mercy of any one as to amount of fine, to ‘come in his will,’ be fined at his pleasure; hence the active ‘to amerce,’ to fine arbitrarily or according to one’s own estimate. The -y was lost through being viewed as inflexional, or through phonetic identity of amercied, -id, -ed.

1215.  Magna Carta, xiv. Liber homo non amercietur pro paruo delicto nisi secundum modum delicti, et pro magno delicto amercietur secundum magnitudinem delicti, saluo contenemento suo. French version: Frans hom ne seit amerciez pour petit forfet, fors solon la maniere del forfait, et pour le grant forfait seit amerciez solonc la grandesce del forfait sauf son contenement.

c. 1292.  Britton, I. vii. A chescun murdre soit le hundred, ou le murdre sera trové fet, en nostre merci; et si le fet serra trove en deus hundrez, si soint ambideus amerciez (Let the hundred where the murder shall have been done be ‘amercied’ [in our mercy]; and if the deed shall be found to have been done in two hundreds, let them both be ‘amercied.’) Ibid., I. iii. 7. Qe nul ne soit si hardi de amercier nul homme.]

  1.  trans. To punish by an arbitrary fine; to fine, mulct (a person). a. Of legal fines.

c. 1375.  Wyclif, Antecrist, 143. To amercy þe cely puple wiþouten any mercy.

1377.  Langl., P. Pl., B. VI. 40. Þowgh ȝe mowe amercy hem · late mercy be taxoure.

1444.  Paston Lett., 42, I. 55. I should be amercied in the Kyngges Courte.

c. 1469.  Earl of Oxford, ibid., 597, II. 337. Shall at the said court be amersid.

1523.  Fitzherb., Husb., § 148. To be amerced in y^e courte or elles to make hym amendes or bothe.

1666.  Fuller, Hist. Camb., 84. The University have power to punish and amerce all forestallers, regraters, &c.

1768.  Blackstone, Comm., I. 179. For this offence the borough was amerced.

1863.  Cox, Inst. Eng. Govt., II. x. 533. Liable to be amerced to the Crown, or fined for his delay of justice.

  b.  fig. and loosely, To exact something from, make exactions on; to punish.

c. 1570.  Thynne, Pride & Lowl., 60. The vintener amercing them so deepe, That … Their wife and children oft for hunger weepe.

1652.  Evelyn, Diary (1827), IV. 4. For which presumption if you think fit to amerce me.

1821.  Byron, Cain, III. i. Thou shalt be amerced for sins unknown.

  2.  With the penalty or amount expressed; a. as a second object (obj. of value): To fine so much.

1500.  Arnold, Chron. (1811), 1. That the Sherefs be not amercyed ouer xx pond.

1633.  G. Herbert, Humilitie, iv. in Temple, 62. They … amerc’d them, double gifts to bring at the next Session-day.

1725.  Bailey, trans. Erasm. Colloq., 317. I’ll be content to be amerc’d a Supper.

1762.  Hume, Hist. Eng. (1806), IV. lxv. 779. The person, in whose house the conventicle met, was amerced a like sum.

  b.  introduced by in (at obs.): To fine in.

1611.  Bible, Deut. xxii. 19. They shall amearse him [Wyclif, Genev. condemne] in an hundred shekels of siluer.

1648.  Prynne, Plea for Lords, 8. The Barony … shall be amerced at an hundred markes.

1783.  Martyn, Geog. Mag., II. 240. He ammerced the inhabitants in the sum of twelve hundred thousand crowns.

1817.  Scott, Rob Roy (1855), 190. He would amerce him in half his wages.

  c.  introduced by with (by rare): To punish with.

1592.  Shaks., Rom. & Jul., III. i. 195. Ile Amerce you with so strong a fine.

1594.  Spenser, Sonnet, lxx. Shall be by him amearst with penance dew.

1648.  Milton, Tenure of Kings (1650), 55. Amerce him with the loss of his Kingdom.

1850.  Blackie, Æschylus, II. 111. I shall be Amerced with bitter loss.

1855.  Milman, Lat. Chr. (1864), V. IX. iv. 248. Any clerk … is to be amerced by the loss of his benefices and his order.

  d.  introduced by of: To mulct, deprive of.

1667.  Milton, P. L., I. 604. Millions of spirits for his fault amerced Of Heaven.

1791.  Cowper, Iliad, XVI. 68. Amerce me of my well-earn’d recompense.

1844.  Ld. Cockburn, Jrnl., II. 61. St. Andrews, though amerced … of its ancient greatness.