Sir Martin of Littlebury (died 1274) was a British clerk and justice. He was first recorded in 1242 working as a Kings clerk, although it is assumed that he had been previously working for the government as he was, in 1242, awarded the Moiety

Moiety title

Moiety title is legal term describing a portion other than a whole of ownership of property. The word derives from Old French moitié meaning "half" , from Latin medietas "middle", from medius....

 of a church in Blackburn, and also given a papal indulgence

Indulgence

In Catholic theology, an indulgence is the full or partial remission of temporal punishment due for sins which have already been forgiven. The indulgence is granted by the Catholic Church after the sinner has confessed and received absolution...

 in February 1245. He was most likely a clerk in service to one of the Kings justices, but there is also the possibility that he worked for the clerk of Chancery

Court of Chancery

The Court of Chancery was a court of equity in England and Wales that followed a set of loose rules to avoid the slow pace of change and possible harshness of the common law. The Chancery had jurisdiction over all matters of equity, including trusts, land law, the administration of the estates of...

. Before 1245 he was presented to the parish church at Kirkoswald

Kirkoswald, Cumbria

The village, civil parish and former market town of Kirkoswald lies in the Lower Eden Valley of Cumbria, formerly Cumberland, about from Penrith. The village is usually referred to locally as KO....

 by Thomas of Moulton, either the Thomas of Moulton

Thomas of Moulton

Sir Thomas de Multon , Lord of Multon, in Lincolnshire, was a British landowner and judge. He fought as a knight in Normandy in 1202-3, in Wales in 1211 and in Poitou in 1214. He was an unlucky speculator under King John, owing over £800 when the Exchequer reopened after the end of the First...

 who served as a royal justice or his son of the same name. In 1250 he was made Canon of Salisbury Cathedral

Salisbury Cathedral

Salisbury Cathedral, formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is an Anglican cathedral in Salisbury, England, considered one of the leading examples of Early English architecture....

 by William of York, another royal justice.

In the late 1240s Martin served as an occasional Assize Justice, but did not begin full service as a royal justice until the 1260s. In the first half of 1261 he served as a junior justice on three Eyres

Eyre (legal term)

An Eyre or Iter was the name of a circuit traveled by an itinerant justice in medieval England, or the circuit court he presided over , or the right of the king to visit and inspect the holdings of any vassal...

 led by Gilbert of Preston

Gilbert of Preston

Sir Gilbert of Preston was a British justice. He was the son of Walter of Preston, who was High Sheriff of Northamptonshire between 1206 and 1208...

, and became a senior justice on his own Eyre circuit when Eyres resumed in 1262. His final Eyre was in 1263 in Lincolnshire

Lincolnshire

Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...

, although the circuit was never completed due to the outbreak of the Second Barons' War

Second Barons' War

The Second Barons' War was a civil war in England between the forces of a number of barons led by Simon de Montfort, against the Royalist forces led by Prince Edward , in the name of Henry III.-Causes:...

. He did not serve during the 1264 reign of Simon de Montford

Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester

Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester, 1st Earl of Chester , sometimes referred to as Simon V de Montfort to distinguish him from other Simon de Montforts, was an Anglo-Norman nobleman. He led the barons' rebellion against King Henry III of England during the Second Barons' War of 1263-4, and...

, the "uncrowned King of England", and was not returned to the bench until 1267, when he was appointed Chief Justice of the Common Pleas

Chief Justice of the Common Pleas

The Court of Common Pleas, also known as the Common Bench or Common Place, was the second highest common law court in the English legal system until 1880, when it was dissolved. As such, the Chief Justice of the Common Pleas was one of the highest judicial officials in England, behind only the Lord...

. According to official record he was a voice of moderation after the defeat of de Montford at the 1265 Battle of Evesham

Battle of Evesham

The Battle of Evesham was one of the two main battles of 13th century England's Second Barons' War. It marked the defeat of Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester, and the rebellious barons by Prince Edward – later King Edward I – who led the forces of his father, King Henry III...

, calling for provisions to be made for the widows of those who had died and for the wives of noblemen who had survived but been disinherited.

He served as Chief Justice of the Common Pleas until 1272, when on the death of Henry III

Henry III of England

Henry III was the son and successor of John as King of England, reigning for 56 years from 1216 until his death. His contemporaries knew him as Henry of Winchester. He was the first child king in England since the reign of Æthelred the Unready...

 he was appointed as the Lord Chief Justice

Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales

The Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales is the head of the judiciary and President of the Courts of England and Wales. Historically, he was the second-highest judge of the Courts of England and Wales, after the Lord Chancellor, but that changed as a result of the Constitutional Reform Act 2005,...

, serving less than two years before dying in June 1274.