The Queen's Bench - An Overview
 The Queen's Bench is the highest court in some of the various jurisdictions within the Commonwealth realms. However, it is not the supreme court and is not the chamber of justice when compared to the Bar. The role of the Queen is that of the head of state in the Commonwealth, though she is also entitled to represent the state in the House of Parliament and in the running of the government of the State.
The Queen's bench is an example of the division of the judicial authority of the state into lower and higher courts. It is situated in the usual place for the sessions of the court, the Queen's chamber, the supreme court, the high court and the House of Lords. It is located in the west end of the court complex of Wardour Street, which is the oldest part of the court.
The location of the Queen's chamber has changed over the years and it now stands on the ground floor of the palace. The Queen's chamber was built to replace the Queen's Court, which was constructed during the Tudor period. The new court replaced the older one because it was believed that the older court was corrupt and in need of immediate reform. Queen Elizabeth superseded her grandmother Queen Elizabeth's reign and she did this so that the UK would have one head of state instead of several. She established the first court of Judicature in England and the role of the Queen's bench was then transferred to the new commission.
The original jurisdiction of the Queen was that of the Queen Mother. However, following the dissolution of the monasteries in the sixteenth century, the power was transferred to the queen with the aid of the charter granted by Henry VIII. Under the Charter of Henry VIII, the queen had authority over the judicature of the Privy council, which had been the original authority of the queen in all matters pertaining to the constitution of the church and state. The first session of the queen's court lasted just over a week. During this time, the queen began to make major changes in the practice of the courts of law.
Queen Elizabeth was not only a claimant to the throne of her mother but also a claimant to the throne of the entire kingdom of England. When the king of Scotland abdicated the throne and left the country, his possessions immediately went to the queen. It was under these circumstances that the 'bow of the queen' became famous. The queen had the right to command the officers of the royal court and she exercised her power over the entire kingdom through the use of the Queen's bench. Her decisions, which comprised the decisions regarding the church and state, were subject to the review and approval of the Privy Council, the Governor, and the King's council.
The queen's bench was never intended to become the centre of constitutional controversy and change. The queen exerted great power and authority through the use of the bench, and the Privy Council, and the decisions of the courts of law were never questioned by the ordinary people through the role of the trial court. The trials, which were conducted through the Queen's court represented the will of the people over that of the throne. The term 'peacemaker' referred to the king or the queen who exercised absolute power over the whole country through the decisions she made through the queen's court.
The idea of having two courts represented the supremacy of the Crown over the country during the period of the Protectorates, and the subsequent Union with England. In fact, the only way a decision could be contested or changed in the royal courts was through the intervention of the commons, which always voted against royal court decisions. Although the king and queen enjoyed the right to reign through the exercise of their prerogative, they never used it to challenge the decisions of the Commons.
The restoration of the constitution of the reformed reign was the first time that the concept of two courts, or courts of justice, came into being. One was for the people as represented by the Commons and the other for the crown and the Commons as represented by the Privy Council. Once the king and queen abdicated the English throne, the representative of the restored monarchy was replaced by John Fielding, and the role of the queen began to diminish. She was no longer consulted on royal decrees or granted powers of government by the Privy Council. However, her representatives, known as the queen consort, did still have the right to bring about changes to the constitution of the reign.











