considered the most prestigious of the time because of its focus on theology. It had been founded in the mid-12th century and received its official charter from the Church in 1200. It was run by the Church, and students were considered part of the Church and so wore robes and shaved the tops of their heads in tonsure to signify they were under its protection. Students operated according to the rules and laws of the Church and were not subject to the king's laws or courts. That caused ongoing problems of students abusing the laws of the city, which had no direct recourse for justice and so had to appeal to ecclesiastical courts.