The Composition of Yards and Perches ( la, Compositio Ulnarum et Perticarum) or the Statute of Ells and Perches was a

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

statute defining the length of the barleycorn, inch, foot,

yard The yard (symbol: yd) is an English unit of length in both the British imperial and US customary systems of measurement equalling 3 feet or 36 inches. Since 1959 it has been by international agreement standardized as exactly ...

, and

perch Perch is a common name for fish of the genus ''Perca'', freshwater gamefish belonging to the family Percidae. The perch, of which three species occur in different geographical areas, lend their name to a large order of vertebrates: the Per ...

, as well as the area of the acre. Its date has been estimated at 1266–1303. The Latin text from the manuscript known as ''BL Cotton MS Claudius D 2'' is translated in Ruffhead's '' Statutes at Large'') as A similar statement is made in

Liber Horn ''Liber Horn'' is a book completed in 1311 by Andrew Horn. The National Archives (the official archive of the UK government) describes it as "a compilation of charters, statutes and customs". It is thought to have been a compilation of two separate ...

(as published in ''

The Statutes of the Realm ''The Statutes of the Realm'' is an authoritative collection of Acts of the Parliament of England from the earliest times to the Union of the Parliaments in 1707, and Acts of the Parliament of Great Britain passed up to the death of Queen Anne ...

''): The ''Composition of Yards and Perches'' belongs to a class of documents known as

Statutes of uncertain date The statutes of uncertain date, also known as ''statuta incerti temporis'' or ''Certain Statutes made during the Reigns of K. Henry 3. K. Edward 1. or K. Edward 2. but uncertain when or in which of their times'', are British (previously English) st ...

generally thought to be from c. 1250 to 1305. Although not originally statutes, they gradually acquired the force of law. In some early statute books ''Composition of Yards and Perches'' was appended to another statute of uncertain date, the ''Statute for the Measuring of Land'' also known as ''Statutum de Admensuratione Terrase'', ''An Ordinance for Measuring of Land'', sometimes (erroneously) listed as ''33° Edward I. st. 6. (1305)''. The ''Composition of Yards and Perches'' was repealed by the

Weights and Measures Act 1824 Weights and measures acts are acts of the British Parliament determining the regulation of weights and measures. It also refers to similar royal and parliamentary acts of the Kingdoms of England and Scotland and the medieval Welsh states. ...

(5 George IV c. 74, par. 23).

References

{{UK legislation English laws Systems of units

See also

References