Heerlijkheid
A ''heerlijkheid'' (a Dutch word; pl. ''heerlijkheden''; also called ''heerschap''; Latin: ''Dominium'') was a landed estate that served as the lowest administrative and judicial unit in rural areas in the Dutch-speaking Low Countries before 1800. It originated as a unit of lordship under the feudal system during the Middle Ages. The English equivalents are ''manor'', '' seigniory'' and '' lordship''.. The translation used by J.L. Price in ''Dutch Society 1588-1713'' is "manor"; by David Nicholas in ''Medieval Flanders'' is "seigneury". The German equivalent is '' Herrschaft''. The ''heerlijkheid'' system was the Dutch version of manorialism that prevailed in the Low Countries and was the precursor to the modern municipality system in the Netherlands and Flemish Belgium. Characteristics and types A typical ''heerlijkheid'' manor consisted of a village and the surrounding lands extending out for a kilometre or so. Taking 18th-century Wassenaar as an example of a large ''hoge he ...
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Schout
In Dutch-speaking areas, a ''schout'' was a local official appointed to carry out administrative, law enforcement and prosecutorial tasks. The office was abolished with the introduction of administrative reforms during the Napoleonic period. Functions The exact nature of the office varied from place to place and changed over the course of time. In general, a ''schout'' was appointed by the lord (''heer'') of a domain (''heerlijkheid'') and acted in the lord's name in the local day-to-day administration of the domain, especially the administration of justice. A ''schout'' had three main functions: administration, law enforcement and criminal prosecution. First, the ''schout'' was responsible for many local administrative matters in the town or heerlijkheid. The ''schout'' presid