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Manorial Court
The manorial courts were the lowest courts of law in England during the feudal period. They had a civil jurisdiction limited both in subject matter and geography. They dealt with matters over which the lord of the manor had jurisdiction, primarily torts, local contracts and land tenure, and their powers only extended to those who lived within the lands of the manor: the demesne and such lands as the lord had enfeoffed to others, and to those who held land therein. Historians have divided manorial courts into those that were primarily seignorial – based on feudal responsibilities – and those based on separate delegation of authority from the monarch. There were three types of manorial court: the court of the honour; the court baron; and the court customary, also known as the halmote court. Each manor had its own laws promulgated in a document called the custumal, and anyone in breach of those laws could be tried in a manorial court. The earlier Anglo-Saxon metho ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Feudalism
Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was a combination of legal, economic, military, cultural, and political customs that flourished in Middle Ages, medieval Europe from the 9th to 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring society around relationships derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labour. The classic definition, by François Louis Ganshof (1944),François Louis Ganshof (1944). ''Qu'est-ce que la féodalité''. Translated into English by Philip Grierson as ''Feudalism'', with a foreword by F. M. Stenton, 1st ed.: New York and London, 1952; 2nd ed: 1961; 3rd ed.: 1976. describes a set of reciprocal legal and Medieval warfare, military obligations of the warrior nobility and revolved around the key concepts of lords, vassals, and fiefs. A broader definition, as described by Marc Bloch (1939), includes not only the obligations of the warrior nobility but the obligations of all three estates of the realm: the nobility, the cl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Copyhold
Copyhold was a form of customary land ownership common from the Late Middle Ages into modern times in England. The name for this type of land tenure is derived from the act of giving a copy of the relevant title deed that is recorded in the manorial court roll to the tenant, rather than the actual land deed itself. The legal owner of the manor land remained the mesne lord, who was legally the ''copyholder'', according to the titles and customs written down in the manorial roll. In return for being given land, a copyhold tenant was required to carry out specific manorial duties or services. The specific rights and duties of copyhold tenants varied greatly from one manor to another and many were established by custom. By the 19th century, many customary duties had been replaced with the payment of rent. Copyhold was directly descended from the feudal system of villeinage which involved giving service and produce to the local lord in return for land. Although feudalism in Eng ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
British Records Association
The British Records Association (widely known as the BRA, pronounced as three letters) is a British learned society founded in 1932 to promote the preservation, understanding, accessibility and study of historic records and archives. It is a registered charity (no. 227464). It issues a journal, ''Archives'', and other publications; hosts conferences and seminars; and undertakes other activities to promote the care and preservation of archives and the interests of archive users at a national level. Membership is open to all, and the association (in contrast to exclusively scholarly bodies, and exclusively professional bodies) therefore plays a particular role as a forum which brings together owners of archives, academic and amateur documentary researchers, archivists and librarians, and institutions and societies concerned with archives. History The association was formally founded in 1932, but it took over the Records Preservation Section established three years earlier in 1929 by ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Manor House
A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were usually held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals with manorial tenants and great banquets. The term is today loosely (though erroneously) applied to various English country houses, mostly at the smaller end of the spectrum, sometimes dating from the Late Middle Ages, which currently or formerly house the landed gentry. Manor houses were sometimes fortified, albeit not as fortified as castles, but this was often more for show than for defence. They existed in most European countries where feudalism was present. Function The lord of the manor may have held several properties within a county or, for example in the case of a feudal baron, spread across a kingdom, which he occupied only on occasional visits. Even so, the business of the manor was directed and controlled by regular mano ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Frankpledge
Frankpledge was a system of joint suretyship common in England throughout the Early Middle Ages and High Middle Ages. The essential characteristic was the compulsory sharing of responsibility among persons connected in tithings. This unit, under a leader known as the chief-pledge or tithing-man, was then responsible for producing any man of that tithing suspected of a crime. If the man did not appear, the entire group could be fined. While women, clergy, and the richer freemen were exempt, otherwise all men over 12 years of age were organised in the system for mutual surety. Origins The first mention of frankpledge comes in 1114–1118, with the '' Leges Henrici Primi''; but 12th-century figures like William of Malmesbury were keen to link it to pre-Norman times, and to the laws of Canute the Great. Some historians have indeed seen in the Anglo-Saxon frith-borh (literally "peace-pledge") the clear anticipation of frankpledge; others consider the 12th-century commentators ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Crown
The Crown is a political concept used in Commonwealth realms. Depending on the context used, it generally refers to the entirety of the State (polity), state (or in federal realms, the relevant level of government in that state), the executive government specifically or only to the monarch and their Viceroy, direct representatives. The term can be used to refer to the rule of law; or to the functions of executive (government), executive (the Crown-King-in-Council, in-council), legislative (the Crown-in-parliament), and judicial (the Crown on the bench) governance and the civil service. The concept of the Crown as a corporation sole developed first in the Kingdom of England as a separation of the physical crown and property of the kingdom from the person and personal property of the monarch. It spread through English and later British colonisation and developed into an imperial crown, which rooted it in the legal lexicon of all 15 Commonwealth realms, their various dependencies, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Government-granted Monopoly
In economics, a government-granted monopoly (also called a "de jure monopoly" or "regulated monopoly") is a form of coercive monopoly by which a government grants exclusive privilege to a private individual or firm to be the sole provider of a good or service; potential competitors are excluded from the market by law, regulation, or other mechanisms of government enforcement. As a form of coercive monopoly, government-granted monopoly is contrasted with an '' unregulated monopoly'', wherein there is no competition but it is not forcibly excluded. Amongst forms of coercive monopoly it is distinguished from government monopoly or state monopoly (in which ''government agencies'' hold the legally enforced monopoly rather than private individuals or firms) and from government-sponsored cartels (in which the government forces ''several independent'' producers to partially coordinate their decisions through a centralized organization). Advocates for government-granted monopolies often c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Court Leet
The court leet was a historical court baron (a type of manorial court) of England and Wales and Ireland that exercised the "view of frankpledge" and its attendant police jurisdiction, which was normally restricted to the hundred courts. Etymology The word "leet", as used in reference to special court proceedings, dates from the late 13th century, from Anglo-French ''lete'' and Anglo-Latin ''leta'' of unknown origin, with a possible connection to the verb " let". Early history At a very early time in medieval England, the lord of the manor exercised or claimed certain feudal rights over his serfs and feudal tenants. The exercise of those rights was combined with manorial administrative concerns, in his court baron. However this court had no power to deal with criminal acts. Criminal jurisdiction was held by the hundred courts; the country was divided into hundreds, and there was a hundred court for each of them. Each hundred comprised 100 hides, with each hide being an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Common Law
Common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law primarily developed through judicial decisions rather than statutes. Although common law may incorporate certain statutes, it is largely based on precedent—judicial rulings made in previous similar cases. The presiding judge determines which precedents to apply in deciding each new case. Common law is deeply rooted in Precedent, ''stare decisis'' ("to stand by things decided"), where courts follow precedents established by previous decisions. When a similar case has been resolved, courts typically align their reasoning with the precedent set in that decision. However, in a "case of first impression" with no precedent or clear legislative guidance, judges are empowered to resolve the issue and establish new precedent. The common law, so named because it was common to all the king's courts across England, originated in the practices of the courts of the English kings in the centuries fo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Villein (feudal)
A villein is a class of serf tied to the land under the feudal system. As part of the contract with the lord of the manor, they were expected to spend some of their time working on the lord's fields in return for land. Villeins existed under a number of legal restrictions that differentiated them from freemen, and could not leave without his lord's permission. Generally, villeins held their status not by birth but by the land they held, and it was also possible for them to gain manumission from their lords. The villeinage system largely died out in England in 1500, with some forms of villeinage being in use in France until 1789. Etymology Villein is derived from Late Latin ''villanus'', meaning a man employed at a Roman villa rustica, or large agricultural estate. The system of tied serfdom originates from a decree issued by the late Roman Emperor Diocletian (r. 284–305 CE) in an attempt to prevent the flight of peasants from the land and the consequent decline in food pr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Amercement
An amercement is a financial penalty in English law, common during the Middle Ages, imposed either by the court or by peers. While it is often synonymous with a fine, it differs in that a fine is a fixed sum prescribed by statute and was often voluntary, while an amercement is arbitrary. Amercements were commonly used as a punishment for minor offences (such as trespassing in the king's forest), as an alternative to imprisonment. Etymology The noun "amercement" derives from the verb to amerce: a king would amerce his subject, who had broken a law. The term is of Anglo-Norman origin ( Law French, from French, from Latin), and literally means "being at the mercy of": ''a-merce-ment'' (the English word mercy is cognate). History Early Norman rule A system of amercements was in place as early as the Norman Conquest of 1066, but was still regarded as an innovation when Henry I acceded to the throne in 1100. As the number of entities having legal jurisdiction over a given locat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Edward Coke
Sir Edward Coke ( , formerly ; 1 February 1552 – 3 September 1634) was an English barrister, judge, and politician. He is often considered the greatest jurist of the Elizabethan era, Elizabethan and Jacobean era, Jacobean eras. Born into an upper-class family, Coke was educated at Trinity College, Cambridge, before leaving to study at the Inner Temple, where he was called to the Bar on 20 April 1578. As a barrister, he took part in several notable cases, including ''Slade's Case'', before earning enough political favour to be elected to Parliament, where he served first as Solicitor General for England and Wales, Solicitor General and then as Speaker of the House of Commons (United Kingdom), Speaker of the House of Commons. Following a promotion to Attorney General for England and Wales, Attorney General he led the prosecution in several notable cases, including those against Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, Robert Devereux, Walter Raleigh, Sir Walter Raleigh, and the Gun ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
