Lord of the Manor

1 Tenancy
2 Sub-tenancy
3 Courts
4 Later history
5 Current status
6 See also
7 Notes
8 References
9 External links

The title of Lord of the Manor arose in the English mediaeval system of Manorialism following the Norman Conquest. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland This article is about the medieval system "Manors" redirects here The title Lord of the Manor is a titular feudal dignity which is still recognised today. Their holders are entitled to call themselves "[Personal name], The Lord/Lady of the Manor of [Place name]" and although the title is not a title of the nobility the owner is entitled to have it entered upon a United Kingdom passport since it is a legal form of address. Nobility is a government-privileged title which may be either hereditary (see Hereditary titles) or for a lifetime

Tenancy

In medieval times, land was held of the king or ruler by a powerful local supporter, who gave protection in return. The people who had sworn homage to the lord were known as vassals. A vassal (also called feodary or fedary) in the terminology that both preceded and accompanied the feudalism of Medieval Europe, After the Norman Conquest, however, all the land of England was owned by the monarch (and still is), who then granted the use of it by means of a transaction known as enfeoffment, to earls, barons, and others, in return for military service. Under the feudal system, enfeoffment was the deed by which a person was given land in exchange for a pledge of service The person who held feudal land directly from the king was known as a 'tenant-in-chief'. (see also Land tenure). Land tenure is the name given particularly in Common law systems to the legal regime in which land is owned by an individual who is said to "hold" the land

Sub-tenancy

Military service was based upon units of ten knights (see Knight-service). Knight-service was the dominant and distinctive tenure of land as a Fief associated with a Knight under the English Feudal system. An important tenant-in-chief might be expected to provide all ten knights, and lesser tenants-in-chief, half of one. Some tenants-in-chief 'sub-infeuded', that is, granted, some of their land to a sub-tenant. Subinfeudation, in English law, is the practice by which Tenants holding land under the king or other superior lord carved out in their turn by sub-letting or alienating Further sub-infeudation could occur down to the level of a lord of a single manor, which in itself might represent only a fraction of a knight's fee. A mesne lord was the level of lord in the middle holding several manors, between the lords of a manor and the superior lord. A mesne lord was a Lord in the Feudal system who had vassals who held land from him but who was himself the vassal of a higher lord The sub-tenant might have to provide knight service, or finance just a portion of it, or pay something purely nominal. Any further sub-infeudation was prohibited by the Statute of Quia Emptores in 1291. Quia Emptores ( Medieval Latin for "because the buyers" the Incipit of the document was a Statute passed by Edward I of England Knight service was abolished in 1660 by the Tenures Abolition Act.

Courts

A typical manor contained a village with a church and agricultural land. The lord usually had a large block of this land. Some of the inhabitants were serfs and were bound to the land, others were freeholders, known as 'franklins', who were free from feudal service. Periodically all the tenants met at a 'manorial court', with the lord of the manor, or his steward, as chairman. These courts, known as Courts Baron, dealt with the tenants' rights and duties, changes of occupancy, and disputes between tenants. A Court baron is an English Manorial court dating from the Middle Ages. Some manorial courts also had the status of a court leet, and so they elected constables and other officials and were effectively Magistrates Courts for minor offences. The court leet was a historical court in England and Wales. At a very early time in medieval England the Lord of the Manor exercised or claimed certain A magistrate is a judicial officer In Common law systems a magistrate usually has limited authority to administer and enforce the Law.

Later history

The tenure of the freeholders was protected by the royal courts. After the Black Death, labour was in demand and so it became difficult for the lords of the manors to impose duties on serfs. The Black Death, or the Black Plague, was one of the deadliest Pandemics in human history widely thought to have been caused by a bacterium named Yersinia However their customary tenure continued and in the sixteenth century the royal courts also began to protect these customary tenants, who became known as copyholders. At its origin in Medieval England, copyhold tenure was tenure of land according to the custom of the manor the "title deeds" being The name arises because the tenant was given a copy of the court's record of the fact as a title deed. During the nineteenth century manor courts were phased out. In 1925 copyhold tenure formally ended with the enactment of Law of Property Acts, 1922 and 1924.

Current status

Since 1926 the Historical Manuscripts Commission maintains two Manorial Documents Registers. The National Archives (TNA is a British Governmental organisation created in April 2003 to maintain a National archive for " England, Wales One register is arranged under parishes, the other is arranged under manors and shows the last-known whereabouts of the manorial records. Those that have survived are often at County Record Offices but some are still in the hands of the owners.

In English and Irish Law, the lordship of the manor is treated as being distinct from the actual lands of the manor. The title of lord of the manor is regarded as an 'incorporeal heriditament' (an inheritable property that has no explicit tie to the physical manor) i. e. it can be held "in gross", and it can be bought and sold, just as fishing rights might. Landowners may, therefore, sell their feudal title while retaining their land. Landholder or landowner is a holder of the Estate in land with considerable rights of ownership or simply put an owner of land Feudalism, a term first used in the early modern period (17th century in its most classic sense refers to a Medieval Europe Political system composed The title separate from the land remains a feudal 'title of dignity'. Some have been defrauded into believing they are buying a genuine lordship of the manor. A genuine lordship of the manor is backed by original papers and proof of continuous ownership. Some rights and privileges, or even obligations may go alongside a particular lordship. Lordships with a church affiliation often have a clause that the owner of the title must contribute to the cost of repairs of the church building. If the lordship owns a road, it is possible to charge others for use of this road on the basis that they are crossing the lordship's land. Investing in a lordship of the manor could even be quite profitable, especially if the owner were able to sell it again at a higher price.

Lords or Ladies of the Manor may style themselves thus: "John (or Jane) Smith, The Lord/Lady of the Manor of <Place name>". The preposition "of" must be retained to differentiate from a title of peerage. Official agencies do recognise manorial titles which can be entered into a United Kingdom passport since it is a legal form of address.

Notes

References

External links

This article is about the medieval system "Manors" redirects here A manor house or fortified manor-house is a Country house, which has historically formed the administrative centre of a manor (see Manorialism Feudalism, a term first used in the early modern period (17th century in its most classic sense refers to a Medieval Europe Political system composed Gentry generally refers to people of high Social class, especially in the past Aristocracy is a form of Government, where rule is established through an internal struggle over who has the most status and influence over society and internal relations Nobility is a government-privileged title which may be either hereditary (see Hereditary titles) or for a lifetime The Peerage is a system of Titles of Nobility in the United Kingdom, part of the British honours system. A title is a prefix or suffix added to a person's name to signify either veneration an official position or a professional or academic qualification Hereditary titles, in a general sense are Titles positions or styles that are Hereditary and thus tend or are bound to remain in particular families Pre-nominal letters are a Title which is placed before the name of a person as distinct from a post-nominal title which is placed after the name Post-nominal letters, also called " post-nominal initials " or " post-nominal titles " are letters placed after the name of a person to indicate that The use of Honorifics ( Mr, Mrs, Miss, Ms) and styles ( HRH, His Holiness, etc Corporate titles are titles conferred on individuals as a means of identifying their function in the Organization. Fake titles of nobility are supposed Titles of nobility which have in fact been fabricated and are not recognized by any Government, or have not been so recognized An honorific is a word or expression that conveys esteem or respect when used in addressing or referring to a person A style of office, or honorific, is a term which by Tradition or Law precedes a reference to a person who holds a post or Title, or to the Styles represent the fashion by which monarchs and noblemen are properly addressed Forms of address used in the United Kingdom are given below Several terms have been abbreviated in the table below Forms of address used in the United Kingdom are given below Several terms have been abbreviated in the table below Traditional ranks among European royalty, peers, and Nobility are rooted in Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages.

Dictionary

-noun

A feudal title of the hereditary proprietor of a manor in manorialism; now largely ceremonial.

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