Our Legal Heritage: King AEthelbert - King George III, 600 A.D. - 1776: June 2011 (Sixth) EditionReilly, S. A.
History
Our Legal Heritage: King AEthelbert - King George III, 600 A.D. - 1776: June 2011 (Sixth) Edition
Reilly, S. A.
Law -- England -- History
This lawsuit between a son and his mother over land was heard at a
shire meeting: "Here it is declared in this document that a shire
meeting sat at Aylton in King Cnut's time. There were present Bishop
AEthelstan and Earl Ranig and Edwin, the Earl's son, and Leofwine,
Wulfsige's son, and Thurkil the White; and Tofi the Proud came there on
the King's business, and Bryning the sheriff was present, and
AEthelweard of Frome and Leofwine of Frome and Godric of Stoke and all
the thegns of Herefordshire. Then Edwin, Enneawnes son, came traveling
to the meeting and sued his own mother for a certain piece of land,
namely Wellington and Cradley. Then the bishop asked whose business it
was to answer for his mother, and Thurkil the White replied that it was
his business to do so, if he knew the claim. As he did not know the
claim, three thegns were chosen from the meeting [to ride] to the place
where she was, namely at Fawley, and these were Leofwine of Frome and
AEthelsige the Red and Winsige the seaman, and when they came to her
they asked her what claim she had to the lands for which her son was
suing her. Then she said that she had no land that in any way belonged
to him, and was strongly incensed against her son, and summoned to her
kinswoman, Leofflaed, Thurkil's wife, and in front of them said to her
as follows: 'Here sits Leofflaed, my kinswoman, to whom, after my death,
I grant my land and my gold, my clothing and my raiment and all that I
possess.' And then she said to the thegns: 'Act like thegns, and duly
announce my message to the meeting before all the worthy men, and tell
them to whom I have granted my land and all my property, and not a thing
to my own son, and ask them to be witnesses of this.' And they did so;
they rode to the meeting and informed all the worthy men of the charge
that she had laid upon them. Then Thurkil the White stood up in the
meeting and asked all the thegns to give his wife the lands unreservedly
which her kinswoman had granted her, and they did so. Then Thurkil rode
to St. AEthelbert's minister, with the consent and cognizance of the
whole assembly, and had it recorded in a gospel book."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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