Custumal
Encyclopedia
A custumal is a medieval English
document, usually edited and composed over time, that stipulates the economic, political, and social customs of a manor
or town.
or Law French
and sometimes mixed fragments in different languages. They were commonly preceded with a standard formula in French: Ces sount les usages, et les custumes le ques ... (There are the usages and customs of ...). Custumals existed in two distinct forms:
Territories governed by a custumal ranged from a single manor (Custumal of the Manor of Cockerham
, 1326–1327) to an assortment of manors under common control (Custumal of Battle Abbey
, reign of Edward I
) to a whole county. The county-wide Custumal of Kent, written in Anglo-French, codified the unique system of gavelkind
in Kent
that existed for centuries before its enactment in 1293. The Custumal of Kent has been regularly copied by scribes, who introduced errors and inserted gloss
es, and printed by Richard Tottel
in 1536 and by William Lambarde
in 1576. These printed codes are all distinctly different, the three handwritten and two printed copies analyzed by Hull have only nine substantially matching paragraphs (out of thirty-five). Lesser custumals were far more stable: the Custumal of the Manor of Cockerham was properly revised in 1463.
Custumals of large ecclesiastical estates introduced their own systems of grading the tenants. The Custumal of Battle Abbey used four grades:
Custumals provide historians an insight into all significant aspects of everyday life in a manorial estate.
Custumals of the Manor of Cockerham, written in Latin in 1326–1327, regulated usage of all resources of the country: peat
fuel, salt, sheep, goats, horses, cattle and shoreline mussel
s. It imposed practical safequards for preservation of the property: the tenants were obliged to "maintain the dikes of the mill pond so that the pond does not burst for the lack of then". It also set the rules of personal conduct: "no tenant shall call any of his neighbours a thief or a robber under a penalty of 40d. And no tenant shall call any of his neighbours a whore, for a penalty of 12d." Ultimately, according to Steven Justice, "no form of writing served lordly interests and ideology more surely and directly than the manorial custumal."
of the original.
The study of borough customs primarily flourished in the early twentieth century, when both historians and amateur antiquarians began to take a keen interest in the constitutional origins of the English law. Indeed, the most comprehensive work on borough law is Miss Mary Bateson's Borough Customs, published for the Selden Society in two volumes for the years 1904 and 1906.
Although the clauses and ordinances found in borough custumals seem to be primarily concerned with the rights of burgesses (the men who had entered the town's freedom) and regulation of economic practices, they also reveal larger social concerns regarding the governance of the borough. A good example of these political, social, and economic concerns, and how they could change over time, can be easily seen in the document outlining the customs of the borough of Maldon
, in Essex.
England in the Middle Ages
England in the Middle Ages concerns the history of England during the Medieval period — from the end of Roman rule in Britain through to the Early Modern period...
document, usually edited and composed over time, that stipulates the economic, political, and social customs of a manor
Manorialism
Manorialism, an essential element of feudal society, was the organizing principle of rural economy that originated in the villa system of the Late Roman Empire, was widely practiced in medieval western and parts of central Europe, and was slowly replaced by the advent of a money-based market...
or town.
Manorial Custumals
The National Archives define custumal as "an early type of survey which consists of a list of the manor's tenants with the customs under which each held his house and lands." Custumals were compiled in Latin, Anglo-FrenchAnglo-Norman language
Anglo-Norman is the name traditionally given to the kind of Old Norman used in England and to some extent elsewhere in the British Isles during the Anglo-Norman period....
or Law French
Law French
Law French is an archaic language originally based on Old Norman and Anglo-Norman, but increasingly influenced by Parisian French and, later, English. It was used in the law courts of England, beginning with the Norman Conquest by William the Conqueror...
and sometimes mixed fragments in different languages. They were commonly preceded with a standard formula in French: Ces sount les usages, et les custumes le ques ... (There are the usages and customs of ...). Custumals existed in two distinct forms:
- A survey, or an inventory of rents and services ("customs") owed by each tenant of the manor; this form was relatively uncommon.
- An inventory of the customs of the manor itself which summarized its regular agricultural, trading and financial activities. This was the most common form, usually complete with a local code of laws, a summary of oral sworn tradition, in-house court rollCourt rollThe Manorial Roll or Court Roll is the roll or record kept in connection with a manorial court, in particular containing entries relating to the rents and holdings, deaths, alienations, and successions of the customary tenants or copyholders. A copy of the court roll constitutes the tenant's title...
s and written legal arrangements between the landlord and his tenants.
Territories governed by a custumal ranged from a single manor (Custumal of the Manor of Cockerham
Cockerham
Cockerham is a small village and civil parish within the City of Lancaster in Lancashire, England. It is south of Lancaster and north-northwest of Preston...
, 1326–1327) to an assortment of manors under common control (Custumal of Battle Abbey
Battle Abbey
Battle Abbey is a partially ruined abbey complex in the small town of Battle in East Sussex, England. The abbey was built on the scene of the Battle of Hastings and dedicated to St...
, reign of Edward I
Edward I of England
Edward I , also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England from 1272 to 1307. The first son of Henry III, Edward was involved early in the political intrigues of his father's reign, which included an outright rebellion by the English barons...
) to a whole county. The county-wide Custumal of Kent, written in Anglo-French, codified the unique system of gavelkind
Gavelkind
Gavelkind was a system of land tenure associated chiefly with the county of Kent, but found also in other parts of England. Its inheritance pattern bears resemblance to Salic patrimony and as such might testify in favour of a wider, probably ancient Germanic tradition.It was legally abolished in...
in Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
that existed for centuries before its enactment in 1293. The Custumal of Kent has been regularly copied by scribes, who introduced errors and inserted gloss
Gloss
A gloss is a brief notation of the meaning of a word or wording in a text. It may be in the language of the text, or in the reader's language if that is different....
es, and printed by Richard Tottel
Richard Tottel
Richard Tottel was an English publisher and influential member of the legal community. He ran his business from a shop was located at Temple Bar on Fleet Street in London...
in 1536 and by William Lambarde
William Lambarde
William Lambarde was an antiquarian and writer on legal subjects.-Life:Lambarde was born in London. His father was a draper , an alderman and a sheriff of London. In 1556, he was admitted to Lincoln's Inn...
in 1576. These printed codes are all distinctly different, the three handwritten and two printed copies analyzed by Hull have only nine substantially matching paragraphs (out of thirty-five). Lesser custumals were far more stable: the Custumal of the Manor of Cockerham was properly revised in 1463.
Custumals of large ecclesiastical estates introduced their own systems of grading the tenants. The Custumal of Battle Abbey used four grades:
- freeholders (liberi tenentes), free tenants holding land in free socageSocageSocage was one of the feudal duties and hence land tenure forms in the feudal system. A farmer, for example, held the land in exchange for a clearly defined, fixed payment to be made at specified intervals to his feudal lord, who in turn had his own feudal obligations, to the farmer and to the Crown...
; - villeinSerfdomSerfdom is the status of peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to Manorialism. It was a condition of bondage or modified slavery which developed primarily during the High Middle Ages in Europe and lasted to the mid-19th century...
s (villani, custumarii), customary tenants not adscript to the soil; - cottars or cottagers (cottarii), subtenants usually holding fixed parcels of four acres (a cotland); and
- subcottars: small cottars (coterelli), holders of one or two acres, and landless cottars (cotteria).
Custumals provide historians an insight into all significant aspects of everyday life in a manorial estate.
Custumals of the Manor of Cockerham, written in Latin in 1326–1327, regulated usage of all resources of the country: peat
Peat
Peat is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation matter or histosol. Peat forms in wetland bogs, moors, muskegs, pocosins, mires, and peat swamp forests. Peat is harvested as an important source of fuel in certain parts of the world...
fuel, salt, sheep, goats, horses, cattle and shoreline mussel
Mussel
The common name mussel is used for members of several families of clams or bivalvia mollusca, from saltwater and freshwater habitats. These groups have in common a shell whose outline is elongated and asymmetrical compared with other edible clams, which are often more or less rounded or oval.The...
s. It imposed practical safequards for preservation of the property: the tenants were obliged to "maintain the dikes of the mill pond so that the pond does not burst for the lack of then". It also set the rules of personal conduct: "no tenant shall call any of his neighbours a thief or a robber under a penalty of 40d. And no tenant shall call any of his neighbours a whore, for a penalty of 12d." Ultimately, according to Steven Justice, "no form of writing served lordly interests and ideology more surely and directly than the manorial custumal."
Borough Custumals
Since public business in the Middle Ages was judicial in character, the custumal and the court roll were the principal registers of a medieval borough’s administration. Custumals, or collections of customary law, for the English boroughs began to be compiled as early as the late twelfth century, the earliest of which have survived for the boroughs of Ipswich and Exeter. Custumals were compiled for a practical purpose: to guide, and even educate, successive generations of civic officials tasked with keeping law and order within their boroughs. Even though town clerks and scribes inherited these registers as part of their duties to preserve local custom, they were also obligated to modify and add to them to respond to changing interests and the needs of their communities. As such, it is not out of the ordinary to have custumals survive only in copies or recensionsRecension
Recension is the practice of editing or revising a text based on critical analysis. When referring to manuscripts, this may be a revision by another author...
of the original.
The study of borough customs primarily flourished in the early twentieth century, when both historians and amateur antiquarians began to take a keen interest in the constitutional origins of the English law. Indeed, the most comprehensive work on borough law is Miss Mary Bateson's Borough Customs, published for the Selden Society in two volumes for the years 1904 and 1906.
Although the clauses and ordinances found in borough custumals seem to be primarily concerned with the rights of burgesses (the men who had entered the town's freedom) and regulation of economic practices, they also reveal larger social concerns regarding the governance of the borough. A good example of these political, social, and economic concerns, and how they could change over time, can be easily seen in the document outlining the customs of the borough of Maldon
Maldon, Essex
Maldon is a town on the Blackwater estuary in Essex, England. It is the seat of the Maldon district and starting point of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation.Maldon is twinned with the Dutch town of Cuijk...
, in Essex.