Saturday, April 10, 2010

to carry corn whither he would / you can't not love feudal law

"There were no profits so small as to be below the king’s attention. Henry, son of Arthur, gave ten dogs, to have a recognition against the countess of Copland for one knight’s fee. Roger, son of Nicholas, gave twenty lampreys and twenty shads for an inquest to find, whether Gilbert, son of Alured, gave to Roger 200 muttons to obtain his confirmation for certain lands, or whether Roger took them from him by violence: Geoffrey Fitz-Pierre, the chief justiciary, gave two good Norway hawks, that Walter le Madine might have leave to export a hundred weight of cheese out of the king’s dominions.

...The wife of Hugh de Nevile gave the king 200 hens, that she might lie with her husband one night; and she brought with her two sureties, who answered each for a hundred hens. It is probable that her husband was a prisoner, which debarred her from having access to him. The abbot of Rucford paid ten marks, for leave to erect houses and place men upon his land near Welhang, in order to secure his wood there from being stolen: Hugh archdeacon of Wells, gave one tun of wine for leave to carry 600 summs of corn whither he would: Peter de Perariis gave twenty marks for leave to salt fishes, as Peter Chevalier used to do.

...Richard de Neville gave twenty palfreys to obtain the king’s request to Isolda Bisset, that she should take him for a husband: Roger Fitz-Walter gave three good palfreys to have the king’s letter to Roger Bertram’s mother, that she should marry him: Eling, the dean, paid 100 marks, that his whore and his children might be let out upon bail: The bishop of Winchester gave one tun of good wine for his not putting the king in mind to give a girdle to the countess of Albemarle:s Robert de Veaux gave five of the best palfreys, that the king would hold his tongue about Henry Pinel’s wife."

- Hume, History of England, Vol. 1