Free tenant facts for kids
Free tenants were a special group of peasants in medieval England. Think of them as farmers who rented land. What made them "free" was that they paid low rents to their lord (the person who owned the land). They also had more rights and freedoms compared to other peasants called villeins, who were "unfree."
Free tenants were an important part of the feudal system, which was how society was organized in the Middle Ages. They weren't tied to the land like villeins, and they had more control over their lives.
What Made Them "Free"?
It can be tricky to define exactly what a free tenant was because their rights and rules could be different depending on where they lived in England. For example, a free tenant in Kent might have had different rules than one in the Danelaw (an area influenced by Viking laws).
Around the late 1100s, a legal writer named Ranulf de Glanvill tried to explain what made someone free. He wrote that if a person claimed to be free, they could bring their close relatives to court. If those relatives were proven to be free, then the person claiming freedom would also be declared free from being a servant.
Another way to tell if someone was free in the Middle Ages was by the taxes they didn't have to pay. For instance, if a family had to pay a tax called merchet when a daughter got married, it was a sign they were not free. Free tenants did not have to pay this tax.
Free tenants also had important personal freedoms. They could get married without needing permission from their lord. Plus, they could not be forced to move from their land or change their social status against their will. This was a big difference from unfree peasants, who had fewer choices.
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