Frank-marriage
Frank-marriage or liberum maritagium was a form of conditional marriage-gift of land under English law, often from father to daughter.[1] It was classed as a type of fee tail.[2]
| Property law |
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| Part of the common law series |
| Types |
| Acquisition |
| Estates in land |
| Conveyancing |
| Future use control |
| Nonpossessory interest |
| Related topics |
| Other common law areas |
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Higher category: Law and Common law |
In early medieval England land could be given to a bride on her marriage with the intent that it should descend to the children of the marriage to help set up the new family. Land that was given in fee absolute (outright) might, however, ultimately pass to collateral heirs or be given away, and to avoid that the land would commonly be given in frank-marriage (in liberum magitagium). Under this system, the daughter and her children would hold the land for three generations free of all feudal services, with the donor or his heirs being able to recover it in the event that the family line ended during that period. If the family survived for three generations, the land would convert to fee simple and thus become theirs absolutely.[3]
Frank-marriage was first recognized in the reign of Henry II, and became the most common kind of marriage settlement up to the reign of Elizabeth I.[2]
References
- Pollock & Maitland 1898, pp. 15–16.
- Chisholm 1911.
- Baker 2019, p. 291.
Bibliography
- Pollock, Frederick; Maitland, Frederic William (1898). The History of English Law Before the Time of Edward I. II (2nd ed.). Indianapolis: Republished 2010 by Liberty Fund. ISBN 978-1-61487-849-0. OCLC 820841850.
- Baker, John (2019). Introduction to English Legal History (5th ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press USA - OSO. ISBN 978-0-19-254073-7. OCLC 1090029126.
- Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Frank-marriage". Encyclopædia Britannica. 11 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 34.