** work in progress**

Ancient Woodland

Apurtenance

Archaeobotany

Assart

Bailiwick

Burgess

Chantry

Causeway

Cheminage/Chiminage – a toll paid for passage through a Forest

Coppard

Coupe 

Demesne – A crown demesne (or royal demesne) refers to land, property, and rights, absolutely owned by the Crown in a feudal system.  

Disafforestation

Expeditation – As part of Forest Law, dogs living within the Forest of Essex were subject to ‘expeditation’ – cutting off three toes on one foot to prevent them chasing deer. In practice this was often just another means of collecting a fine or fee for not carrying out the mutilation.

Farm – In the medieval period the fee-farm of a borough was the annual sum due the exchequer in return for the king allowing the ‘farmer’ to administer its sources of revenue, which might include property rents and taxes and local tolls. A ‘farm’ was a pre-determined lump-sum amount assessed for one year and a ‘farmer’ the person charged with its collection. Before the period of self-government, boroughs were farmed by local wealthy townsmen, county sheriffs, reeves or entrepreneurs; the aim was to be able to make a profit from the revenues beyond the amount due for the farm, and this could result in extortionate measures. 

Freeman – Domesday

Free man – Domesday

Free warren – A free warren was a legal privilege granted by a sovereign or powerful lord in medieval and early modern England.   It acted essentially as a royal hunting license, giving an exclusive right to breed and hunt specific “beasts of warren” on their own designated lands without breaking forest laws. 

Because the English Crown strictly controlled hunting, these charters were highly sought after and served as major status symbols.

Half year land

Heineholt

Hide (eg King’s Hide)

Holt

Hundred 

Lammas land

Liberty

Oppidum – a fortified and defended Iron Age settlement Oppidum Camulodunum

Pannage

Perambulation

Preachership

Psithurism

Render – the Domesday term “render” (from the Latin reddere) refers to a fixed payment or rent owed by a tenant, manor, or resource to a lord or the king. It represents the income generated from land, often paid in kind rather than cash

Stipend

Stool 

Susurration

Tithe

Wick

Units of length eg acre, chain etc