Lord of the manor
Lord of the manor is a title that, in Anglo-Saxon England and Norman England, referred to the landholder of a rural estate. The titles date to the English feudal (specifically Baronial) system. The lord enjoyed manorial rights (the rights to establish and occupy a residence, known as the manor house and demesne) as well as seignory, the right to grant or draw benefit from the estate (for example, as a landlord). The title continues in modern England and Wales as a legally recognised form of property that can be held independently of its historical rights.[1] It may belong entirely to one person or be a moiety shared with other people. The title is known as Breyr in Welsh.
For other uses, see Lord of the manor (disambiguation) and Lady of the manor (disambiguation).
In the British Crown Dependencies of Jersey and Guernsey the equivalent title is Seigneur.
A title similar to such a lordship is known in French as Sieur or Seigneur du Manoir, Gutsherr in German, Kaleağası (Kaleagasi) in Turkish, Godsherre in Norwegian and Swedish, Ambachtsheer in Dutch, and Signore or Vassallo in Italian.
Tenancy[edit]
In England in the Middle Ages, land was held on behalf of the English monarch or ruler by a powerful local supporter, who gave protection in return. The people who had sworn homage to the lord were known as vassals. Vassals were nobles who served loyalty for the king, in return for being given the use of land. After the Norman conquest of England, however, all land in England was owned by the monarch who then granted the use of it by means of a transaction known as enfeoffment, to earls, barons, and others, in return for military service. The person who held feudal land directly from the king was known as a tenant-in-chief (see also Land tenure).
Sub-tenancy[edit]
Military service was based upon units of ten knights (see knight-service). An important tenant-in-chief might be expected to provide all ten knights, and lesser tenants-in-chief, half of one. Some tenants-in-chief "sub-infeuded", that is, granted, some land to a sub-tenant. Further sub-infeudation could occur down to the level of a lord of a single manor, which in itself might represent only a fraction of a knight's fee. A mesne lord was the level of lord in the middle holding several manors, between the lords of a manor and the superior lord. The sub-tenant might have to provide knight-service, or finance just a portion of it, or pay something purely nominal. Any further sub-infeudation was prohibited by the Statute of Quia Emptores in 1290. Knight-service was abolished by the Tenures Abolition Act 1660.
Later history[edit]
The tenure of the freeholders was protected by the royal courts. After the Black Death, labour was in demand and so it became difficult for the lords of manors to impose duties on serfs. However their customary tenure continued and in the 16th century the royal courts also began to protect these customary tenants, who became known as copyholders. The name arises because the tenant was given a copy of the court's record of the fact as a title deed.
During the 19th century, traditional manor courts were phased out. This was largely because by the mid 17th century, large English cities had leading residents such as John Harrison (died 1656) of Leeds, who saw the possession of the manor by only one resident as "giving him too great a superiority over his fellow townsmen, and exposing him to considerable odium". Thus, the Manor of Leeds was divided between several people (shares).[8] This situation could create legal problems. In January 1872, as a group, the "lords of the manor of Leeds" applied to the Law Courts to ascertain if they could "exercise acts of ownership" over land at a time when manorial rights were being sold to larger city corporations. In 1854, the lords of the manor of Leeds had "sold" these acts of ownership to the "corporation of Leeds" which would become the City of Leeds.[9][10] Other town corporations bought their manorial titles in the 19th century, including Manchester, where the corporation paid £200,000 for the title in 1846.[11]
By 1925, copyhold tenure had formally ended with the enactment of Law of Property Acts, Law of Property Act 1922 and Law of Property (Amendment) Act 1924, converting copyhold to fee simple. Although copyhold was abolished, the title of Lord of the Manor remains, and certain rights attached to it will also remain if they are registered under the Land Registration Act 2002. This Act ended manorial incidents unprotected by registration at the Land Registry after October 2013.[12] The Land Registration Act 2002 does not affect the existence of unregistered lordships after October 2013, only the rights that would have previously been attached to the same.
During the latter part of the 20th century, many of these titles were sold to wealthy individuals seeking a distinction. However, certain purchasers, such as Mark Roberts, controversially exploited the right to claim unregistered land.[13][14][15] A manorial title (i.e. Lord of the Manor) is not a title of nobility, as in a peerage title.[16]
Use of style[edit]
The holder of a lordship of the manor can be referred to as Lord or Lady of the manor of [Placename], or Lord or Lady of [Placename], for example Lord or Lady of Little Bromwich, this shortening is permitted as long as "of" is not omitted and the name of the holder is included before as not to imply a peerage.[17][1][18] The style 'Lord of the Manor of X' or 'Lord of X' is, in a sense, more of a description than a title, somewhat similar to the term Laird in Scotland.[19] King's College, Cambridge has given the view that the term 'indicated wealth and privilege, and it carried rights and responsibilities'.[20]
It is debated whether manorial lordships can be classed as a noble title, historically holders of manorial titles were seen as people of rank. They are a semi-extinct form of hereditary landed title that grants the holder the rank of Esquire by prescription and are considered high gentry or lower, non-peerage nobility[21] by contemporary heralds and students of nobiliary. Lordship in this sense is a synonym for ownership, although this ownership involved a historic legal jurisdiction in the form of the court baron.[22] The journal Justice of the Peace & Local Government Law advises that the position is unclear as to whether a lordship of a manor is a title of honour or a dignity, as this is yet to be tested by the courts.[23] Technically, lords of manors are barons, or freemen; however, they do not use the term as a title. Unlike titled barons, they did not have a right to sit in the House of Lords, which was the case for all noble peers until the House of Lords Act 1999. John Selden in his esteemed work Titles of Honour (1672) writes, "The word Baro (Latin for Baron) hath been also so much communicated, that not only all Lords of Manors have been from ancient time, and are at this day called sometimes Barons (as in the stile of their Court Barons, which is Curia Baronis, &c. And I have read hors de son Barony in a barr to an Avowry for hors de son fee) But also the Judges of the Exchequer have it from antient time fixed on them."[24]
Manorial rights or incidents[edit]
Since 1965 lords of the manor have been entitled to compensation in the event of compulsory purchase.[25] Before the Land Registration Act 2002 it was possible for manors to be registered with HM Land Registry. No manorial rights could be created after 1925, following entry into force of the Law of Property Act 1922. Manorial incidents, which are the rights that a lord of the manor may exercise over other people's land, lapsed on 12 October 2013 if not registered by then with the Land Registry. This is a separate issue to the registration of lordships of manors, since both registered and unregistered lordships will continue to exist after that date. It is only their practical rights that lost what is called 'overriding interest', or in other words the ability to affect land even if the interests or rights are not registered against that land, as of 12 October 2013. Manorial incidents can still be recorded for either registered or unregistered manors; however, proof of existence of the rights may need to be submitted to the Land Registry before they will be noted and they may not be registered at all after affected land is sold after 12 October 2013. This issue does not affect the existence of the title of lord of the manor.[1] There have been cases where manors have been sold and the seller has unknowingly parted with rights to unregistered land in England and Wales.[13]