Normans Change to English Legal System

Question 1

What stayed the same?

Answer 1

The King’s Court

Question 2

How did the King’s court not change?

Answer 2

It was still the most powerful court

King remained the most important person in the justice system

Question 3

What did the King’s Court deal with?

Answer 3

Royal pleas- included the most serious offences of murder, treason, arson, robbery and rape

Question 4

Where could the King also hear appeals from?

Answer 4

Lower courts

Question 5

What were already in place before the Normans?

Answer 5

Shire Courts

Question 6

What was England divided into under the Anglo Saxons?

Answer 6

Shires

Question 7

How often did the Shire Court meet?

Answer 7

Twice a year

Question 8

How did the Shire Court change under Normans?

Answer 8

Met more regularly
Judges were local landowners or the sheriff
Large Anglo Saxon earldoms replaced with smaller Norman earldoms often based around shire towns
Castles built in shire towns
Administration and law and order based in shire towns, including sheriff and court

Question 9

What disputes did the Shire Court hear?

Answer 9

Disputes over land or crimes involving violence or theft

Question 10

Why did the importance of Shire Courts decline?

Answer 10

Increasing role of honorial courts where tenants could appeal cases with their lord

Question 11

Why were royal household officials sometimes sent to shire court?

Answer 11

To oversee proceedings and juries were introduced in some cases

Question 12

What were shires divided into in Saxon times?

Answer 12

Hundreds which were 100 hides in size- about 120 acres

Question 13

What did the Normans continue?

Answer 13

Hundred Courts

Question 14

What was a change to the Hundred Courts?

Answer 14

Met more frequently than shire courts and looked at local issues in each hundred

Question 15

How were hundred court meetings held?

Answer 15

Every month, usually at a landmark eg a tree, with a bailiff in charge (appointed by the sheriff)

Question 16

What did the hundred courts deal with?

Answer 16

Minor disputes

Question 17

Who would be in charge of the hundred if it was a privately held?

Answer 17

A lord

Question 18

What were introduced by the Normans for the lord to deal with his tenants?

Answer 18

Lord’s Courts, also called Honourial Courts

Question 19

What did the Lord’s/ Honorial courts deal with?

Answer 19

Crime or disputes
Supervised property transactions
Made announcements of new laws from the King

Question 20

What was the manor?

Answer 20

The area of land controlled by the lord of the manor- usually the same as a village

Question 21

What were the most minor courts?

Answer 21

Manor Courts

Question 22

What did Manor Courts deal with?

Answer 22

Day to day life in the village, such as ploughing being carried out badly or labour not being supplied

Question 23

What would male villeins pay for?

Answer 23

Licenses to marry

Question 24

Who controlled the Manor Courts?

Answer 24

The Lord of the Manor

Question 25

What did Anglo Saxons place a high value on?

Answer 25

People’s words or promises

Question 26

What was the ‘common oath’?

Answer 26

An oath of allegiance that Anglo Saxons were persuaded to make which meant that they promised not to be involved in any major crime

Question 27

What would happen if Saxons broke the common oath?

Answer 27

Entire families would be punished

Question 28

Where were punishments for cases such as theft decided?

Answer 28

Hundred courts

Question 29

What could punishments include?

Answer 29

Exile for the criminal and their families

Question 30

What did the Normans introduce to protect the large number of new Norman earls vulnerable to attack because of the Anglo-Saxon population?

Answer 30

Murdrum fines

Question 31

What did the Murdrum fines do?

Answer 31

Fine the entire area around where the criminal lived if any Norman Earl was murdered

Question 32

What did the murdrum fines law extend to include?

Answer 32

Any Norman who was attacked or inured by Anglo Saxons

Question 33

How was land commonly divided in Saxon England?

Answer 33

To divide up land amongst families, eg when an earl died it would be split up between his sons after his death