demesne

demesne
—demesnial, adj.
/di mayn", -meen"/, n.
1. possession of land as one's own: land held in demesne.
2. an estate or part of an estate occupied and controlled by, and worked for the exclusive use of, the owner.
3. land belonging to and adjoining a manor house; estate.
4. the dominion or territory of a sovereign or state; domain.
5. a district; region.
[1250-1300; ME demeine < AF demesne, OF demein; see DOMAIN]

* * *

▪ land tenure
      in English feudal law, that portion of a manor not granted to freehold tenants but either retained by the lord for his own use and occupation or occupied by his villeins or leasehold tenants. When villein tenure developed into the more secure copyhold and leaseholders became protected against premature eviction, the “lord's demesne” came to be restricted and usually denoted the lord's house and the park and surrounding lands.

      Demesne of the crown, or royal demesne, was that part of the crown lands not granted to feudal tenants but managed by crown stewards until it was later surrendered to Parliament in return for an annual sum. Ancient demesne was land vested in the crown in 1066, the tenants of such land having a number of privileges, such as freedom from tolls. See also copyhold; freehold.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • demesne — I noun acquest, chattels real, domain, dominion, empire, estate, freehold, hereditament, holding, land, landed estate, landed property, manor, one s own land, property, real estate, real property, realm, realty associated concepts: demesne lands… …   Law dictionary

  • Demesne — De*mesne , n. [OE. demeine, demain, rule, demesne, OF. demeine, demaine, demeigne, domaine, power, F. domaine domain, fr. L. dominium property, right of ownership, fr. dominus master, proprietor, owner. See {Dame}, and cf. {Demain}, {Domain},… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • demesne — c.1300, demeyne (modern spelling by late 15c.), from Anglo Fr. demesne, demeine, O.Fr. demaine land held for a lord s own use, from L. dominicus belonging to a master, from dominus lord. Re spelled by Anglo Fr. legal scribes under influence of… …   Etymology dictionary

  • demesne — ► NOUN 1) historical land attached to a manor. 2) archaic a domain. ORIGIN from Old French demeine belonging to a lord , from Latin dominus lord, master …   English terms dictionary

  • demesne — [di mān′; ] also [, dimēn′] n. [ME & OFr demeine < L dominium (see DOMAIN); sp. altered by assoc. with OFr mesnee, household < L mansio: see MANSION] 1. Law possession (of real estate) in one s own right 2. Historical the land or estate… …   English World dictionary

  • Demesne — Conjectural map of a feudal manor. The brown areas are part of the demesne, the shaded areas part of the glebe . The manor house, residence of the lord and location of the manorial court, can be seen in the mid southern part of the manor In the… …   Wikipedia

  • Demesne — The part of the lord s manorial lands reserved for his own use and not allocated to his serfs or freeholder tenants. Serfs worked in the demesne for a specified numbers of days per week. The demesne could either be scattered among the serfs land …   Medieval glossary

  • demesne — UK [dɪˈmeɪn] / US noun [countable] Word forms demesne : singular demesne plural demesnes in the past, a large house and the land that belonged to it …   English dictionary

  • demesne — /damiyn/dameyn/ Domain; dominical; held in one s own right, and not of a superior; not allotted to tenants. In the language of pleading, own; proper; original. Thus, son assault demesne, his own assault, his assault originally or in the first… …   Black's law dictionary

  • demesne — /damiyn/dameyn/ Domain; dominical; held in one s own right, and not of a superior; not allotted to tenants. In the language of pleading, own; proper; original. Thus, son assault demesne, his own assault, his assault originally or in the first… …   Black's law dictionary

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”