The Principal Laws of England, Treatise · Part 9 – Part 10
Of tenaunt in dower.
TEnaunte in dower, is she that hath bene maried to an husbād that was during the matrimony betwene them seised of landes▪ or … in fee simple or fee tayl▪ which is nowe dede and she seased of the thy… departe of her husbandes sayde landes for terme of her life. For by the common lawe of the lande, if the husbande be at any tyme duryng the couerture seased lawfully, whether … be by purchase or by discent, … the… in fee or in tayle, & dye, his … to be indowed by the course of the cō mon lawe of the thyrde fo…e. And in some places by an aunciente custom she shalbe indowed of the … ▪ yea and thoughe … seased actually durying the courture, yet if the landes be caste vponupon … by the lawe, so that the law calleth him tenaunt to eueryevery mans action, it suffiseth for the woman to demaunde her dower, for it were vnreasonable, that the negligence … of entrynge of the husbande shulde hurte the wyues ….
Otherwise it is, as I sayde before, of tenaūt by the curtesy, for if landes descende to a woman couert and the husbande for slouthfulnes or negligence doth not entre in his wyues life he shal not be tenaunt by the curtesi… … by all lawes the wyfe oweth obedience and subiectiō to her husbande and therfore she can not compel him to entre, but when landes descend to the wyfe, the husbande onelye hauehave power to entre at his pleasure.
And ye shall vnderstand, that onlesse the wyfe be passed the age of ix. yeares at the tyme of her husbandes deathe, she shall not be endowed by the common lawe.
But it is to be knowen that a womā maye by diuers wayes estoppe and preuidi…e her selfe of her dower: as if she commyt any crime for which she is atteynted of treasone, murdre or felonye, …he gett…no dower, not wythstandyng she hath obteyned her pardone.
Also yf after the deathe of her husband she taketh a lease for terme of lyfe of the same landes wherof she is indowable she losed her dower of the same. Moreouer yf she departethe from her husbande and lyuethe in aduoutrye wyth an other man, and not reconcieled agayne to her husbande wythout coercion of the ecclesiasticall power, she lesethe her dower after her husbandes deathe.
She shall be also barred of dower yf she wyll wythholde from the heire the charters and euidence concernynge that lande wherof she asketh dower: But none other saue the heyre can wytholde her dower for thys cause.
It maye not be vnknowne also of what thynges she maye demaunde dower, and of what thinges not. Of landes messuagies, aduousons, rent charges, rente seruyses, or signories in grosse or otherwyse, of villaynes, of cōmons certayne, of estouers, certayne, she is dowable. But of commons, and estouers sans nombre, also of annuities, of homage, of thingꝭ of pleasure, as of seruyces of paimet of roses, and semblable she shall not be endowed.
There be yet two other kindes of dower, the one is called dowment ex assēsu patr…is, and the other is called dowment de la plus beale ꝑtie. that is to saye, of the fairest parte.
Dowment ex assensu patris, is whan the father is seased of landes in fee, and his sonne whiche is heyre apparaunt endoweth his wife at the churche dore, whan he is espoused, of parcell of hys fathers landes, wyth the assente of his father in wrytinge testifienge the same assent, if in thys case her husband dye, she may forthwyth entre into the laudes so assigned vntounto her wtout further app…yntynge or proces of law, although the father of her husbande be yet aliue & in actual possession of the lande. But if she thus do, and take her to thys endowment at the churche dore she can not hauehave her dower by the common lawe of the thyrde parte of all her husbandes landes, or any parcell of them how be it if she wyll refuse this assignement made vntounto her at the church dore, and demaund dower at the common lawe, she maye verye well.
A man maye also endow his wyfe at the time of the spousailes of his own landes, whiche he hath in his owne possession, and that dower is called dower ad ostium ecclesiae
Dowment Dela plus beale, that is to saye, dowmente of the fayreste parte shall be in thys case. Whan a man is seased of landes whiche he holdethe of an other man by knyghtes seruice, and of other lādes which be of socage tenure, and hathe issue, whyche is wythin the age of .xiiij. yeares & dye, and the lorde of whom the lande is holden by knyghtes seruyce entrethe in to the lande holden of hym, and the mother of the chylde entrethe in to the socage tenure as gardeyne in socage, yf in thys case the woman wyll brynge a wrytte of dower agaynste the lorde whyche is gardeyne in cheualrye, he may plede the speciall mater and shewe, howe she as gardeyne in socage hath so moche lande and pray the court that she maye be suffred to endowe her selfe of so moche lande beynge in her owne custodie, as amounteth to the thyrde parte of the hole landes. And than the iudgemente shall be, that the gardeyne in chyualrye shall reteyne the lande holden of hym quyte from the woman duerynge the non age of the warde. After which iudgement she maye go and in presence of her neighboures endowe her selfe of the beste parte of that whyche is in her custodye, amountynge to the thyrde parte of the hole, and than is she called tenaunte in dower de la plus beale.
A diuision of inheritaunces.
HYtherunto I hauehave spoken of free holdes, nowe, it remayneth to treate of inheritaūces, not that inheritaūces be no free holdes, for they be free holdes also, but the other estates of whiche I hauehave here tofore treated be onelyonly free holde, and of no hygher nature, where as a state of in heritance, although it …e a free hold, yet it is not to be called by yt name, sythe it is a farre more excellent and greater estate. But ye shall vnderstande that of inheritaunces some be of more amplitude and excellencye than other some be, as that inheritaunce whyche is pure, simple, and without limitacion of what heyres, is it called fee simple. But when I make a limitaciō of what heyres, thā is it called fee tayle, of which also be two sortes, as herafter more at large shal be declared. Nowe the nature of fee simple is to be setforth wyth oure accustomed compendiousnes.