Land Tenure in Gondor (Domesday book)

EXPLANATION

• Property rights: Estate that is legally independent of any superior overlord, also called allodial land. Superior overlord has usually a right of eminent domain and is called lord paramount.
• Right of use: Right of enjoyment, enabling holder to derive profit or benefit from property that is either titled or which is held in common ownership.
• Right of alienation: Capacity for a parcel of land to be sold or otherwise transferred from one party to another.
• Right to hold a court: Right to administer justice as a separate jurisdiction.
• Right of taxation: Right to legislate tariffs and impose financial charges or other levies independetly of any superior overlord or sovereign.
• Escheat: Doctrine which transfers the estate of a person who dies without heirs or commits a felony to the Crown. It applies if legal interest in land is destroyed by operation of law.
• Feudal duties: Owner of the estate has certain obligations to his or her overlord.
• Absolute Hereditary: Estate is completely inheritable and divisible by will.
• Conditional Hereditary: Estate is inheritable when certain condition is met - for example, land owned by the Crown is not automatically inherited by late king’s descendents, but held in trust until royal succession is accepted by the Council of Gondor.
• Entail: Restriction on the sale or inheritance of an estate which prevents the property from being sold, devised by will, or otherwise alienated, and instead causes it to pass automatically by operation of law to the property owner's heirs at law upon his or her death. Also called fee tail.
• For life: Disinheritable estate is held for life and is otherwise alienable.
• Temporary: Estate is held only for a certain duration, not renewed automatically.
• Elective: Estate is held in common ownership and its respective rights are exerted by elective magistrates.
• Civic Rights (Gobel): A body of privileges belonging to an autonomous corporate entity, either derived from royal charter or time immemorial, including market rights and staple rights, establishment of legal corporations, etc.
• Township: Township is a city (including hinterlands), either autonomous or owned by a king or lord. Townships have market rights, but no other privileges associated with a Gobel.
• Leasehold estate: Leasehold is a form of temporary land tenure for a fee. As lease is a legal estate, leasehold estate can be bought and sold on the open market.
• Copyhold estate: Temporary right to a title or estate according to the custom of the manor. Copyhold estates may be entailed, but not alienated.