Heerlijkheid: Difference between revisions

[[Image:Huis te Warmond.jpg|thumb|260px|Warmond House (Huis te Warmond), the manor house for the Hoge Heerlijkheid of Warmond]]A '''''heerlijkheid''''' (a Dutch word; pl. ''heerlijkheden''; also called ''heerschap'') was a landed estate that served as the lowest administrative and judicial unit in rural areas in the [[Dutch language|Dutch]]-speaking [[Low Countries]] before 1800. It originated inas a unit of lordship under the [[feudal]] decentralization of government authoritysystem induring the [[Middle Ages]]. The English equivalents are ''[[manor]]'', ''[[seigniory]]'', and ''fiefdomlordship''.<ref name="van dale">{{Cite book|author=Van Dale|title=Groot Woordenboek Nederlands Engels}}. The translation used by J.L. Price in ''Dutch Society 1588-1713'' is "manor"; by David Nicholas in ''Medieval Flanders'' is "seigneury".</ref> The ''heerlijkheid'' system was the Dutch version of [[manorialism]] that prevailed in the Low Countries and was the precursor to the modern [[Municipalities of the Netherlands|municipality system in the Netherlands]] and [[List of municipalities of the Flemish Region|Flemish Belgium]].<ref>The unreferrenced information in this article has been translated from the mostly unfootnoted article on "heerlijkheid" on the Dutch version of Wikipedia.</ref><ref>Much of the unreferrenced information in this article is found at this website: [http://www.herenvanholland.nl Heerlijkheden van Holland] (in Dutch only)</ref>

* '''''vrijheerlijkheid''''' — aan [[Baronsallod in Scotland|prescriptiveor barony]]allodium.<ref name="NWNT">{{Cite book|author=I.M. Calisch and N.S. Calisch|title=Nieuw Woordenboek der Nederlandsche Taal 1864}}</ref> These "free" ''heerlijkheden'' were found usually at the edges of a county and were called "free"‘free’ (''vrij'') because they were [[allodial]] instead of a [[fief]] held by an overlord.<ref name="Janse">{{Cite book|author=Antheun Janse, "Een in zichzelf verdeeld rijk"|title=Geschiedenis van Holland (Deel 1: tot 1572)}}pp. 70-102</ref>

The central figure was the tenantlord of the ''heerlijkheid'' and effectively its owner—the [[lord of the manor|manorial lord]] or [[lady]]. In Dutch, the lord was called ''heer'' and the lady ''vrouw(e)''. The lord was also referred to by the Latin word ''[[dominus]]''. A rarer English alternative is ''[[fiefdom|seigneur]]''.<ref name="Schama PL">{{Cite book|author=Simon Schama|title=Patriots & Liberators}} pp. 75-77, 212, 222, 429, 470-472</ref> There were different kinds of lord and lady:

* '''''vrijheer''''' and '''''vrijvrouwe''''' (literally, ‘free lord’ and ‘free lady’) — tenantallodial oflord aor [[Baronsallodiary, intenant Scotland|prescriptive barony]]of (asan inallodial Scotland)lordship.

* '''''erfheer''''' and '''''erfvrouwe''''' (literally, ‘hereditary lord’ and ‘hereditary lady’) — tenant of a [[English feudal barony|hereditaryfeudal baronybaron]] (asor inmesne lord, tenant of a England)fiefdom.

Under the feudal system, a manorial lord typically was himself the [[vassal]] of a higher-ranking [[tenant-in-chief]], usually a highborn noble, who was in turn the crown vassal of the [[king]] or [[emperor]]. However, sometimes there was no [[Mesne lord|mesne]] tenancy (''tussenliggende heerschappij''), as was the case with knight's fees held ''[[Capite|in capite]]'' (''rijksonmiddellijke heerlijkheid''). The ''heerlijkheid'' was ruled directly by a count (''graaf''), a viscount (''burggraaf'') or a baron (''baron''). Also, it was not uncommon for the lord to be ecclesiastical, e.g. a [[prince-bishop]] (''prins-bisschop'') or [[prince-abbot]] (''vorst-abt'').

The ''heerlijkheden'' came into being as a result of the feudal system, in particular the sovereign's delegation ofdelegated judicial prerogative. The crown, as lord paramount, granted the right to govern and to exercise judicial authority to a crown vassal, often a confidante or as a reward for military service or political support. The crown vassal—e.g. a [[count]] (''graaf'') or [[duke]] (''hertog'')—thus exercised all or part of the sovereign's royal authority. In turn the crown vassal granted rights to the mesne lords of the ''heerlijkheden''.

==SeignorialManorial rights==

The tenancy of a ''heerlijkheid'' is not to be confused with theland possession of landownership. It was an [[estate in land]], not land ''per se''. Although lords of the manor generally owned property within a ''heerlijkheid'' (often substantial amounts), it was possible for a lord not to own any property at all within his own ''heerlijkheid''. Also, when agricultural land was held by a lord in the Low Countries, the amount held was smaller in comparison to other countries.<ref name="Price">{{Cite book|author=J.L. Price|title=Dutch Society 1588-1713}} pp. 174, 211, 212</ref>

Lordship conferred a set of seignorialmanorial rights. The word ''heerlijkheid'' denotes an estate in which these limited rights were held and could be exercised. The rights exercised varied widely, and were more extensive and survived longer in the eastern provinces.<ref name="Schama PL"/> A manorial lord was able to function as a minor potentate within "his" ''heerlijkheid''. However, his manorial rights were limited and subject to numerous restrictions.<ref name="Price"/> The lord was required to conduct himself in accordance with local customary law.

* '''Appointments''': One of the most important seignorialmanorial rights was the right to appoint bailiffs, reeves, aldermen, magistrates, schoolmasters, dike and polder officials, and so on.<ref name="Schama PL"/> A fee was paid by the recipients of these appointments. In particular, the lord was entitled to make the important appointment of the ''[[schout]]'' ‘reeve’. The reeevereeve was charged with local administrative, law enforcement, and prosecutorial duties. The lord's right to appoint this official was significant because it entailed the associated right to receive the profits from [[amercement]]s collected by the reeve from sentences and fines for minor and mid-level offences. (Higher fines were paid to officials appointed by a count or duke, i.e. the sheriff, called variously ''hoofdschout'', ''hoofdmeier'', ''drossaard'' or ''amman''). The lord of the manor was entitled to act as reeve himself, but most lords delegated this duty by appointing someone else to the office.