Caput baroniae

In the customs of the kingdom of England, the caput baroniae (from Latin 'head of the barony') was the ancient, or chief, seat or castle of a nobleman, which was not to be divided among the daughters upon his death, in case there be no son to inherit. Instead, it was to descend entirely to the eldest daughter caeteris filiabus aliunde satisfactis, 'other daughters having been satisfied elsewhere'.

The Leges Henrici Primi stated that a lord's tenants would have to go to the caput of the lord, even if it was in another county.‍^[1]

The central settlement in an Anglo-Saxon multiple estate was called a caput‍^[2](also short for caput baroniae). The word is also used for the centre of administration of a hundred as well as the early feudal honour.

References

^ Corèdon, Christopher (2004). "Honour". A Dictionary of Medieval Terms and Phrases. Cambridge: D.S. Brewer. p. 157. ISBN 978-1-84384-023-7. JSTOR 10.7722/j.ctt14brrmq. OCLC 316719708.
^ Aston, Michael (1997) [First published 1985]. Interpreting the Landscape (Revised ed.). London ; New York: Psychology Press. p. 34. ISBN 978-0-415-15140-5. LCCN 97196478. OCLC 37626605.

Bibliography

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public ___domain: Chambers, Ephraim, ed. (1728). "CAPUT: Caput Baroniæ". Cyclopædia, or an Universal Dictionary of Arts and Sciences. Vol. 1 (1st ed.). James and John Knapton, et al. pp. 156–7.

[middictionary-1] Corèdon, Christopher (2004). "Honour". A Dictionary of Medieval Terms and Phrases. Cambridge: D.S. Brewer. p. 157. ISBN 978-1-84384-023-7. JSTOR 10.7722/j.ctt14brrmq. OCLC 316719708.

[2] Aston, Michael (1997) [First published 1985]. Interpreting the Landscape (Revised ed.). London ; New York: Psychology Press. p. 34. ISBN 978-0-415-15140-5. LCCN 97196478. OCLC 37626605.

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