Englishry

Englishry

Englishry, or "Englescherie", is a legal name given, in the reign of William the Conqueror, to the presentment of the fact that a person slain was an Englishman. If an unknown man was found slain, he was presumed to be a Norman, and the hundred was fined accordingly, unless it could be proved that he was English. Englishry, if established, excused the hundred.

It is thought that Danish invaders first introduced the practice in England, and that the Norman conquerors preserved and revived it. [Hon Dixon J. "The Development of the Law of Homicide". "The Australian Law Journal (Supplement)" (1935) 64. pp. 64-69.] Dr. W. Stubbs ("Constitutional History", I 196) suggests such measures may have been taken by King Canute. Englishry was abolished in 1340.

See "Select Cases from the Coroners Rolls, 1265-1413", ad. C. Gross, "Selden Society" (London, 1896).

References

*1911


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  • Englishry — Eng lish*ry, n. 1. The state or privilege of being an Englishman. [Obs.] Cowell. [1913 Webster] 2. A body of English or people of English descent; commonly applied to English people in Ireland. [1913 Webster] A general massacre of the Englishry.… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Englishry — /ing glish ree/ or, often, / lish /, n. 1. the fact of being English, esp. by birth. 2. a population that is English or of English descent: the Englishry of Ireland. [1250 1300; late ME Englisherie < AF Englescherie, equiv. to ME Englisch ENGLISH …   Universalium

  • englishry — Same as engleschire. See presentment of englishry …   Ballentine's law dictionary

  • Englishry — noun Date: 1620 the state, fact, or quality of being English ; englishness …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • Englishry — The English as distinct from the Normans, esp. in law; also later, the English inhabitants of Ireland. Cf. French …   Dictionary of Medieval Terms and Phrases

  • Englishry — ♦ A fine paid by a hundred for an unknown homicide. After the Conquest, Normans were sometimes ambushed and slain by the English. The hundred were the body was found would be fined unless they could prove that the victim was English. (Waugh,… …   Medieval glossary

  • englishry — en·glish·ry …   English syllables

  • englishry — shrē, ri noun ( es) Usage: usually capitalized Etymology: Middle English englisherie, englishrie, from english (I) + erie, rie ry 1. : the state or fact of being of English birth …   Useful english dictionary

  • presentment of Englishry — A relic of the Conquest. In England, under Norman rule, Englishry was said to be presented when it was proved that a murdered man was an Englishman, and thus the county was saved from an amercement which otherwise would have been imposed upon it …   Ballentine's law dictionary

  • presentment of englishry — Usage: usually capitalized E : the presentation of proof that a slain person was of English rather than Norman birth as an excuse for not paying a fine levied by the Norman kings of England upon local governmental units for the murder of a Norman …   Useful english dictionary

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