FRANKMARRIAGE (liberurn maritagium) was a species of estate tail existing by the ' common law of England: for where a man, on the marriage of his daughter or cousin, gave lands to be held iu F., this implied a gift in special tail, to the donees and heirs of their bodies. This tenure was called liberum maritagium, to distinguish it from other species of estates tail (Co. Litt. 94 h). Four things were necessary to a gift in F.: 1. That it must be in consideration of a marriage, but it might be as well after as before a marriage. 2. That the donee with whom it, is given be of the blood of the donor. 3. That the donees should hold of the donor. Hence a gift in F. by a subject became impossible after the statute of quia emplaces. 4. That the donees should hold for four generations. Therefore a gift in F. with a reservation of a remainder to a stranger, or a devise by will, was bad.
a law prevailing in England before the Norman conquest, whereby the members of every tithing were responsible for the good cbnduct of each other. This responsibility, according to Mr. Hallam, consisteciru every 10 men in a village being answerable each for the others, so that if one committed an offense, the other nine were liable for his appearance to make reparation. Should the offender abscond,ithe tithing, if unable to clear 'themselves from participation in the crime, were compelled to make good the penalty. This law has been ascribed to Alfred the great; but it would appear to have been in existence at a much earlier period. Mr. Hallam, Middle Ages, ii. p. 80 (edit. 1841), observes: " The peculiar system of frank-pledges seems to have passed through the following very gradual stages. At first, an accused person was bound to find bail for standing his trial. At a subsequent period, his relations were called upon to become securities for payment of the compensation and other lines to which he was liable; they were even subject to be imprisoned until payment was made, and this imprisonment was commutable for a certain sum in money. The next usage was to make people already convicted, or of suspicious repute, give securities for their good behavior. It is not till the reign of Edgar that we find the first general law, which places every man in the condition of the guilty or suspected, and compels him to find a sucety who shall be responsible for his appearance when judicially summoned. This is
perpetually repeated and enforced in later statutes during his reign and that of Ethelred. Finally, the laws of Canute declare the necessity of belonging to some hundred and tithing, as well as of providing sureties." The court of frank-pledge, or court-leet, is a court of record held once in the year, and not oftener, within a particular hundred, lordship, or manor, before the steward of the leet; being the king's court granted by charter to the lords of those hundreds or manors. All freeholders resident in the jurisdiction are bound to attend this court; but persons under 12 and over 60 years of age are excused, and by the statute of Marlbridge, 52 Hen. III. c. 10, all prelates, peers, and clergymen, and women are discharged from attendance. It was also the custom to summon all the king's subjects to this court, on attaining years of discretion, to take the oath of allegiance. The business of this court was to present by jury all crimes committed within their jurisdiction, and to punish all trivial misdemeanors. This court has practically fallen into desuetude, and the business is discharged by the justices of the peace at general and petty sessions. See Black stone's Commentaries. Originally, the business of the court of frank-pledge was confined to the taking securities or free pledges for every person within the jurisdiction; but this practice having fallen into disuse, the court gradually acquired a criminal jurisdiction, concurrent with that of the sheriff's touru. "Magna Charta distinguishes between the tourns or leets of sheriffs and the view of frank-pledge; limiting the former to twice a year, and the latter to once. In the more ordinary sense, frank-pledge and leet are synonymous, as appears from the style of tourns and other leets, which in court-rolls are usually denominated curia or nisus franci plegii. But when free pledge is used, as iu Magna Charta, it should be understood in a, strict and particular sense."—Co. Litt. by Hargrave, 115 a, note 10.