Law and Kinship in Thirteenth-Century England

Two separate legal jurisdictions concerned with family relations held sway in England during the high middle ages: canon law and common law. In thirteenth- and fourteenth-century Europe, kinship rules dominated the lives of laymen and laywomen. They determined whom they might marry [decided in the canon law courts] and they determined from whom they might inherit [decided in the common law courts]. This book seeks to uncover the association between the two, exploring the ways in which the two legal systems shared ideas about family relationship, where the one jurisdiction - the common law - was concerned about ties of consanguinity and where the other - canon law - was concerned to add to the kinship mix of affinity. It also demonstrates how the theories of kinship were practically applied in the courtrooms of medieval England.

Details

First Published: 20 May 2010
13 Digit ISBN: 9780861933051
Pages: 206
Size: 23.4 x 15.6
Binding: Hardback
Imprint: Royal Historical Society
Series: Royal Historical Society Studies in History New Series
Subject: Medieval History
BIC Class: HBLC1

Details updated on 02 Sep 2010

Contents

• 1  Introduction
• 2  Canon law kinship structures
• 3  Common law kinship structures
• 4  The dominance of canon law kinship ideas
• 5  Kinship laws in practice
• 6  Trends underlying legal kinship structures
• 7  Conclusion
• 8  Appendix 1: Raymón of Penyafort's Quia tractare intendimus
• 9  Appendix 2: The historical introduction to Sciendum est
• 10  Appendix 3: Common law adaptations of canon law treatises: Quibus modis
• 11  Appendix 4: Common law adaptations of canon law treatises: Triplex est
• 12  Bibliography