TheServilePeasantryofManorialRecordsItwouldbeaswrongtorestrictthestudyofvillainagetolegaldocumentsastodisregardthem。Thejurisprudenceandpracticeoftheking’scourtspresentaone-sided，thoughaveryimportantviewofthesubject，butitmustbesupplementedandverifiedbyaninvestigationofmanorialrecords。Withoneclassofsuchdocumentswehavehadalreadytodeal，namelywiththerollsofmanorialcourts，whichformasitwerethestepping-stonebetweenlocalarrangementsandthegeneraltheoriesofCommonLaw。So-calledmanorial’extents’androyalinquisitionsbasedonthemleadusonestepfurther；theywereintendedtodescribethematter-of-factconditionsofactuallife，thedistributionofholdings，theamountandnatureofservices，thepersonaldivisionsofthepeasantry，theirevidenceisnotopentotheobjectionofhavingbeenartificiallytreatedforlegalpurposes。Treatisesonfarmingandinstructionstomanorialofficersreflecttheeconomicsideofthesystem，andanenormousnumberofaccountsofexpenditureandreceiptswouldenablethemodernsearcher，ifsominded，toenterevenintothedetailofagriculturalmanagement。1*Weneednotundertakethislastinquiry，butsomecomparisonbetweentheviewsoflawyersandtheactualfactsofmanorialadministrationmustbeattempted。WritersonCommonLawinviteonetothetaskbyrecognisingagreatvarietyoflocalcustoms；Bracton，forinstance，mentioningtwonotabledeviationsfromgeneralrulesinthedepartmentoflawunderdiscussion。InCornwallthechildrenofavillainandofafreewomanwerenotallunfree，butsomefollowedthefatherandothersthemother。2*InHerefordshirethemasterwasnotboundtoproducehisserfstoanswercriminalcharges。3*IfsuchcustomsweresufficientlystrongtocounteracttheinfluenceofgeneralrulesofCommonLaw，thevitalityoflocaldistinctionswasevenmorefeltinthosecaseswheretheyhadnorulestobreakthrough，Itmaybeevenaskedattheveryoutsetoftheinquirywhetherthereisnotadangerofourbeingdistractedbyendlessdetails。Ihopethatthefollowingpageswillshowhowthevarietiesnaturallyfallintocertainclassesandconvergetowardsafewdefinitepositions，whichappearthemoreimportantastheywerenotproducedbyartificialarrangementfromabove。Wemustbecarefulhowever，anddistinguishbetweenisolatedfactsandwidely-spreadconditions。Anotherpossibleobjectiontothemethodofourstudymaybealsonoticedhere，asitisconnectedwiththesamedifficulty。Supposewegetinonecasetheexplanationofacustomorinstitutionwhichrecursinmanyothercases；areweentitledtogeneraliseourexplanation？Thisseemsmethodicallysoundaslongasthecontrarycannotbeestablished，fortheplainreasonthatthevarietyoflocalfactsisavarietyofcombinationsandofeffects，notofconstitutiveelementsandofcauses。Theagentsofdevelopmentarenotmany，thoughtheirjointworkshadesoffintoagreatnumberofvariations。Wemaybeprettysurethataresultrepeatedseveraltimeshasbeeneffectedbythesamefactorsinthesameway；andifinsomeinstancesthesefactorsappearmanifestly，thereiseveryreasontosupposethemtohaveexistedinallthecases。Suchreflectionsareneverconvincingbythemselves，however，andthebestthingtotestthemwillbetoproceedfromthesebroadstatementstoaninquiryintotheparticularsofthecase。
Thestudyofmanorialevidencemuststartfromadiscussionastoterminology。Thenamesofthepeasantrywillshowthenaturalsubdivisionsoftheclass。Ifwelookonlytotheunfreevillagers，weshallnoticethatallthevarietiesofdenominationcaneasilybearrangedintofourclasses：oneoftheseclasseshasinviewsocialstanding，anothereconomiccondition，athirdstartsfromadifferenceofservices，andafourthfromadifferenceofholdings。Thelinemaynotbedrawnsharplybetweentheseveraldivisions，butthegeneralcontrastcannotbemistaken。
Thetermofmostcommonoccurrenceis，ofcourse，villanus。
Althoughitsetymologypointsprimarilytotheplaceofdwelling，andindirectlytospecificoccupations，itischieflyusedduringthefeudalperiodtodenoteservitude。Ittakesinboththemanwhoispersonallyunfreeandstandsincompletesubjectiontothelord，andthefreepersonsettledonservileland。BothclassesmentionedanddistinguishedbyBractonarecoveredbyit。Thecommonoppositionisbetweenvillanusandliberetenens，notbetweenvillanusandliberhomo。Itisnotdifficulttoexplainsuchaphraseologyinbookscompiledeitherintheimmediateinterestofthelordsorundertheirindirectinfluence，butitmusthavenecessarilyledtoencroachmentsanddisputes：ithasevenbecomeasnareforlaterinvestigators，whohavesometimesbeenledtoconsiderasonecompactmassapopulationconsistingoftwodifferentclasses，eachwithaseparatehistoryofitsown。TheLatin’rusticus’isappliedinthesamegeneralway。ltislesstechnicalhowever，andoccurschieflyinannalsanDotherliteraryproductions，forwhichitwasbettersuitedbyitsclassicalDerivation。Butwhenitisusedinoppositiontootherterms，itstandsexactlyasvillanus。thatistosay，itiscontrastedwithliberetenens。4*
Thefundamentaldistinctionofpersonalstatushasleftsometracesinterminology。TheHundredRolls，especiallytheWarwickshireone，5*mentionserviveryoften。Sometimesthewordisusedexactlyasvillanuswouldbe。6*Tenereinservituteandtenereinvillenagioareequivalent。7*Butotherinstancesshowthatservushasalsoaspecialmeaning。Caseswhereitoccursinan’extent’immediatelyaftervillanus，andpossiblyinoppositiontoit，arenotdecisive。8*Theymaybeexplainedbythefactthatthepersonsengagedindrawingupacustumal，jotteddowndenominationsofthepeasantrywithoutcomparingthemcarefullywithwhatpreceded。Amarginalnoteserviwouldnotbenecessarilyopposedtoavillanifollowingit；
itmayonlybeadifferentnameforthesamething。AnditmaybenotedthatintheHundredRollsthesenamesveryoftenstandinthemargin，andnotinthetext。Butsuchanexplanationwouldbeoutofplacewhenbothexpressionsareusedinthesamesentence。
ThedescriptionofIpsdeninOxfordshirehasthefollowingpassage：itemdietusR。deN。hanetdepropartesuaseptemservosvillanos。Rot。Hundr。ii。781，b：cf。775，b，ServiCustumarii。
Itisclearthatitwasintended，notonlytodescribethegeneralconditionofthepeasantry，buttodefinemoreparticularlytheirstatus。Thisobservationandthegeneralmeaningofthewordwillleadustobelievethatinmanycaseswhenitisusedbyitself，itimpliespersonalsubjection。
Thetermnativushasasimilarsense。Buttherelationbetweenitandvillanusisnotconstant；sometimesthislattermarksthegenus，whiletheformerappliestoaspecies；butsometimestheyareusedinterchangeably，9*andthefeminineforvillainisnievenativa。Butwhilevillanusismadetoappearbothinawideandinarestrictedsense，andforthisreasoncannotbeusedasaspecialqualification，nativushasonlytherestrictedsensesuggestingstatus。10*Inconnectionwithotherdenominationsnativusisusedforthepersonallyunfree。11*
Whenwefindnativusdomini，thepersonalrelationtothelordisespeciallynoticed。12*Thesensebeingsuch，nowonderthatthenatureofthetenureissometimesdescribedinaddition。13*Ofcourse，theprimarymeaningis，thatapersonhasbeenborninthepowerofthelord，andinthissenseitisopposedtothestranger——forinsecus，extraneus。14*InthissenseagaintheDomesdayofSt。Paul’sspeaksof’nativiaprincipio’inNavestock。15*Butthefactofbeingborntotheconditionsupposespersonalsubjection，andthisexplainswhynativiaresometimesmentionedincontrastwithfreemen，16*withoutanyregardbeingpaidtothequestionoftenure。Natives，orvillainsborn，hadtheirpedigreesaswellasthemostnobleamongthepeers。Suchpedigreesweredrawnuptopreventanyfraudulentassertionastofreedom，andtoguidethelordincasehewantedtousethenative’skininprosecutionofanactiondenativohabendo。OnesuchpedigreepreservedintheRecordOfficeisespeciallyinteresting，becauseitstartsfromsomestranger，extraneus，17*whocameintothemanorasafreeman，andwhoseprogenylapsesintopersonalvillainage；apparentlyitisacaseofvillainagebyprescription。
Theothersubdivisionoftheclass-freemenholdingunfreeland18*——hasnospecialdenomination。Thisdeprivesusofaveryimportantclueastothecompositionofthepeasantry，butwemaygatherfromthefacthowverynearbothdivisionsmusthavestoodtoeachotherinactuallife。Thefreemanholdinginvillainagehadtherighttogoaway，whilethenativewaslegallyboundtothelord；butitwasdifficultfortheonetoleavelandandhomestead，anditwasnotimpossiblefortheothertoflyfromthem，ifhewereill-treatedbyhislordorthesteward。
Eventhefundamentaldistinctioncouldnotbedrawnverysharplyinthepracticeofdailylife，andineveryotherrespect，astoservices，modeofholding，etc。，therewasnodistinction。Nowonderthatthecommontermvillanusisusedquitebroadly，andaimsatthetenuremorethanatpersonalstatus。
Termswhichhaveinviewthegeneraleconomicconditionofthepeasant，varyagooddealaccordingtolocalities。Eveninprivatedocumentstheyareonthewholelessfrequentthanthetermsofthefirstclass，andtheHundredRollsusethembutveryrarely。ItwOUldbeverywrongtoimplythattheywerenotwidelyspreadinpractice。Onthecontrary，theirvernacularformsvouchfortheirvitalityandtheiruseincommonspeech。Butbeingvernacularandpopularinorigin，thesetermscannotobtaintheuniformityandcurrencyofliterarynamesemployedandrecognisedbyofficialauthority。Thevernacularequivalentforvillanusseemstohavebeennietorneat。19*Itpointstotheregularcultivatorsofthearable，possessedofholdingsofnormalsizeandperformingthetypicalservicesofthemanor。20*Thepeasant’sconditionishereregardedfromtheeconomicalside，inthemutualrelationoftenureandwork，notinthestrictlylegalsense，andmenofthiscategoryformthemainstockofthemanorialpopulation。TheRochesterCustumalsays21*thatneatsaremorefreethancottagers，andthattheyholdvirgates。Thesuperiordegreeoffreedomthusascribedtothemiscertainlynottobetakeninthelegalsense，butismerelyasuperiorityinmaterialcondition。Thecontrastwithcottagersisastandingone，22*and，beingthemainpopulationofthevillage，neatsaretreatedsometimesasiftheyweretheonlypeoplethere。23*
ThenamemaybeexplainedetymologicallybytheAnglo-Saxongeneat，whichindocumentsofthetenthandeleventhcenturymeansamanusinganotherperson’sland。ThedifferencesinapplicationmaybediscussedwhenwecometoexaminetheSaxonevidence。
AnotherSaxonterm-gebur-hasleftitstraceintheburusandburimanofNormanrecords。Theworddoesnotoccurveryoften，andseemstohavebeenappliedintwodifferentways-tothechiefvillainsofthetownshipinsomeplaces，andtothesmallertenantry，apparentlyinconfusionwiththeNormanbordarius，insomeother。24*Theverypossibilityofsuchaconfusionshowsthatitwasgoingoutofcommonuse。Ontheotherhand，theDanishequivalentbondusiswidelyspread。ItistobefoundconstantlyintheDanishcounties。25*Theoriginalmeaningisthatofcultivatoror’husband’——thesameinfactasthatofgeburandboor。Feudalrecordsgivecurioustestimonyofthewayinwhichthewordsliddownintothe’bondage’ofthepresentday。Weseeitwavering，asitwere，sometimesexchangingwithservusandvillanus，andsometimesopposedtothem。26*
Anotherwordofkindredmeaning，chieflyfoundineasterndistricts，islandsettus，withthecorrespondingtermforthetenure；27*thisofcourseaccordingtoitsetymologysimplymeansanoccupier，amansittingonland。
Severaltermsarefoundwhichhaveregardtothenatureofservices。Agriculturalworkwasthemostcommonandburdensomeexpressionofeconomicalsubjection。Peasantswhohavetoperformsuchservicesinkindinsteadofpayingrentsforthemarecalledoperarii。28*Anotherdesignationwhichmaybefoundeverywhereisconsuetudinariiorcustumarii。29*Itpointstocustomaryservices，whichthepeoplewereboundtoperform。Whensuchtenantsareopposedtothevillains，theyareprobablyfreemenholdinginvillainagebycustomarywork。30*Asthenamedoesnotgiveanyindicationastotheimportanceoftheholdingaqualificationissometimesaddedtoit，whichdeterminesthesizeofthetenement。31*
Inmanymanorswefindagroupoftenants，possessedofsmallplotsoflandfortheserviceoffollowingthedemesneploughs。
Thesearecalledakermanniorcarucarii32*，aremostlyselectedamongthecustomaryholders，andenjoyanimmunityfromordinaryworkaslongastheyhavetoperformtheirspecialduty。33*Onsomeoccasionstherecordsmentiongersumarii，thatispeasantswhopayagersuma，afineformarryingtheirdaughters。34*Thispaymentbeingconsideredasthebadgeofpersonalserfdom，theclassmusthaveconsistedofmenpersonallyunfree。
Thosenamesremaintobenoticedwhichreflectthesizeoftheholding。InoneofthemanorsbelongingtoSt。Paul’sCathedralinLondonwefindhidarii。35*Thisdoesnotmeanthateverytenantheldawholehide。Onthecontrary，theyhaveeachonlyapartofthehide，buttheirplotsarereckonedupintohides，andtheservicesduefromthewholehidearestated。
Virgatarius36*isofverycommonoccurrence，becausethevirgatewasconsideredasthenormalholdingofapeasant。Itiscuriousthatinconsequencethevirgateissometimescalledsimplyterra，andholdersofvirgates——yerdlings。37*Peasantspossessedofhalfvirgatesarehalfyerdlingsaccordingly。Theexpressions’afullvillain’38*and’halfavillain’mustbeunderstoodinthesamesense。Theyhavenothingtodowithrank，butaimmerelyatthesizeofthefarmandthequantityofservicesandrents。Ferlingsetiaretobemetwithnowandtheninconnexionwiththeferlingorferdel，thefourthpartofavirgate。39*
Theconstantdenominationforthosewhohavenopartinthecommonarablefields，butholdonlycroftsorsmallplotswiththeirhomesteads，is’cotters’cotsetle，cottagiarii，cottarii40*，etc。。Theygetopposedtovillainsastoownersofnormalholdings。41*Exceptionallythetermisusedforthosewhohaveverysmallholdingsintheopenfields。Inthiscasetheauthoritiesdistinguishbetweengreaterandlessercotters42*，betweentheownersofa’fullcote’andof’halfacote。’43*
Thebordarii，soconspicuousinDomesday，andevidentlyrepresentingsmalltenantsofthesamekindasthecottagers，disappearalmostentirelyinlatertimes。44*