About the author
map of Scotland created c. 1736
Chris Paton runs the Scotland’s Greatest Story research service www. scotlandsgreateststory. co.ukand teaches online courses through www. pharostutors.com. His books including ‘Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet’ are available from www.pen-and-sword. co.ukChris’s Scottish GENES blog is at https:// scottishgenes.blogspot.com
In the May issue of Family Tree I discussed records that may help with the research of properties and land in Scotland. To truly understand what is being recorded within such documents, however, it is necessary to understand some of the basics about the form of land tenure through which they were compiled. From the 12th century until November 2004, most Scottish land transactions were carried out through a form of tenure known as ‘feudalism’.
How feudalism arrived & evolved on British shores Feudalism was brought to England and Wales as a consequence of the Norman Conquest in 1066, and manifested itself throughout both realms through a series of land rights conveyed by the Crown as a ‘superior’ to a hierarchy of knights, barons and ‘lords of the manors’ as its ‘vassals’. In exchange it demanded fealty and regular tributes, including military support when called upon. By the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, feudalism had all but died out south of the border, but in Scotland, the show was just getting started.