GEN-MEDIEVAL-L Archives

From: Kay Allen AG <>
Subject: Re: A question on Inheritance
Date: Sun, 11 Mar 1990 12:07:19 -0800

Bill Churchill wrote:
>
> In England was the medieval practice of inheritance a "law" in fact or was
> it primarily a custom based on entailment?

The "law" was primogeniture. Entailment was a much later development.
Until the late 15th century real property could not be transmitted by
will or testement.
>
> What happened if the eldest son had no heir, or no possibility of an heir,
> or was not judged capable of managing the inheritance?

If the eldest son dsp it would go to his brother or his sisters. If he
was an idiot, it would pass to next eldest brother down through the male
issue of his parents togeter or to his sisters. Failing this, it woukd
pass to his father's nex brother, etc.
>
> I have seen cases where a female or surviving sister was the heir and her
> husband assumed her family name. But does anyone know of a case where a
> sister was the primary beneficiary over her brothers and her husband
> assumed her family name? Could this happen?

Only if the brothers were disinherited, as in the case of Bernard
Neufmarche. But the Neufmarche name was not assumed.

Kay Allen AG
>
> Regards,
>
> Bill
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Douglas Richardson [SMTP:]
> Sent: Thursday, March 09, 2000 2:14 PM
> To:
> Subject: Re: Maud de Prendergast
>
> As I understand medieval law, a sister of the full blood
> inherited ahead of a sister of the half-blood. When Richard
> de Clare Earl of Pembroke died, he was survived for a short time
> by a son and heir. When that son died, his heir was his full
> sister Isabel de Clare, who married William Marshal. Isabel de
> Clare inherited the Clare estates as full-sister to her brother,
> not as daughter and heiress of her father.
>
> Thus, if Isabel's father Earl Richard had female issue by
> another marriage, they would have been excluded from inheriting
> any of the Clare inheritance. In most instances, genealogists
> leap to the immediate conclusion that any other female issue
> which the father had must be illegitimate. But that is based
> on a modern perception of inheritance where half-sisters are
> considered full co-heirs to their brother. Not so in medieval
> times.
>
> Because property is usually the way that descents are proved in
> medieval times, it is difficult to cite an example of where a
> half-sister was excluded from such an inheritance. Perhaps
> someone knows of such an instance. Or perhaps someone knows of
> an instance where half-sisters shared the inheritance of their
> brother. If so, I'd very much appreciate knowing how these
> kinds of inheritances were handled.
>
> In the case of Basile de Clare, wife of Robert de Quincy,
> sources seem to refer to Basile as both sister and daughter of
> Earl Richard de Clare. In this situation, the chronology seems
> to dictate that Basile was Earl Richard's daughter. If so, then
> the question is raised whether or not Basile was legitimate or
> illegitimate. Since Earl Richard clearly had enough time to
> have been married to someone else before he married his known
> wife, Eve of Leinster, I have to consider the possibility that
> Earl Richard may have had an earlier wife and that Basile could
> be a legitimate child of that marriage. But, on the other
> hand, Basile could also be illegitimate.
>
> Besides Basile, Earl Richard appears to have had another
> daughter, Aline, who married an Irish baron and left
> descendants. The matter of Aline's legitimacy is similarly a
> difficult issue. And, we also need to consider the possibility
> that Basile may have been legitimate and Aline not, or vice
> versa.
>
> Baring some dramatic discovery, however, I suspect we may never
> know the truth of Basile and Aline's legitimacy. All the same,
> it is fun to speculate on the possibilities, even if the desired
> answers lie out of our reach.
>
> Best always, Douglas Richardson
>
> In article <>, (Kay
> Allen AG) wrote:
> >As far as I know, Isabel was the only legitimate dtr. and
> therefore the
> >heiress. Any other dtr. is probably illegitimate.
> >
> >Kay Allen AG
> >
> >Michelle.Murphy% wrote:
> >>
> >> Regarding recent posting by Douglas Richardson on Maud de
> Prendergast being
> >> descended from the de Quincys and from a
> >> daughter of Richard de Clare ("Strongbow")
> >>
> >> Did Richard de Clare have another daughter apart from Isabel,
> Countess of
> >> Pembroke and wife of William Marshal? If he did,
> >> was his property divided equally between them (though Isabel,
> as the eldest,
> >> might have got the title)?
> >>
> >> thanks,
> >>
> >> Michelle
> >>
> >> mailto:
> >
> >
> >
>
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• Re: A question on Inheritance by Kay Allen AG <>