Feudal Statistics 106 



that certain capital tenants enfeoffed milites t. 

 Wm. I., and hence themselves had been infeuded 

 for their homage and service. 



This is of course not to say that Wm. I. had 

 generally enfeoffed his military tenants by the 

 service of bringing all their milites to his armies in 

 England and Normandy, for, the office of holding 

 the former by maintaining his castles, and those of 

 his barons seems to have been a more essential 

 one ; and, that tbeservitia debita were divers [tho' Diversity 

 uniform as far as regards escuage and aid saving 

 the small fees of Moreton], is plainly to be dis- 

 covered both from the Norman Inquisitions [/. 

 Hen. I. and Hen. II.], and the English Baronial 

 Charters [/. Hen. II. reflecting Hen. I.]. Exactly 

 what pacts (if definitely expressed) were made with 

 the Conqueror's Barons can be but a matter of 

 speculation, but there is no particular improb- 

 ability in supposing that a tax on the fee then 

 existed, and that the " Knights " in exercitu were 

 supported by the contributions of their compeers, 

 and others, who did not militate. That the vague 

 service in exercitu due to the Crown was on a 

 more ample scale /. Wm. I. to Hen. II. than 

 Hen. II. to Ed. II. is highly probable (tho' no 

 particular information is available till Hen. I.), 

 but it should be borne in mind that the majority 

 of lay tenants of 1166 (or by their ancestors), had 

 been feft post Wm. I. owing to the forfeitures of 

 the earlier barons. 



Thus the fief of Moreton* escheated at the com- 



*" This fief would have been "good cheap" at a service of 

 500, according to the measure of the A.D. 1166-8 entries, and 

 the above very incomplete analysis shows c. 350 fees, hence 350 



