120 THE DOMESDAY INQUEST 



that the party to whom services were rendered in respect of 

 a piece of land was the lord of that land. For instance, 

 Domesday Book tells us, "T. R. E., Leofgar held Ditton of 

 Harold, and served him, but could go where he would with 

 his land." l Here, because Leofgar served Harold, he was 

 said to hold of him, although, according to the Berwick rule, 

 he ought to have held of the King, as he was at liberty 

 to commend himself. " Seman holds a virgate of land in 

 Copthorn hundred (Surrey), which he held of the King ; but 

 from the day King William came to England he served 

 Oswald, rendering him 2od. per annum. He could go where 

 he would T. R. E." 2 This is another case of a person who 

 had liberty of commendation, and should therefore, according 

 to the Berwick rule, have held of the King, rendering services 

 to, and therefore being considered to hold of, another person. 

 A similar example can be found at Hochinton (Cambs.), where 

 a certain priest held 15 acres, with liberty of commendation, 

 and therefore, according to the Berwick rule, should have held 

 of the King ; but his soke remained to the Abbot of Ely, and 

 he was accordingly said to hold of the abbot. 3 



In our view, then, a man who held freely, or was at liberty 

 to commend himself, T. R. E., was said to hold of the King, 

 because his services were normally rendered to the King. 

 And this view was confirmed by the passage in Heming's 

 Chartulary quoted above, which goes on to say that a man 

 who held freely "owed service to no one but the King." 4 

 Hence we understand why the Hertfordshire and Cambridge- 

 shire sokemen, who had liberty of commendation, rendered 

 carrying and sentinel services to the King, and why their 

 forfeitures were received by the King or his representative, 

 the sheriff. In Worcestershire, too, it was the King who 

 received the forfeitures of a freeman who had sake and soke 

 and liberty of commendation, if he failed to perform his 



1 D. B., i. 32 a i. 2 id., I. 36 b 2. 



3 /</., I. 191 b i. 4 V. C. ff., Worcester, i. 267. 







