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Relics nre forbidden to be ufed or brought into England 

 by icveral ftatutes ; and juiliccs of peace are empowered 

 to fearch hoiifes for Popi(h books and relics, wliicli, wlien 

 found, are to be defaced and burnt, &c. 3 Jac. I. 

 cap. 26. 



RELICT, Remcta, in Laiv. See Widow. 

 RELICTA VrciiiFicATioNR, is wlien a defendant re- 

 linquiflies his proof or plea, and thereupon judgment is 

 entered for tlie plaintiff. 



RELIEF, RiiLEViUM, Le-vamen, a fine paid the chief 

 lord, by a perfon at his coming to the inheritance of land 

 held by military fervice. 



This was faid rdcvare heredUattm caducam ; and the 

 money thus paid was called relcvamen, relevium, or relief. 

 Relief is ufually to the value of a year's rent or revenue. 



The origin of the cuftom is thus : a feudatory or bene- 

 ficiary eftate in lands being at firll only granted for life, 

 after the death of the vaffai, it returned to the chief lord ; 

 and was hence czWed feudiim caducum, q. d. fallen to the lord 

 by the death of the tenant. 



In courfe of time, thefe feudatory ellates being con- 

 verted into inheritances by the connivance and conient of 

 the lord ; when the pofleflbr of fuch eftate died, it was 

 called hercditas caduca, q. d. an inheritance fallen to the 

 lord, from whom it was to be recovered, by the heir's pay- 

 ing a certain fum of money. But this fum was arbitrary, 

 and at the will of the lord ; (o that, if he pleafed to demand 

 an exorbitant relief, it was in ciTeft to difinherit the heir.- 

 The Enghfh ill brooked this confequcnce of their new- 

 adopted policy ; and, therefore, William the Conqueror by 

 his laws (cap. 22, 23, 24.) afcertained the relief, by diredt- 

 ing (in imitation of the Danifh heriots), that a certain 

 quantity of arms and habiliments of war fliould be paid by 

 the earls, barons, and vavafours refpeftively ; and if the 

 latter had no arms, they (hould pay iooj-. William Rufus 

 broke through this compofition, and again demanded arbi- 

 trary uncertain reliefs, as due by the feodal laws ; thereby 

 in effeft obliging every heir to ncw-purchafe or redeem his 

 land : but his brother Henry I. by his charter, reltored 

 his father's law ; and ordained that the relief to be paid 

 Ihould be according to the law fo eilabliihed, and not an 

 arbitrary redemption. But afterwards, when, by an ordi- 

 nance in 27 Hen. III. called the Aflife of Arms, it was 

 provided that every man's armour fliould defccnd to his 

 heir, for defence of the realm, and it thereby became im- 

 pratlicable to pay thefe acknowledgments in arms, accord- 

 ing to the laws of the Conqueror, the compofition was 

 univerfally accepted of 100^. for every knight's fee ; as we 

 rind it ever after ettabliflied. (Glanv. 1. ix. c. 4. Litt. 

 ;; 112.) But it muft be remembered, that this relief was 

 only then payable, if the heir at the death of his anceftor 

 had attained his full age of twenty-one years. 



Relief, Reafonable, called alto la'wful and ancient relief, 

 IS that enjoined by fome law, or fixed by ancient cuftom ; 

 and which does not depend on the will of the lord. 



Thus in a charter of king John, mentioned by Matthew 

 Paris: — " Si quis comitum vel baronum noftrorum, five 

 aliorum tenentium de nobis in capite per fervitium militare, 

 mortuus fuerit, & cum deceffsrit, haeres fuus plense aetatis 

 fuerit, & relevium debet, habeat haereditatem fuam per anti- 

 quum relevium." 



What this was, may be feen in the laws of William the 

 Conqueror, &c. Bra£fon fays this fine was called a relief, 

 " quia haereditas, qu2 jacens fuit per anteceflbris deceffura, 

 relevatur in manus lisredum, &c." 



A relief is alfo paid in focage-tenure, or petit ferjeanty ; 

 .vhere a rent, or other thing, is paid by rendering as much 

 Vol. XXIX. 



R E L 



as the rent or payment referved. But the manner of taking 

 relief upon focage-tenure is very different from that upon 

 tenure in chivalry. The relief on a knight's fee wa» 5/., or 

 one-quarter of the fuppofed value of the land ; but a 

 focage-relief is one year's rent or render, payable by the 

 tenant to the lord, be tlie fame cither great or fmall (Litt. 

 § 126.) ; and, therefore, Brafton (1. 2. c. 37. § 8.) will 

 not allow this to be fo properly a relief, but " quaedam 

 prxftatio loco relevii in recognitionem doinini." So, too, the 

 Jtatute 28 Edw. I. c. i. declares, that a free fokeman fliall 

 give no relief, but (hall double his rent after the death of 

 his anceftor, according to that which he hath ufed to pay 

 his lord, and fhall not be grieved above mcafure. Relief 

 in knight-fervice were only payable, if the heir at the death 

 of his anceftor was of full age ; but in focage they were 

 due even though the heir was under age, becaufe the lord 

 has no wardfliip over him. (Litt. /127.) The ftatute 

 12 Car. II. refcrves the reliefs incident to focage-teniu-es ; 

 and, therefore, whenever lands in fee-fimple are holden by 

 a rent, rehef is ftill due of common right upon the death of 

 a tenant. 3 Lev. 145. 



By the cuftoiji of Normandy, relief is due for lands held 

 in villainage as well as in fee. By the cuftom of Paris, 

 relief is not due upon inheritances in the dired: line. 



The quantity of the relief is very different ; there are 

 fngle reliefs, doubid reliefs, &c. The quality, too, i* diverfe ; 

 there are reliefs of property, paid by the heir ; reliefs of bail, 

 or tutorage, paid by the guardian for his minor, or by the 

 huftaiid for the fiefs of his wife, &c. ; relief of horfe and arms. 

 Sec. 



By the laws of king Canutus, the relief of an earl, paid 

 to the king, was eight war horfes with their bridles and 

 laddies, four cuiralfes, four helmets, four fwords, four hunt- 

 ing-horfes, and a palfrey. The relief of a baron or thane 

 was four horfes, &c. 



Relief, in Chancery, denotes an order fued out for the 

 diffolving of contrads, and other afts, on account of their 

 being unreafonable, prajudicial, grievous, or from fome 

 other nullity, either dejure, or de fado. 



Minors obtain relief againft afts pafTed in their minority. 

 Majors have rehef in cafes of enormous damage, deceit, 

 violence, over-reaching, extravagant bargajns, &c. 



Among the Romanift-s it is a rule, that the church ob- 

 tains rehef any time, and againft all afts paiTed in its pre- 

 judice ; no prefcription prevaihng againft it. 

 Relief, Aid de. See Aid. 



Relief of a Hare, among Hunters, is the pkce where Ihe 

 goes to feed in the evening. 



Relief, in Sculpture. See Relievo. 

 RELIEVE, in the Military Senfe. To relieve, is to 

 take the poft of another body. Hence, to relieve the guard, 

 to relieve the trenches, &c. is to bring frefli men upon the 

 guai-d, or to the trenches, and to fend thofe to reft who 

 have been upon duty before. They alfo fay, relieve a fen- 

 tincl, which is generally done every two hours, by a cor- 

 poral who attends the relief ; rehevc the fteerfman, &c. 



To relieve a place that is befieged, is to furnifli it with 

 a fupply of men, provifions, ammunition, &c. 



RELIEVER, in Artillery, is an iron ring fixed to a 

 handle by means of a focket, fo as to be at right angles to it. 

 It ferves to difengage the firll fearcher of a gun, when any 

 of its points are retained in a hole, and cannot be got out 

 otherwife. 



RELIEVING Tackles, in a Ship, are two ftrong 



tackles, nfed to prevent a Ihip from overturning on the 



careen, and to affift in bringing her upright after that 



operation is completed. The relieving tackles are furniflied 



4 N with 



