Category Archives: primogenture

The Common Law of Dower or What Does the Wife Inherit During the Regency?

Posted on July 19, 2023 by Regina Jeffers

Originally there were varieties of dower (not to be confused with dowry) such as dower ad ostium ecclesiae (“at the church door”) and dower ex assensu patris (by the heir with his father’s consent), in which before the couple was married, the wife was endowed of particular pieces of the property – specific lands. In Medieval times more so than modern ones, sometimes land held in knight service was exonerated from dower by the widow’s taking dower de la pluis beale (“of the most fair”) of her husband’s socage land. Continue reading →

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Negotiating Marriage Settlements During the Regency Era

Posted on July 5, 2023 by Regina Jeffers

We have all likely read the part in a Regency romance where marriage settlements were discussed, but how did those come about?  “A marriage settlement in England was a historic arrangement whereby, most commonly and in its simplest form, a trust of land … Continue reading →

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Happy 4th Book Birthday to “Letters from Home”!!!

Posted on June 19, 2023 by Regina Jeffers

I particularly loved this story for I am a military brat and wife, and I adore a strong military hero. Major Lord Simon Lanford is just such a man. He is the “spare” in the Regency adage of “an heir … Continue reading →

Posted in book excerpts, book release, British history, eBooks, Georgian England, Georgian Era, giveaway, historical fiction, Living in the Regency, marriage, military, primogenture, publishing, reading habits, Regency romance, romance, writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Could Longbourn Be Lost to Mortgage Debt? + the Release of “Amending the Shades of Pemberley” + a Giveaway

Posted on April 26, 2023 by Regina Jeffers

Only registered debts like mortgages and those on which the stamps and fees had been paid were legally enforceable. The law of the time said an heir was only liable for debts to the sum of the assets he inherited. Most mortgages could be continued, just by paying the interest. Continue reading →

Posted in aristocracy, book excerpts, book release, British history, eBooks, estates, finance, Georgian England, Georgian Era, giveaway, historical fiction, history, Inheritance, Jane Austen, laws of the land, Living in the Regency, Pride and Prejudice, primogenture, publishing, reading habits, real life tales, Regency era, Regency romance, research, Vagary, writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Peerages: Those Which Can Be Inherited and Those Which Cannot

Posted on March 6, 2023 by Regina Jeffers

A hereditary peerage, generally passages from father to son, or to another. Those peerages which cannot be inherited are called “for life.” “By the 1950s, there was a feeling the membership of the House of Lords ought to be tackled. … Continue reading →

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Entails and Common Recovery

Posted on February 24, 2023 by Regina Jeffers

As always happens, I received a number of questions on Wednesday’s post on A Debt-Ridden Inheritance about the legality of all this. Back in feudal times, land was given from lord to tenant in exchange for services. This “service” could … Continue reading →

Posted in British history, estates, family, Georgian England, Georgian Era, Great Britain, historical fiction, history, Inheritance, Jane Austen, Living in the Regency, Living in the UK, medieval, Pride and Prejudice, primogenture, real life tales, Regency era, research | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Entails and Common Recovery

A Debt-Ridden Inheritance During the Regency Era

Posted on February 22, 2023 by Regina Jeffers

Those of us who write JAFF are very familiar with Mrs. Bennet’s fears of being driven into the hedgerows after Mr. Collins takes over Longbourn in Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Though Mr. Bennet had not left behind a debt-ridden … Continue reading →

Posted in British history, customs and tradiitons, family, Georgian England, Georgian Era, Inheritance, Living in the Regency, Living in the UK, primogenture, real life tales, Regency era, Regency romance, titles of aristocracy | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Inheritance and Illegitimate Heirs + “The Earl Claims His Comfort” + Excerpt

Posted on October 10, 2022 by Regina Jeffers

INHERITANCE FOR ILLEGITIMATE SONS Could an illegitimate son inherit during the Regency? We are speaking of the illegitimate son inheriting the man’s property, not necessarily his peerage/title. First one must realize that there is actually a rule against perpetuity law … Continue reading →

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Statute of Wills, Henry VIII’s Answer to Primogeniture

Posted on July 25, 2022 by Regina Jeffers

The Statute of Wills (32 Hen. 8, c. 1 – enacted in 1540) was an English Act of Parliament, which created a mechanism for landowners to name who would inherit their landed property. A written will was required. It permitted a … Continue reading →

Posted in Act of Parliament, Anglo-Normans, castles, Living in the UK, primogenture | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

The Strict Social Structure of Jane Austen’s Novels

Posted on April 27, 2022 by Regina Jeffers

Overall, the early 19th Century novels were those that expressed society in realistic terms. Austen’s novels, as well as others of her time, immerse the reader in the various levels of society, the social strata, so to speak. Austen does … Continue reading →

Posted in Austen Authors, British currency, British history, customs and tradiitons, estates, Georgian England, Inheritance, Jane Austen, literature, Living in the Regency, marriage, Persuasion, Pride and Prejudice, primogenture, real life tales, Regency era | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments