Legal Definitions - chefe

In historical legal systems, particularly those that employed the concept of wergild, chefe referred to the specific monetary value or "head-price" assigned to an individual. This assigned value was crucial for calculating the compensation due if that person was injured or killed, and it typically varied based on their social status, rank, or perceived importance within the community.

• Example 1: Compensation for a Nobleman's Death

  Imagine a medieval Germanic kingdom where a powerful duke is accidentally killed during a hunting expedition by a commoner. The duke, due to his high social standing, military leadership, and land ownership, would have a very high chefe.

  This example illustrates chefe because the compensation (wergild) demanded from the commoner's family would be exceptionally large, directly reflecting the duke's elevated "head-price" or value within that society. The higher the duke's status, the greater his chefe, and thus the larger the payment required to atone for his death.

• Example 2: Injury to a Skilled Artisan

  Consider a Viking-era community where a master shipbuilder, whose skills are vital for trade and warfare, suffers a disabling injury at the hands of another villager. This shipbuilder, possessing rare and essential expertise, would have a higher chefe than an ordinary laborer.

  Here, chefe demonstrates that the compensation paid for the shipbuilder's injury would be substantial. This higher payment acknowledges not only the physical harm but also the significant loss of his specialized productive capacity to the community, which is factored into his assigned "head-price."

• Example 3: Differentiated Value in Legal Codes

  In some ancient Anglo-Saxon laws, a free man's chefe (or wergild value) was explicitly set higher than that of a freedman (a former slave) or a woman of similar social standing. If a free man were murdered, his family would receive a specific, higher amount of wergild as stipulated by law.

  This scenario highlights chefe by showing how legal systems historically assigned different monetary values to individuals based on their social category, gender, or legal status. The predetermined "head-price" for a free man directly dictated the level of compensation required for offenses against him, reflecting his perceived societal worth.