Legal Definitions - excludendo fiscum et relictam

The Latin phrase excludendo fiscum et relictam is a historical legal term meaning "to the exclusion of the rights of the Crown and of the widow."

This phrase refers to legal arrangements, typically concerning inheritance or property, that were specifically designed to prevent the state (represented by the Crown or royal treasury) and the deceased's surviving wife (the widow) from asserting their usual legal claims or entitlements to certain assets. It reflects a time when both the monarch and a widow had established rights to a deceased person's estate, which could sometimes be bypassed or limited through specific legal instruments.

Here are some examples illustrating this concept:

• Feudal Land Grant: Imagine a powerful medieval lord who wished to ensure a particular ancestral estate would pass directly to his chosen heir, perhaps a younger son, without any interference. He might have arranged a special grant or settlement for this land that was drafted excludendo fiscum et relictam. This legal maneuver would have been intended to prevent the Crown from claiming the land (for instance, through escheat if there were no direct male heirs, or forfeiture for certain offenses) and to limit his widow's traditional dower rights over that specific property, ensuring it remained intact for the designated beneficiary.

• Strategic Will Drafting: Consider a wealthy merchant in 17th-century England who was concerned about the potential for his estate to be heavily taxed or even claimed by the Crown upon his death, especially if he had no direct male heirs. To protect his assets, he might have meticulously drafted his will to transfer significant portions of his wealth, such as valuable properties or investments, directly to specific beneficiaries like a distant nephew or a charitable foundation. By including provisions excludendo fiscum et relictam, he aimed to legally bypass the Crown's potential claims on the estate and to precisely define and limit the portion of the estate his widow would receive, ensuring his preferred heirs or causes benefited without state or spousal interference beyond what was legally mandated.

• Charitable Endowment: A philanthropic noble in the 16th century might have desired to establish a permanent endowment for a new educational institution or a hospital. To guarantee the long-term security of this endowment, which included specific lands and financial assets, the legal document creating the trust for the institution would have been carefully worded excludendo fiscum et relictam. This provision would ensure that the Crown could not later seize these assets for royal coffers, nor could the noble's widow claim them as part of her marital share, thereby dedicating the assets solely and irrevocably to the charitable purpose.