Legal Definitions - forgavel

Forgavel refers to a historical legal concept: a small, fixed annual payment of money that a landowner or tenant owed to a superior lord or landlord.

It was essentially a type of "quit-rent," meaning it was paid to release the payer from other potential obligations, such as providing services or goods, or to acknowledge the superior's ownership rights over the land. This payment was typically modest and reserved as part of a land grant or tenancy agreement.

• Example 1: Feudal Land Tenure

  Imagine a farmer in medieval England who held a plot of land from a local baron. Instead of having to provide a certain number of days of labor on the baron's fields or a portion of his harvest, the farmer might have been required to pay a small annual sum of money, perhaps a few shillings, to the baron. This fixed monetary payment, which allowed the farmer to be "quit" of other more burdensome obligations, would be considered a forgavel.

• Example 2: Historical Property Lease

  Consider a historical lease agreement for a cottage and a small garden plot. The lease might stipulate that the tenant must pay a primary rent, but also a separate, very small, fixed annual payment of one shilling to the landlord. This minor, reserved monetary payment, distinct from the main rent and often perpetual, served as a forgavel, acknowledging the landlord's ultimate ownership and freeing the tenant from other potential feudal duties.

• Example 3: Manorial System

  In a historical manorial system, a freeholder might own land outright but still owe a symbolic annual payment to the lord of the manor. This payment, perhaps a few pence, was not for the use of the land itself but rather a perpetual acknowledgment of the lord's historical overlordship and to ensure the freeholder was "quit" of any other claims or services. This small, reserved monetary rent would be an instance of a forgavel.