Legal Definitions - hostelagium

Hostelagium refers to a historical legal right, predominantly found in medieval feudal systems, where a lord could demand lodging and hospitality from their tenants. This meant that the lord, and often their retinue, had the right to stay in a tenant's home and be provided with food, drink, and other forms of entertainment, essentially as a service or obligation owed by the tenant.

Here are some examples to illustrate this concept:

• Imagine a powerful medieval baron who, while traveling across his vast estate to inspect various holdings, arrives at a tenant farmer's modest dwelling. Under the right of hostelagium, the baron and his accompanying guards are entitled to spend the night in the farmer's home. The farmer and his family would be obligated to provide them with shelter, a warm meal, and whatever provisions they could spare, even if it meant significant inconvenience or sacrifice for the tenant household.

  This example demonstrates hostelagium as the lord's right to demand temporary lodging and sustenance from a tenant while moving through their lands.

• Consider a feudal duke who, during the annual tax collection period, decides to personally visit several villages within his domain. Instead of staying in an inn or setting up a temporary camp, the duke and his key advisors exercise their right of hostelagium. They stay for several days in the largest house in each village, which belongs to a prominent tenant or local administrator. This tenant is then responsible for providing comfortable accommodation, regular meals, and any other necessary provisions for the duke and his party throughout their stay.

  This scenario illustrates hostelagium as a periodic and more extended demand for hospitality, highlighting the tenant's ongoing obligation to provide "entertainment" (food and drink) in addition to lodging.

• In a specific manor, a wealthy tenant might have held their land under an agreement that explicitly included the right of hostelagium for their lord. This meant that whenever the lord chose to visit that particular manor, perhaps for administrative duties or simply for leisure, the tenant was expected to have the manor house prepared to host the lord and his retinue. This included providing the best available lodging, elaborate meals, and attending to their needs, as a pre-existing condition of their tenancy and a recognized service owed to the lord.

  This example emphasizes the "reserved" nature of the right, often a standing condition of the tenancy, and the tenant's continuous expectation to provide hospitality whenever the lord decided to visit.