Legal Definitions - wer

Wer (also known as wergild) was a historical legal concept, primarily found in early Germanic and Anglo-Saxon law. It referred to the monetary value placed on a person's life, which was paid by an offender or their family to the victim's family or lord as compensation for injury, death, or certain other offenses.

The primary purpose of wer was to prevent blood feuds and cycles of revenge killings, offering a peaceful resolution to disputes that might otherwise escalate into violent conflict. The amount of wer often varied based on the victim's social status, age, and gender.

• Example 1 (Death of a Freeman): Imagine a dispute in 7th-century Anglo-Saxon England where a farmer, a free man, is accidentally killed during a brawl. Under the prevailing legal customs, the family of the person responsible for the death would be obligated to pay a specific wer to the deceased farmer's family. This payment, perhaps a certain number of cattle or silver coins, would serve as compensation for the loss of life and prevent the farmer's kin from seeking violent retribution against the killer's family.

  Illustration: This example directly shows wer as a compensatory payment for a death, made by the offender's family to the victim's family, specifically to avert a blood feud and maintain social order.

• Example 2 (Varying Social Status): Consider a scenario in a medieval Germanic kingdom where a nobleman is murdered. The wer demanded for his life would be significantly higher than the wer for a common serf or a freedman. This difference reflects the nobleman's higher social standing, influence, and value to the community or the king, and the higher payment would be intended to appease his powerful family and prevent a large-scale conflict.

  Illustration: This demonstrates how the amount of wer was not uniform but varied based on the victim's social status, highlighting its role in a stratified society's legal system.

• Example 3 (Preventing a Feud): In a tribal society governed by customary law, two clans are in conflict after a member of Clan A injures a member of Clan B. To avoid an escalating cycle of retaliatory violence that could decimate both groups, the elders negotiate a wer payment from Clan A to Clan B. This payment, perhaps in goods or land, acts as a formal apology and compensation, allowing both clans to accept a resolution without further bloodshed.

  Illustration: This example emphasizes the core function of wer as a mechanism for conflict resolution, specifically designed to prevent blood feuds and maintain social order by providing a structured alternative to revenge.