possessed over her to the family of the husband. If the husband died and his kindred did not accept the terms sanctioned by law, her kindred could repurchase the rightful protection. If she remarried within a year of his death, she had to forfeit the morgengift and his nearest kin received the lands and possessions she had. The word for man was "waepnedmenn" or weaponed person. A woman was "wifmenn" or wife person, with "wif" being derived from the word for weaving.

Great men and monasteries had millers, smiths, carpenters, architects, agriculturists, fishermen, weavers, embroiders, dyers, and illuminators.

For entertainment, minstrels sang ballads about heroes or Bible stories, harpers played, jesters joked, and tumblers threw and caught balls and knives. There was gambling, dice games, and chasing deer with hounds.

Fraternal guilds were established for mutual advantage and protection. A guild imposed fines for any injury of one member by another member. It assisted in paying any murder fine imposed on a member. It avenged the murder of a member and abided by the consequences. It buried its members and purchased masses for his soul.

Mercantile guilds in seaports carried out commercial speculations not possible by the capital of only one person.

There were some ale houses, probably part of certain dwellings.

It was usual for a dying man to confess his sins to a priest. For the sake of his soul, the priest often suggested the man give some of his chattel to the church, the poor, or other pious uses. By the 700s, the words of a dying man giving chattel for the sake of his soul were expected to be carried out. Later is the "post obit gift" by which a man gives land to the church, with the king's consent, but enjoys the land during his lifetime by stating in writing "I give certain land after my death" in a special "book". The church takes possession of the land after his death. He may make a conditional such gift, leaving the land to his wife for her life with a rent paid to the church and the church taking possession of the land on her death. These two procedures coalesce into one written will used in the 800s, 900s, and 1000s. This will also includes distributions to family and kinsmen and perhaps to creditors. If the will is made by the very great people: kings, queens, king's sons, bishops, earldormen, and king's thegns, it requires the king's consent, which may be bought by a large heriot. And a bishop usually sets his cross to the will, denouncing any who infringe it to the torments of hell. The dead man's parish church is paid a mortuary when he is buried.

The Law

The special authority of the king and his peace gradually superseded the customary jurisdiction of the local courts as to preservation of the peace and punishment of offenses. All criminal offenses became breaches of the king's peace and were deemed acts of personal disobedience and made an offender the king's enemy. This notion developed from the special sanctity of the king's house and his special protection of his attendants and servants. An offender made fines to the king for breach of his peace and fines and forfeitures to him from court decisions in criminal and civil cases. Offenses especially dealt with in various parts of the Anglo-Saxon laws were treason, homicide, wounding, assault, and theft. Treason to one's lord, especially to the king, was punishable by death. Compassing or imagining the king's death was treason.