This statute that protected reversionary estates
incidentally established a system of entails. This new
manner of holding land: "fee tail", is in addition to the
concepts of land held in fee simple (i.e. with no
subdivisions) and land held for life. No grantee or his
heirs could alienate the land held in fee tail. The donor
could give directions that the land could remain to another
person rather than reverting to himself. (Interests in
remainder or reversion of estates in land replace the lord's
tenurial right to succeed to land by escheat if his tenant
dies without heirs.)
In Kent, all men are free and may give or sell their lands
without permission of their lords, as before the Conquest.
(Since Kent was nearest the continent, money flowed between
England and the continent through Kent. So Kent never
developed a manorial system of land holding, but evolved
from a system of clans and independent villages directly
into a commercial system.
Anyone disseising another whereby he also robs him or uses
force and arms in the disseisin shall be imprisoned and
fined. The plaintiff shall recover seisin and damages.
"All must be ready at the command and summons of sheriffs,
and at the cry of the country, to sue and arrest felons as
necessary as well within franchise as without." Otherwise,
he shall be fined. A Lord defaulting shall lose his
franchise to the King. A Bailiff defaulting shall be
imprisoned a year as well as fined, or be imprisoned two
years if he cannot pay the fine.
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