Presentments

Presentments constituted the formal declarations and findings submitted by the Homage at each sitting of the manor court. The Homage (a sworn body of tenants) functioned as both witnesses and judges of manorial governance matters. Their statements served key functions: enforcing customs, resolving tenant disputes, overseeing property transfers and tenant deaths, assessing fines and compensation, and restating important manorial rights such as boot and grazing entitlements. The authority of presentments derived from the Homage’s knowledge of local custom, enabling the court to function as a self-regulating institution.