Page:William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (3rd ed, 1768, vol II).djvu/57

 Ch. 4. contitution of feuds had it's original from the military policy of the northern or Celtic nations, the Goths, the Hunns, the Franks, the Vandals, and the Lombards, who all migrating from the ame officina gentium, as Crag very jutly entitles it, poured themelves in vat quantities into all the regions of Europe, at the declenion of the Roman empire. It was brought by them from their own countries, and continued in their repective colonies as the mot likely means to ecure their new acquiitions: and, to that end, large ditricts or parcels of land were allotted by the conquering general to the uperior officers of the army, and by them dealt out again in maller parcels or allotments to the inferior officers and mot deerving oldiers. Thee allotments were called feoda, feuds, fiefs, or fees; which lat appellation in the northern languages ignifies a conditional tipend or reward. Rewards or tipends they evidently were; and the condition annexed to them was, that the poeor hould do ervice faithfully, both at home and in the wars, to him by whom they were given; for which purpoe he took the juramentum fidelitatis, or oath of fealty : and in cae of the breach of this condition and oath, by not performing the tipulated ervice, or by deerting the lord in battle, the lands were again to revert to him who granted them.

thus acquired, naturally engaged uch as accepted them to defend them: and, as they all prang from the Rh