Page:William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (3rd ed, 1768, vol II).djvu/82

 70 However, among the other conceions made by that unhappy prince, before the fatal recoure to arms, he agreed to divet himelf of this undoubted flower of his crown, and it was accordingly abolihed by tatute 16 Car. I. c. 20.

5., before they came of age, there was ftill another piece of authority, which the guardian was at liberty to exercie over his infant wards; I mean the right of marriage, (maritagium, as contraditinguihed from matrimonium) which in it's feodal ene ignifies the power, which the lord or guardian in chivalry had of dipoing of his infant ward in matrimony. For, while the infant was in ward, the guardian had the power of tendering him or her a uitable match, without diparagement, or inequality: which if the infants refued, they forfeited the value of the marriage, valorem maritagii, to their guardian ; that is, o much as a jury would aes, or any one would bona fide give to the guardian for uch an alliance : and, if the infants married themelves without the guardian's conent, they forfeited double the value, duplicem valorem maritagii. This eems to have been one of the greatet hardhips of our antient tenures. There are indeed ubtantial reaons why the lord hould have the retraint and controll of the ward's marriage, epecially of his female ward; becaue of their tender years, and the danger of uch female ward's intermarrying with the lord's enemy. But no tolerable pretence could be aigned why the lord hould have the ale, or value, of the marriage. Nor indeed is this claim of trictly feodal original; the mot probable account of it eeming to be this: that by the cutom of Normandy the lord's conent was neceary to the marriage of his female-wards ; which was introduced into England, together with the ret of the Norman doctrine of feuds: and it is likely that the lords uually took money for uch their conent, ince in the often-cited charter of Henry the firt, he engages for the future to take nothing for his conent; which alo he promies in general to give, provided uch Rh