the heir of any of his vassals. Previously John, disregarding the
custom of the past, had taken as much as he could extort. Henceforward
he who inherits a barony must pay £100, he who inherits a knight's fee
100 shillings or less, and for smaller holdings less "according to the
ancient custom of fiefs."
Chapters III. to VI. deal with the abuses of the king's privilege of
acting as guardian of minors and their lands. Money must not be
extorted from a ward when he receives his inheritance. The guardian or
his servant must not take from the ward's property more than a
reasonable amount for his expenses and the like; on the contrary he
must maintain the houses, estates and other belongings in a proper
state of efficiency. A ward must be allowed a reasonable liberty in
the matter of marriage. He or she must not, as had been so often the
case in the past, be forced to marry some royal favourite, or some one
who had paid a sum of money for the privilege.
Chapters VII. and VIII. are for the protection of the widows of
tenants-in-chief. On the death of her husband a widow must receive her
rightful inheritance, without delay or hindrance. Moreover she must
not be compelled to marry, a proceeding sometimes adopted to get her
lands into the possession of a royal minion.