The Origins of the Husting and the Folkmoot

Rory George Robert Naismith

doi:10.1111/1468-229X.12816

The Origins of the Husting and the Folkmoot

Rory George Robert Naismith

History

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Abstract

In the central Middle Ages, London was marked out by its idiosyncratic institutions, prominent among which were two courts or assemblies: the Folkmoot and the Husting. This article re-examines the early history and origins of both, and suggests that they should be seen as outgrowths of the entities recorded in a legal composition fromthe reign of King Æthelstan (924–39). The latter describes associations formed by the people of London to defend their interests against thieves from surrounding districts. Provisions made in this text for a gathering of leaders, to be held over food and drink, may be a forerunner of the Husting, while a larger judicial body hinted at in the law-code could represent a precursor to the Folkmoot. The internal divisions of London from the twelfth century onwards, the wards, are also considered.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	409-424
Number of pages	16
Journal	HISTORY
Volume	104
Issue number	361
Early online date	25 Apr 2019
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-229X.12816
Publication status	Published - 1 Jul 2019

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10.1111/1468-229X.12816

The Origins of the Husting_NAISMITH_Accepted9January2019_GREEN AAMAccepted author manuscript, 265 KB

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The Origins of the Husting and the Folkmoot

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