Frankalmoin

Frankalmoin or frankalmoigne was one of the feudal land tenures in feudal England. Its literal meaning is "free pity/mercy", from Norman French fraunch aumoyne, “free alms”, from Late Latin eleemosyna, from Greek ἐλεημοσύνη ("eleēmosynē"), "pity, alms", from ἐλεήμων ("eleēmōn") "merciful", from ἔλεος ("eleos"), "pity". By it an ecclesiastical body held land free of military service such as knight service or other secular or religious service, but sometimes in return for the religious service of saying prayers and masses for the soul of the grantor. Not only was secular service not due but in the 12th and 13th centuries jurisdiction over land so held belonged to the ecclesiastical courts, and was thus immune from royal jurisdiction.

In English law, frankalmoign(e) was also known as "tenure in free alms". Gifts to religious institutions in free alms were defined first as gifts to God, then to the patron saint of the religious house, and finally to those religious serving God in the specific house.

The following example is from a charter of William de Vernon, 5th Earl of Devon(d.1217), to Quarr Abbey:

Hanc donationem praedictis monachis in puram et perpetuam eleemosinam liberam ab omni servitio in perpetuum possidendam confirmavi

In English:

"I have confirmed this donation to the foresaid monks in pure and perpetual mercy (i.e. "alms") free from all service in perpetual possession"

As the above example makes clear it was a freehold tenure as it was held in perpetual possession, which is equivalent to "hereditable" in secular terms. Religious houses in receipt of free alms could not recognise a secular lord. The gift of land or other property made over to God and to a patron Saint was inalienable, and the relationship between the grantor and the religious house was subsidiary.

In the 12th century the institution came to be misused. Land could be donated to a church organization and then leased back to the donor, allowing the donor to avoid the feudal services due to his lord. Legal cases became so complicated that the Assize of Utrum was established in the middle of the 12th century to adjudicate claims.

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