Also known as: wapentakes · hundred
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
3 senses
A historical administrative division in certain English counties that corresponded to the hundred or ward used elsewhere.
The court held within a wapentake division.
The bailiff who served the court within a wapentake.
Each sense below has its own examples, sources, and questions.
A historical administrative division in certain English counties that corresponded to the hundred or ward used elsewhere.
In 1280, officials in a northern wapentake assembled to collect the duty permitted on each imported person under the local custom then in force. The local reeve recorded the payments and forwarded the funds to the sheriff as required by the king's writ. The process operated without royal prohibition because the charter window had not yet closed.
Landowners in the wapentake petitioned the local court when a new custom reduced the value of their mineral rights. The bailiff recorded testimony showing that the restriction left no economically viable use, prompting the court to consider whether compensation was required.
The court held within a wapentake division.
A wapentake court in an English county reviewed the case of an alien facing removal after the sheriff had issued an order later challenged as exceeding authority. The bailiff enforced the court's order while the higher tribunal considered whether the procedure satisfied customary requirements.
Residents of a wapentake brought suit alleging that their county's representation in the assembly was not equal. The court examined whether the claim presented a political question or whether manageable standards existed to decide the matter.
The bailiff who served the court within a wapentake.
A wapentake bailiff refused to disclose notes prepared in anticipation of litigation. The court upheld the refusal, recognizing that such materials were not discoverable absent a showing of substantial need.
It served as an administrative division and local court in certain English counties, handling matters analogous to those addressed by hundreds in other regions.
The two terms described equivalent territorial units. Wapentake was simply the name used in some counties while hundred was used in others.
Bakers in the wapentake challenged a custom limiting their working hours. The local court weighed whether the regulation infringed liberty of contract or whether the crown possessed authority to enact the measure for public welfare.
A bailiff served the court within the wapentake and carried out its orders.
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