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.