Tallage
Encyclopedia
Tallage or talliage may have signified at first any tax
, but became in England and France a land use or land tenure tax. Later in England
it was further limited to assessments by the crown upon cities
, borough
s, and royal
domains. In effect, tallage was a land tax.
is a similar type of land tax, but tallage was brought to England by the Normans
as a feudal duty. Under the sons of Henry II
it became a common source of royal revenue. It was condemned in the Magna Carta
of 1215, and was abolished in England in 1340 under Edward III
.
Like scutage
, tallage was superseded by the subsidy
system in the 14th century. The last occasion on which tallage was levied in England appears to be about the year 1332.
The famous statute of 25 Edw. I. (in some editions of the statutes 34 Edw. I.), De Tallagio non Concedendo, though it is printed among the statutes of the realm, and was cited as a statute in the preamble to the Petition of Right
in 1628, and by the judges in John Hampden's
case in 1637, is probably an imperfect and unauthoritative abstract of the Confirmatio Cartarum. The first section enacts that no tallage for aid shall be imposed or levied by the king
and his heirs without the will and assent of the archbishop
s, bishop
s, and other prelate
s, the earl
s, baron
s, knight
s, burgesses, and other freemen in the kingdom.
Tallagium facere was the technical term for rendering accounts in the exchequer
, the accounts being kept by means of tallies or notched sticks. The tellers (a corruption of talliers) of the exchequer were at one time important financial officers. The system of keeping the national accounts by tallies was abolished by 23 Geo. III. c. 82 and the office of teller by 57 Geo. II. c. 84.
", was levied at Guildford
in 1189, the ostensible object being preparation for the Third Crusade
. It is reported that John
tallaged Jews in 1210 to the extent of 60,000 marks (£40,000). There are likewise records of tallages under Henry III
of 4,000 marks (1225) and 5,000 marks (1270). Important tallages were made by Edward I
in the second, third and fourth years, (£1,000) and in the fifth year (25,000 marks), of his reign. These taxes were in addition to the various claims which were made upon Jews for relief, wardship, marriage, fines, law-proceedings, debts, licenses, amercements etc. and which Jews paid to the English exchequer like English subjects (in law, Jews were technically the king's slaves rather than subjects), though probably on a larger scale. It has been claimed that the loss of the income from Jews was a chief reason why Edward I was obliged to give up his right of tallaging Englishmen in general.
. It was not abolished in France until the French Revolution
.
Tax
To tax is to impose a financial charge or other levy upon a taxpayer by a state or the functional equivalent of a state such that failure to pay is punishable by law. Taxes are also imposed by many subnational entities...
, but became in England and France a land use or land tenure tax. Later in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
it was further limited to assessments by the crown upon cities
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
, borough
Borough
A borough is an administrative division in various countries. In principle, the term borough designates a self-governing township although, in practice, official use of the term varies widely....
s, and royal
Monarchy
A monarchy is a form of government in which the office of head of state is usually held until death or abdication and is often hereditary and includes a royal house. In some cases, the monarch is elected...
domains. In effect, tallage was a land tax.
England
DanegeldDanegeld
The Danegeld was a tax raised to pay tribute to the Viking raiders to save a land from being ravaged. It was called the geld or gafol in eleventh-century sources; the term Danegeld did not appear until the early twelfth century...
is a similar type of land tax, but tallage was brought to England by the Normans
Normans
The Normans were the people who gave their name to Normandy, a region in northern France. They were descended from Norse Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...
as a feudal duty. Under the sons of Henry II
Henry II of England
Henry II ruled as King of England , Count of Anjou, Count of Maine, Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, Count of Nantes, Lord of Ireland and, at various times, controlled parts of Wales, Scotland and western France. Henry, the great-grandson of William the Conqueror, was the...
it became a common source of royal revenue. It was condemned in the Magna Carta
Magna Carta
Magna Carta is an English charter, originally issued in the year 1215 and reissued later in the 13th century in modified versions, which included the most direct challenges to the monarch's authority to date. The charter first passed into law in 1225...
of 1215, and was abolished in England in 1340 under Edward III
Edward III of England
Edward III was King of England from 1327 until his death and is noted for his military success. Restoring royal authority after the disastrous reign of his father, Edward II, Edward III went on to transform the Kingdom of England into one of the most formidable military powers in Europe...
.
Like scutage
Scutage
The form of taxation known as scutage, in the law of England under the feudal system, allowed a knight to "buy out" of the military service due to the Crown as a holder of a knight's fee held under the feudal land tenure of knight-service. Its name derived from shield...
, tallage was superseded by the subsidy
Subsidy
A subsidy is an assistance paid to a business or economic sector. Most subsidies are made by the government to producers or distributors in an industry to prevent the decline of that industry or an increase in the prices of its products or simply to encourage it to hire more labor A subsidy (also...
system in the 14th century. The last occasion on which tallage was levied in England appears to be about the year 1332.
The famous statute of 25 Edw. I. (in some editions of the statutes 34 Edw. I.), De Tallagio non Concedendo, though it is printed among the statutes of the realm, and was cited as a statute in the preamble to the Petition of Right
Petition of right
In English law, a petition of right was a remedy available to subjects to recover property from the Crown.Before the Crown Proceedings Act 1947, the British Crown could not be sued in contract...
in 1628, and by the judges in John Hampden's
John Hampden
John Hampden was an English politician, the eldest son of William Hampden, of Hampden House, Great Hampden in Buckinghamshire, John Hampden (ca. 15951643) was an English politician, the eldest son of William Hampden, of Hampden House, Great Hampden in Buckinghamshire, John Hampden (ca. 15951643)...
case in 1637, is probably an imperfect and unauthoritative abstract of the Confirmatio Cartarum. The first section enacts that no tallage for aid shall be imposed or levied by the king
Monarch
A monarch is the person who heads a monarchy. This is a form of government in which a state or polity is ruled or controlled by an individual who typically inherits the throne by birth and occasionally rules for life or until abdication...
and his heirs without the will and assent of the archbishop
Archbishop
An archbishop is a bishop of higher rank, but not of higher sacramental order above that of the three orders of deacon, priest , and bishop...
s, bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
s, and other prelate
Prelate
A prelate is a high-ranking member of the clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin prælatus, the past participle of præferre, which means "carry before", "be set above or over" or "prefer"; hence, a prelate is one set over others.-Related...
s, the earl
Earl
An earl is a member of the nobility. The title is Anglo-Saxon, akin to the Scandinavian form jarl, and meant "chieftain", particularly a chieftain set to rule a territory in a king's stead. In Scandinavia, it became obsolete in the Middle Ages and was replaced with duke...
s, baron
Baron
Baron is a title of nobility. The word baron comes from Old French baron, itself from Old High German and Latin baro meaning " man, warrior"; it merged with cognate Old English beorn meaning "nobleman"...
s, knight
Knight
A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....
s, burgesses, and other freemen in the kingdom.
Tallagium facere was the technical term for rendering accounts in the exchequer
Exchequer
The Exchequer is a government department of the United Kingdom responsible for the management and collection of taxation and other government revenues. The historical Exchequer developed judicial roles...
, the accounts being kept by means of tallies or notched sticks. The tellers (a corruption of talliers) of the exchequer were at one time important financial officers. The system of keeping the national accounts by tallies was abolished by 23 Geo. III. c. 82 and the office of teller by 57 Geo. II. c. 84.
Tallage and Jews
The tax was frequently levied on English Jews during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. A tallage of £60,000, known as the "Saladin tallageSaladin tithe
The Saladin tithe, or the Aid of 1188, was a tax, or more specifically a tallage, levied in England and to some extent in France in 1188, in response to the capture of Jerusalem by Saladin in 1187.-Background:...
", was levied at Guildford
Guildford
Guildford is the county town of Surrey. England, as well as the seat for the borough of Guildford and the administrative headquarters of the South East England region...
in 1189, the ostensible object being preparation for the Third Crusade
Third Crusade
The Third Crusade , also known as the Kings' Crusade, was an attempt by European leaders to reconquer the Holy Land from Saladin...
. It is reported that John
John of England
John , also known as John Lackland , was King of England from 6 April 1199 until his death...
tallaged Jews in 1210 to the extent of 60,000 marks (£40,000). There are likewise records of tallages under Henry III
Henry III of England
Henry III was the son and successor of John as King of England, reigning for 56 years from 1216 until his death. His contemporaries knew him as Henry of Winchester. He was the first child king in England since the reign of Æthelred the Unready...
of 4,000 marks (1225) and 5,000 marks (1270). Important tallages were made by Edward I
Edward I of England
Edward I , also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England from 1272 to 1307. The first son of Henry III, Edward was involved early in the political intrigues of his father's reign, which included an outright rebellion by the English barons...
in the second, third and fourth years, (£1,000) and in the fifth year (25,000 marks), of his reign. These taxes were in addition to the various claims which were made upon Jews for relief, wardship, marriage, fines, law-proceedings, debts, licenses, amercements etc. and which Jews paid to the English exchequer like English subjects (in law, Jews were technically the king's slaves rather than subjects), though probably on a larger scale. It has been claimed that the loss of the income from Jews was a chief reason why Edward I was obliged to give up his right of tallaging Englishmen in general.
France
Tallage lasted much longer in France, where it was a royal tax and one of estate owners with tenants. It came to be called 'taille' and was much used during the Hundred Years' WarHundred Years' War
The Hundred Years' War was a series of separate wars waged from 1337 to 1453 by the House of Valois and the House of Plantagenet, also known as the House of Anjou, for the French throne, which had become vacant upon the extinction of the senior Capetian line of French kings...
. It was not abolished in France until the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
.