Feu (land tenure)

Feu was long the most common form of land tenure in Scotland, as conveyancing in Scots law was dominated by feudalism until the Scottish Parliament passed the Abolition of Feudal Tenure etc. (Scotland) Act 2000. The word is the Scots variant of fee. The English had in 1660 abolished these tenures, with An Act taking away the Court of Wards..., since 1948 known as the Tenures Abolition Act 1660. Prior to 1832, only the vassals of the crown had votes in parliamentary elections for the Scots counties. This favoured subinfeudation as opposed to outright sale of land. This was changed by the Scottish Reform Act 1832, which increased the franchise of males in Scotland from 4,500 to 64,447. In Orkney and Shetland islands, land is still largely possessed as udal property, a holding derived or handed down from the time when these islands belonged to Norway. Such lands could previously be converted into feus at the will of the proprietor and held from the Crown or the Marquess of Zetland. At one time, the system of conveyancing by which the transfer of feus was effected was curious and complicated by requiring the presence of parties on the land itself and the symbolic transfer of the property (for example, by throwing a shoe onto the earth of the property transferred) together with the registration of various documents. However, legislation since the mid-19th century has changed all of that. Various reforms were attempted before feu was eventually abolished by the Abolition of Feudal Tenure etc. (Scotland) Act 2000. In feu holding, there is a substantial annual payment in money or in kind in return for the enjoyment of the land. The Crown is the first overlord or superior, and land is held of it by crown vassals. They, in turn, may feu their land to others, who become their vassals, and the former are mediate overlords or superiors. The process of sub-infeudation may be repeated to an indefinite extent. The Conveyancing (Scotland) Act 1874 rendered any clause in a disposition against subinfeudation null and void.