Legal Definitions - spiritual tenure

Definition: Spiritual tenure is a type of tenure that relates to religious exercises, such as frankalmoign and tenure by divine service.

In feudal times, real property was held predominantly as part of a tenure system. A tenure is a right, term, or mode of holding lands or tenements in subordination to a superior. Spiritual tenure is a type of tenure that obligates the tenant to perform an expressly defined divine service, such as singing a certain number of masses or distributing a fixed sum of alms.

For example, in medieval England, some religious institutions held land through frankalmoign, which was a type of spiritual tenure. The land was held in exchange for religious services, such as prayers for the soul of the donor.

Today, spiritual tenure is not commonly used, but it is still important to understand the historical context of land ownership and the various types of tenures that existed.