noun
- A payment or tribute of goods or livestock formerly due to a feudal lord upon the death of a tenant or vassal.
Usage: archaic; historical; chiefly British
Examples
- The peasant's family was required to pay heriots to the lord upon his death.
- Medieval heriots often consisted of the best animal or valuable possession owned by the deceased tenant.
- The abolition of heriots marked a significant shift in feudal land relations.
- Historical records document numerous disputes over the assessment of heriots owed to the manor.
- Heriots were a common source of revenue for English landowners during the Middle Ages.