Abstract
In the article, the proceedings in a legal document from 1407 are compared with the provisions of the Land Law of king Magnus Lawmender from 1274. Furthermore, it is examined to what extent the document supports a hypothesis, which was based on the fragmentary source material from the time before, that the Faroe Islands and Shetland in the time after the establishment of the monarchical form of government in approx. 1280 and up to approx. 1360 was arranged as a special judicial district under Gulathing with traveling lawmen from Norway. It is shown that the letters from 1403-1405, which are reproduced in the document from 1407, are reproduced in thematic order, and that this was done to prepare the case for consideration in another judicial district, after the case had been completed in the Faroese circuit of the judicial district. Together with other hints in the content, the thematic arrangement of the document shows that in the early 15th century both the Faroe Islands and the Shetland Islands were separate circuits in the jurisdiction of the Norwegian Gulathing. Name material in the document provides indirect support for the hypothesis that lawmen from Gulathing also served in Shetland and the Faroe Islands in the 14th century. The document also shows that in 1403 a Shetlander held a high royal office in the Faroe Islands.
Original language | Faroese |
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Pages (from-to) | 19-35 |
Number of pages | 35 |
Journal | Fróðskaparrit - Faroese Scientific Journal |
Volume | 70. bók |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 13 Mar 2024 |
Keywords
- Legacy of Gudrun Sigurdardottir
- Faroe Islands
- Shetland
- Land Law of king Magnus Lawmender
- right of inheritance
- lawthing
- jurisdiction
- judical district
- circuit
- Arvurin eftir Guðruna Sjúrðardóttur
- Landslóg Magnusar lógbøtara
- Húsavíkar góðs
- arvarættur
- løgting
- rættardømi