murdrum

American  

[mur-druhm] / ˈmɜr drəm /

noun

Old English Law.

1. the killing of a human being in a secret manner.

2. the fine payable to the king by the hundred where such a killing occurred, unless the killer was produced or the victim proved to be a Saxon.

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Etymology

Origin of murdrum

< Medieval Latin < Old French murdre murder

Example Sentences

No fine if the defunct is English: "Pro Anglico vero et de quo constari possit quod Anglicus sit, non dabitur murdrum."

From A Literary History of the English People From the Origins to the Renaissance by Jusserand, Jean Jules

In the so-called "Laws of Edward the Confessor" it is stated that the murdrum fine originated in the reign of Canute.

From Canute the Great The Rise of Danish Imperialism during the Viking Age by Larson, Laurence Marcellus

The answer to "Quod est murdrum" was a thrilling revelation of what the Norman Conquest was and was not.

From The Adventure of Living : a Subjective Autobiography by Strachey, John St. Loe

Also, the entire hundred was the ultimate surety for murder and would have to pay a "murdrum" fine.

From Our Legal Heritage by Reilly, S. A.