tallage

American  

[tal-ij] / ˈtæl ɪdʒ /

noun

1. Medieval History. a tax paid by peasants to the lord of their manor.

2. a compulsory tax levied by the Norman and early Angevin kings of England upon the demesne lands of the crown and upon all royal towns.

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tallage British  

/ ˈtælɪdʒ /

noun

1. 1. a tax levied by the Norman and early Angevin kings on their Crown lands and royal towns

   2. a toll levied by a lord upon his tenants or by a feudal lord upon his vassals

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verb

1. (tr) to levy a tax (upon); impose a tax (upon)

Etymology

Origin of tallage

1250–1300; Middle English taillage < Old French taill ( ier ) to cut, tax ( see tail ²) + Middle English -age -age

Example Sentences

On the boundary between personal subjection and political subordination we find the liability of the peasantry to pay tallage.

From Villainage in England Essays in English Mediaeval History by Vinogradoff, Paul

In the latter instance the king also gave leave to the lay and spiritual nobility to set a tallage on their own tenants.

From View of the State of Europe during the Middle Ages, Vol. 3 by Hallam, Henry

It is now held, however, that he limited this concession to ``aides, mises,'' and ``prises,'' retaining the right to tallage.

From The Project Gutenberg Encyclopedia Volume 1 of 28 by Project Gutenberg

Can anything be clearer than that the parliament, though in a much gentler tone than they came afterwards to assume, intimate the illegality of the late tallage?

From View of the State of Europe during the Middle Ages, Vol. 3 by Hallam, Henry

On the other hand, their common folk are so crushed down with gabelle, and poll-tax, and every manner of cursed tallage, that the spirit has passed right out of them.

From The White Company by Doyle, Arthur Conan, Sir