What does scutage mean?
Scutage is a historical feudal payment made in lieu of personal military service, especially the service of a knight or a person liable to provide one. Instead of joining an army, a liable tenant or landholder could ordinarily pay an assessed sum to the Crown; the payment itself became known as scutage. In some contexts, the word also referred to the feudal holding or obligation that carried such a duty, not merely to the money paid. The term survives chiefly in medieval legal and historical writing rather than ordinary modern speech. Its importance lies in showing how medieval governments turned a military obligation into a fiscal transaction: service could be bought out. It also provides a revealing link between the feudal military system and the development of taxation and centrally administered royal finances.
nounA medieval feudal payment made in lieu of personal military service, especially the service of a knight or a person liable to provide one. The term could also denote the tenure or obligation associated with making such a payment.
- A payment of money assessed in lieu of personal military service, especially knight service.
- The feudal land tenure or obligation under which such a payment was made.
"Rather than provide a mounted warrior, the tenant paid scutage to the Crown."
"Rather than provide a mounted warrior, the tenant paid scutage to the Crown."
"The medieval accounts record scutage among the dues paid by knights and other holders of military-service obligations."
The plural is grammatical but rare because the word itself is largely confined to historical usage.
"The records include several scutages paid by landholders in lieu of service."
In medieval England, scutage made showing up at war optional—but paying the king was not.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does scutage come from?
Scutage entered English from Anglo-French scutage, which was based on Medieval Latin scutagium. The Latin word was derived from scutum, meaning “shield,” reflecting the original idea of payment associated with shield service. Related English words including escutcheon, esquire, and scutum ultimately trace to the same Latin root.
How scutage is actually used
A historical legal term now encountered chiefly in medieval studies and archival sources. It normally refers to an arrangement under which an obligation to serve in person could be met through payment.