Testamentary Freedom in Law and Practice in Medieval Sweden: Conflicts and Coexistence

Abstract

The chapter discusses the limits of testamentary freedom in medieval Swedish law. Last wills, testaments and donations for pious causes were introduced in Sweden in the twelfth century. Some thirteenth-century papal decretals indicate that according to Swedish law, the consent of relatives was required to valid deathbed donations. This was condemned as a “perverse custom” by the popes, advocating testamentary freedom. However, both these decretals and the Swedish thirteenth- and early fourteenth-century provincial laws provide evidence of the tensions between ecclesiastical authorities and Swedish lay society. The provincial laws limited testamentary freedom regarding various aspects: requiring the consent of the heirs, the timing of the bequest (deathbed/sickbed or health), the proportion of the donation vis-a-vis the whole property of the donor, and type of property (immovables, inherited or acquired land). With the free assent of one’s closest heirs, all and any restrictions of testamentary freedom could be overcome. In legal practice, donators often sought to ensure the consent of their heirs in advance. They used them as witnesses and signatories, they used redemption clauses or bought off relatives with claims to the property. Acquiring the consent of heirs to wills and donations of land became customary practice in later medieval Sweden.