The thing that struck me most when I began to handle documents of this period at Winchester College was the number of instruments that go to complete a sale of land. Nowadays, one multipartite deed suffices for the conveyance of any quantity of land. At the time that I am speaking of deeds were, generally speaking, unipartite, and perhaps half a dozen feoffments, letters of attorney, releases, and deeds of confirmation were required to produce the same result. In the fourteenth century, and for many years on either side of it, the transfer of freehold property was effected by “livery of seisin,” that is, by delivery of the feudal possession, preceded by a writing on parchment, called a feoffment, which transferred to the purchaser the right to the feudal possession. The feoffor set his seal in the presence of witnesses to a writing, averring that he had given and confirmed the property to the feoffee and his heirs, and that the feoffor and his heirs would warrant, acquit, and for ever defend the feoffee and his heirs against all comers. This warranty of title gave the feoffee a right of action against the feoffor in case of disturbance, and was superseded in due course by covenants for title.