What Were Inquisitions Post Mortem?

Inquisitions post mortem (IPMs) were the product of sworn inquiries by local jurors into the landholdings after death of feudal tenants. Initiated by the crown, they survived from 1235–6 until 1660, when feudal tenures were abolished. Feudalism was a system of land tenure universal in England in which land was held in return for service, all of it ultimately from the king, whether directly by tenants-in-chief or through intermediate lords (mesne tenants). Henry III and later kings wanted to keep track of their feudal rights and to exploit any potential profits or feudal incidents. Inquisitions post mortem were one of the mechanisms. The Book of Fees and returns of feudal aids recorded feudal tenancies at infrequent intervals, whereas IPMs captured the situation when tenants died and the transfer of tenure offered opportunities to the crown. When inquisitions were first devised, knight service was still a military reality, but it had become obsolete long before 1400. Nevertheless landholding remained feudal. Feudal tenure was still an important medium of authority for the crown over the landed aristocracy and of revenue both to the king and, less certainly, to the mesne lords. Inquisitions therefore continued to be held and many thousands of IPMs were composed by local jurors and were returned to chancery. These are now filed in the National Archives, those for Henry VI in TNA class C 139; they are supplemented by exchequer versions (classes E 149–52), and many of them have been calendared in twenty-nine massive volumes covering the years from 1236 to 1447 and from 1485 to 1509.