Primogeniture

Primogeniture was a common law that arranged the organization of inheritance. Thus, it established the right of the eldest son that was born to a family to inherit the complete possessions of his family: This meant the family's entire estate, wealth and property.

Accordingly, the other children of a family were left without inheritance. However, parents usually made arrangements to provide for their children's future so that they could fend for themselves in case of their parents' death. Therefore, parents sought to secure their children's adult life by education (in case of further sons)and by finding a suitable husband for daughters.In order to organize marriages, parents provided their daughters with a dowry to ensure that there was an appropriate man willing to marry the girl.

sources

Woodford, Donna. "'According to my Bond.' Family Ties in Shaekespeare's Time." Understanding King Lear: A Casebook to Issues, Sources and Historical Documents. Wesrport/CT and London: Greenwood Press, 2004. 85-111.

--Laura 17:13, 12 December 2009 (UTC)