>>I have a rather different view of wereguild than the one
>presented, >where it is a means of legitimizing or constraining
>violence.
> It has been pointed out that weregeld (or weregild? Someone
>give the right spelling here please, I _know_ it's not
>were"guild".) is NOT just the equivalent of a civil fine, but is set
>so high that NOBODY wants to spend it. Seven years income, for
>instance, is pretty much impossible for anyone to pay.
Weregild - it's of Saxon derivation.
> Weregeld is purposely set high in an attempt to prohibit
>such violence. It's not "putting a price on life", but a prevention
>of murder. Note that societies with Weregeld do not generally have
>prisons or other obvious forms of punishment for criminals, and no
>one wants a blood feud, so weregeld is set and hopefully no one
>kills anyone else.
In my studies (I'm working on the Pendragon Saxon supplement right now), weregild is *not* a preventitive to murder, it is a compensation for a wrong. The entire kin-group pays the Weregild, *not* just the murderer. Each person pays according to his (her) family relation to the murderer - Mumsy and Daddy pay a good chunk, Second-cousin Ernie pays a little. On the flip side, the Kingroup splits weregild along the same lines - it is shared out among the whole group.
A Kin group may decide to repudiate the murderer, making him responsible for his own problem, but in that case they forgo the right to collect weregild *or* claim vengeance if he is killed (It seems to have been a major life crises, you do not have a family *ever* again).
The family of the deceased may decide to take vengeance instead of accepting weregild. This is legal, but only as long as no-one else gets hurt. Saxon ideas of Legal and Illegal are not quite the same as ours. It is legal (and no weregild need be paid) to kill a man while defending your home, family, sworn man or lord. It is Legal, (but you must pay weregild), to kill a man in a "fair fight". It is illegal (and no weregild *can* be paid) to kill a man by stealth, poison or magic.
Of course, this is all real world and ymmv in Glorantha.
Roderick
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