Akademik

That area of land taken up by a house and its associated buildings and land; the whole plot of land; also used of plots of land within a "borough. *Bracton refers to a messuage in discussing a widow's dower. He says that a widow should be permitted to remain in her late husband's 'chief messuage for forty days after his death . . . [unless] the house is a castle . . . [in which case] let a suitable house be provided for her'. In some circumstances, although a widow might inherit the chief messuage, she could have a house built for her to the value of one third of that messuage. -

Cf. Landgafol