| | demesne on Encyclopedia.com |
 | | Initially the demesne lands were worked by the serfs in payment of the feudal debt. |
| | As the serfs' labor service came to be commuted to money payments, the demesne lands were often cultivated by paid laborers. |
| | In England the term ancient demesne, sometimes shortened to demesne, referred to those lands that were held by the crown at the time (1066) of William the Conqueror and were recorded in the Domesday Book. |
| www.encyclopedia.com /html/d1/demesne.asp (405 words) |
