An English murdered once had to be set free because of an ancient legal loophole!

An English murdered once had to be set free because of an ancient legal loophole!

Trial by combat was a method of Germanic law to settle accusations in the absence of witnesses or a confession in which two parties in dispute fought in single combat; the winner of the fight was proclaimed to be right.

In essence, it was a judicially sanctioned duel. It remained in use throughout the European Middle Ages, gradually disappearing in the course of the 16th century.

In 1818, an Englishman was accused of murder claimed the right to trial by combat. To everyone's surprise, the law granting him that right was still valid, and he was acquitted when his accuser declined to appear on the "field of honor." Trial by combat was abolished the next year after that incident.

(Source)

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