These judicial bodies emerged during the rule of the
Franks (
Francia, and subsequently the
Kingdom of France and
Holy Roman Empire). There were usually several
thingsteads (, "assembly places") where they would take place. It was thus a focal point for exercising the
Landrecht "law of the land". Arnold argues that, by 1200, the institutions of the
Landfrieden "public peace," the hereditary county and the Landgericht, if not identical, had "emerged as a collective legal structure which
princes exercised power directly or through delegate judges from amongst their vassals,
ministeriales, and officials. There were very different interpretations of the term Landgericht regionally. It corresponded to the term
Landrecht, with which it was used synonymously to distinguish it from other legal terms such as
Stadtrecht "
town privileges",
Lehnsrecht "feudal rights," and so forth. During its development, the term encompassed both royal juridical courts and those of other lords with relatively small areas of responsibility. There were imperial, royal, princely, ecclesial (monastic) and other
Landgerichte. In the
Middle Ages, the Landgerichte came to play a crucial role in the organization and exercise of lordship, particularly given that around 90% of the population circa 1300 was rural. During the Middle Ages, they existed in a variety of forms and functions. It was not until the establishment of a hierarchical court system in the 16th century, and later the administrative and civic reforms of the 19th century, that distinct types of Landgerichte could be clearly defined and described. == Terminology ==