Copyhold originated from the feudal status of villainage, representing a customary tenure that evolved from unfree labor services into a legally recognized property right. Unlike freehold, which was protected by common law courts, copyhold was governed by the 'custom of the manor' and administered through the Court Baron. The tenant was admitted to the holding by the steward of the manor, symbolized by the delivery of a rod or verge, and their name was entered onto the court roll. Upon any transfer of the land, whether through inheritance or sale (surrender and admittance), the tenant received a transcript of this entry—the eponymous 'copy' of the roll—which served as their title deed.
Over centuries, copyhold became increasingly secure as the King's courts began to protect the interests of the copyholder against the arbitrary will of the Lord of the Manor. While the lord retained certain rights, such as mineral rights and the collection of 'heriots' (a death duty, often the tenant's best beast), the copyholder enjoyed many practical benefits of ownership. The system persisted as a complex vestige of the medieval social order until the early 20th century. It was finally abolished and converted into freehold or long leasehold by the Law of Property Act 1922 and the subsequent 'Great Property Acts' of 1925, which aimed to simplify English land law and eliminate the cumbersome feudal encumbrances.