英国丹麦金的演变及其影响

The Evolution and Influence of the Danegeld in England

丹麦金最初是英国遭受维京人入侵时临时缴纳的贡金,侵略的威胁解除,丹麦金停止征收。诺曼征服后,封建制发展,封建王权强化,再次开征的丹麦金成为王室财政来源的重要部分。按照原始民主部落的传统,国王征收丹麦金须取得贤人会议同意。诺曼王朝的君主为了顺利征税,继承了这一传统,其税收决策也要经过大会议同意。丹麦金按照土地面积征收,由于封君封臣制度的实行,土地层层受封,所有权归属模糊不清,加之“过度豁免”等因素,丹麦金的征收最终难以实行,逐渐走向消亡。丹麦金的征收以海德田制为基础,建立起一套税收体系,为日后的发展与完善奠定了基础,也是英国税制“量出制入”原则的源头之一,孕育了英国赋税理论“共同同意”原则的萌芽。

The British danegeld was initially a tribute paid temporarily when the Vikings invaded, and ceased to be collected after the invasion was resolved. After the Norman Conquest, with the development of the feudal system and strengthening of the feudal kingship, the danegeld was levied again and became an important part of the royal revenue. In accordance with the tradition of primitive democratic tribes, kings had to obtain the consent of the witan to collect the danegeld. In order to levy taxes successfully, monarchs of the Norman dynasty inherited this tradition, and their tax decisions were subject to the approval of the curia regis. The danegeld was levied according to the area of the land. However, due to the implementation of the feudalism, lands were enfeoffed at different levels and the ownership became ambiguous. Moreover, there was also the factor of “excessive exemption”. All of these made the collection of the danegeld difficult to implement and gradually became extinct. The danegeld was of great importance in the history of British taxation. Its collection was based on the hidage system, and a whole set of taxation system had been established, which provided a solid foundation for improvement of the future taxation system;it was also one of the origins of the principle of “spend-and-tax”;it nurtured the sprouts of “common consent”, which was one of the British theories of taxation.