Now Hist. Also 7– soccager, 8 sockager. [f. prec.] One holding land by socage tenure.
1647. N. Bacon, Disc. Govt. Eng., I. lxx. (1739), 187. Of these Socagers did arise … the body of English Footmen in their Armies.
1653. Customes of Soke of Kirton-in-Lindsey, Linc. (MS.), Upon paine of every forreyner so intruding ten pounds, and every Soccager Five pounds.
1728. Chambers, Cycl., s.v. Soc, Liberty of holding a Court of his Sockmen or Sockagers, that is, his Tenants, whose Tenure is hence called Socage.
1812. G. Chalmers, Dom. Econ. Gt. Brit., 4. The barons, the free tenants, the free soccagers, together with the villains, and the slaves.
1874. Stubbs, Const. Hist., I. vii. 193. He was easily tempted to become a socager, paying rent or gavel, instead of a free … man-at-arms.
