George Neilson The Lawbook Exchange, Ltd. , 2000 - 348 pages , 2000 - Law 0 Reviews Neilson, George. Trial by Combat. Glasgow: William Hodge & Co., 1890. xiv, 348 pp. Reprinted 2000 by The Lawbook Exchange, Ltd. LCCN 99-059101. ISBN 1-58477-075-9. Cloth. $75. * Although it is not known exactly when trial by combat, battle, or duel began as a method of conflict resolution, its origin certainly goes back before the feudal era. Neilson focuses on Britain and Scotland and traces this tradition from before the Middle Ages to the Appeal of Murder Act of 1819. "All the authorities on the subject, I believe, are collected in this excellent book." Pollock, The Genius of the Common Law. Marke, A Catalogue of the Law Collection of New York University (1953) 323, citing later NY edition. Preview this book »