A medieval legal ordeal where someone would be subjected to a test (such as touching hot iron or immersion in water) to prove innocence or guilt, particularly in Anglo-Saxon law.
From Old English 'ælfæt' or related to 'ordeal.' The word has uncertain etymology but may relate to 'elf' or magical forces, reflecting pre-Christian Germanic beliefs that divine intervention would reveal truth. The practice disappeared after the 12th century when the Church banned it.
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