English Economic History: Select Documents. Various

son of the illustrious King of England, earl of Cornwall, to all and singular who shall see or hear the present writing indented, greeting in the Lord. Know ye that, having regard to the no small decrease and decay of rents and farms pertaining to our manor of Kirton in Lindsey in times past, for that tenants of escheated tenements in the same manor, having no estate of the same tenements save from year to year or at least at the will of the lords, our predecessors there, have made no outlay or the least which they could on the maintenance of the buildings on the same tenements; and wishing to raise again the aforesaid rents and farms as much as we can for our advantage; we have granted for us and our heirs and by our present writing have demised to John of Westminster and Emma his wife and Thomas, son of the same John and Emma, those two parts of all those tenements with the appurtenances in the town of Kirton aforesaid which the same John before the making of this writing held of us during our pleasure, as of an escheat formerly in our hand of the tenements which were sometime of Thomas of Bromholm; to have and to hold to the same John and Emma his wife and Thomas, son of the same John and Emma, and each of them that lives the longer, for their whole life, of us and our heirs, rendering therefrom yearly to us and our heirs 100s. sterling at the feasts of Easter and Michaelmas by equal portions; and we, the aforesaid earl, and our heirs will warrant the aforesaid two parts of the tenements aforesaid with their appurtenances to the aforesaid John and Emma his wife and Thomas, son of the same John and Emma, for their whole life, as is aforesaid, against all people for the aforesaid rent. In witness whereof we have thought fit to set our seal to this writing. These witnesses:—Sirs John de Haustede, Thomas de Westone and William de Cusancia, knights, Sir William de Cusancia, rector of the church of Wakefield, our treasurer, and William de Munden, our clerk and secretary, and others. Given at York on Tuesday next after the feast of All Saints in the 6th year of the reign of King Edward the Third after the Conquest, our dearest brother.

      And we, ratifying and approving the demise aforesaid, grant and confirm it for us and our heirs, as much as in us lies, as the writing aforesaid reasonably testifies, willing and granting for us and our heirs that the same John, Emma and Thomas have and hold the tenements aforesaid with the appurtenances for the whole life of each of them by the aforesaid service of rendering to us and our heirs yearly the said 100s. according to the tenour of the writing of the same earl abovesaid. In witness whereof etc. Witness the King at Leicester, 1 October.

      By the King himself.

      8. An Agreement Between Lord and Tenants [Duchy of Lancaster, Misc. Bks., 5, f. 103], 1386.

Warkington.—At the view of frankpledge holden there on 20 October, 10 Richard II., it was granted to all the lord's tenants in the presence of John Mulso, Nicholas Lovet, Edmund Bifeld, Stephen Walker of Keteryng and others there present, that if it pleased the lord they might hold certain bond lands and tenements at a certain rent and service, as follows, during a term of six years next after the date abovewritten, the term beginning at Michaelmas last past; to wit, that each tenant of a messuage and a virgate of bond land shall render to the lord 18s. yearly at four terms, to wit, at the feasts of St. Edmund the King and Martyr,[128] Palm Sunday, the Nativity of St. John the Baptist,[129] and Michaelmas, by equal portions, and shall do two ploughings a year at what times of the year he shall be forewarned by the bailiff of the manor for the time being, and shall work in "le Keormede" as he used before, save that the lord shall find him food and drink for the ancient customs, that is, for half a sheep and for each scythe ½d., and so he shall reap in Autumn for two days, to wit, one day with two men and another day with one man, at the lord's dinner[130]; he shall give 4d. for a colt if he sell it, he shall pay heriot if he die within the term, and he shall make fine for marrying his daughters and for his sons attending school, and for "leyre-wite" as he used before.[131]

      [128] November 20.

      [129] June 24.

      [130] i.e. The lord providing dinner.

      [131] The lord here is the Abbot of Bury St. Edmunds.

9. Complaints Against a Reeve [Court Rolls, 179, 4, m. 1d.], 1278.[132]

Elton.—St. Clement's Day.[133] Michael the Reeve complains of Richer son of Jocelin and Richard the Reeve and his wife that when he was in the churchyard of Elton on the Sunday next before the feast of All Saints[134] in this year, there came the aforesaid Richer, Richard and his wife and insulted him with vile words before the whole parish, charging him with having collected his own hay by the labour services due to the lord the Abbot [of Ramsey], and with having reaped his own corn in autumn by the boon-works done by the Abbot's customary tenants, and with having ploughed his land in Everesholmfeld with ploughs "booned" from the town, and with having released to the customary tenants their works and carryings on condition that they demised and leased their lands to him at a low price, and with having taken gifts from the rich tenants that they should not become tenants at a money rent, and with having put the poor tenants at a money rent.[135] And the aforesaid Richard and Richer are present and deny, etc. and ask for an enquiry by twelve jurors. Who come and say that the said Michael is guilty of none of the charges. Therefore the said Richard and Richer shall satisfy him, and for the trespass shall be in mercy; Richard's fine, 2s., pledge William son of James; Richer's fine, 12d., pledge, Jocelin. And the damages are taxed at 10s. to be received from Richard the Reeve, which sum Michael has released except 2s.

[132] Printed in Selden Society Publications, II., 95.

[133] November 23.

[134] November 1.

[135] The commutation of services for rent was not always popular.

      10. An Eviction from Copyhold Land [Chancery Proceedings, Early, 16, 376], temp. Henry IV-Henry VI.

      To the most reverend father in God, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Chancellor of England.

      Beseecheth lowly your poor bedefolks, Elizabeth Baroun, Harry Baroun and Richard Baroun, which be the King's tenants, that whereas the said Elizabeth was possessed and seised of a messuage and 4 acres of land in the town of Great Hormead in the shire of Hertford, and the said messuage and land held to her and to her heirs at the will of my lord of Oxford as of his manor of Hormead in the same shire by copy of court roll after the custom of the said manor, there hath one Harry Edmond, farmer of the said manor, without cause reasonable and contrary to the custom of the said manor, entered in the said messuage and land and put out the said Elizabeth, and certain goods and chattels of the said Elizabeth, Harry and Richard, to the value of 40 marks in the said house being, seized, and it withholdeth, and over that the said Harry Edmond with his adherents daily lie in wait to beat and slay the said Harry and Richard, your beseechers, so that they dare not well abide in their houses neither go about their husbandry, to their uttermost destruction and undoing for ever, without succour of your gracious lordship: Please your good grace to consider the premises and that your said beseechers have no remedy at the Common Law, to grant a writ directed to the said Harry Edmond,