Court Officials and Attendance
| Lord of the ManorThe Lord of the Manor was the landowner with legal and economic control over a manor. They collected rents, administered... In full. | William Whitchurch (Esquire) |
| SeneschalThe seneschal was the principal legal and administrative officer of a manor, representing the lord's authority. By the seventeenth century,... In full. | James Wickham (gentleman) |
| HaywardThe hayward was a manorial official appointed to protect the fields during growing and harvest seasons. Duties included maintaining hedges,... In full. | John Loder |
| The HomageHomage referred to the sworn body of tenants who served as the jury of a manor court. Selection for the... In full. | Robert Kember, Robert Bullen, Bernard Chamberlin, Ambrose Serjeant, William Lush, Thomas Hobbs junior, Robert Tyte |
| Did not Attend | Free suitorIn the manorial system, a tenant's obligation to attend the manor court was called 'suit of court'. Suit of court... In full.: Heir of William Weston, Esquire Tenants: Abraham Forrester (gentleman), Sara Cook, Richard Snook, John Carter, Robert Langman, Thomas Serjeant, Richard Farvis, Andrew Loder, John Durant (by marriageJure uxoris ('by right of wife') was how a husband gained rights over his wife's property. In the English property... In full.), John Loder, Elizabeth Hellier, Henry Snook, Robert Jolliffe, Thomas Hobbs senior, Maria Hellier (widow), Robert Hancock, Robert Chaffey, Joseph Snook, James Carter, Eleanor Bishop, Margaret Miles, Jane Jolliffe (widow), Elizabeth Jolliffe, Elizabeth Clark (widow), George Snook, Samuel Cave, Hanna Banger, widow Paviatt, Margery Combs, Hugh Drake. |
Presentments by the Homage
| PresentmentPresentments constituted the formal declarations and findings submitted by the Homage at each sitting of the manor court. The Homage... In full. | Individuals, Relationships and Roles | Premises & Land or Rights |
|---|---|---|
| Failure to do Free SuitIn the manorial system, a tenant's obligation to attend the manor court was called 'suit of court'. Suit of court... In full. AmercedAn amercement was a monetary penalty imposed by the court for breaching custom. The origin of the word reflects the... In full. 1s | The heirs of Weston Esquire | |
| Failure to Attend Amerced 3d | All tenants who have not attended. | |
| Customary RightsThe rules, rights and obligations by which a particular manor was governed/administered. These customs acquired legal force through long usage... In full. | Tenants may take firebootBoot (or Bote) was a customary right allowing tenants to take timber for designated purposes. Categories included: Fireboot (deadwood for... In full. without assignmentManorial custom might require agreement (assignment) to use common resources, such as wood for building or repairing houses (houseboot). In full. and housebootBoot (or Bote) was a customary right allowing tenants to take timber for designated purposes. Categories included: Fireboot (deadwood for... In full. and ploughbootBoot (or Bote) was a customary right allowing tenants to take timber for designated purposes. Categories included: Fireboot (deadwood for... In full. only with assignment. | |
| Customary Rights | If any agistmentAgistment was an arrangement whereby landowners or tenants permitted others to pasture their livestock on lands for a specified fee.... In full. sheep are taken into the commonLand over which manorial tenants held shared rights. These typically included common of pasture (grazing), turbary (cutting turf for fuel),... In full., they are not to lodge or couchIn manorial usage, 'to lodge or couch' on the common means that animals grazing there remain resting or lying, typically... In full. there. If the tenant responsible does not pen them, any other tenant is free to pen them. | |
| Antisocial Behaviour | Mary Weston | Mary Weston has removed turf from wasteThe lord's waste referred to uncultivated land within a manor not held by tenants. These were typically open, unimproved lands... In full. ground without the lord’s permission. |
| Antisocial Behaviour | Laurence Bracher | Laurence Bracher has fed his sheep on the highway, which is not his right. |
| Failure to Maintain | Henry Snook | Henry Snook must coppiceA coppice was a managed woodland where trees were periodically cut back to encourage new growth. Coppicing produced a renewable... In full. his hedge on each side of the road way leading to Caundle Purse. |
| Failure to Maintain | Henry Snook | Henry Snook must scour his water course between his ground called Watchatt and Robert Bullen’s meadow called Lane End by Michaelmas on pain of'On pain of' was a phrase in presentments specifying the penalty for non-compliance with a court directive. When the court... In full. 5s. |