Tracing Your Ancestors from 1066 to 1837 Read online

  These volumes can be found in any good reference library, but larger selections are only available at more specialist libraries and institutions such as TNA. Names are arranged alphabetically. Extinct peerages are excluded, but there have been volumes dedicated to such.

  An example from Burke’s Landed Gentry from 1848 is as follows. The Hereford family of Lambe of Bidney and Henwood was currently headed by William Lambe Esquire. He had been born in 1765, and had married, in 1794, Harriott Mary Welsh of Warwick, whose father was John. She had died in 1804 but had borne her husband six children, all named, with spouses if applicable and whether they had children or not (none named). The second wife of William Lambe was noted, the year of marriage, and her father’s name and place of residence. Then the family’s lineage is given, which goes back to 1661. Family names, often with years of birth, marriage and death are given. More attention is devoted to names and details of those in direct line of descent.

  Famous People

  If you think you may have a famous ancestor, try looking in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, published in 2004, which is all of forty-four volumes (held by good reference libraries), or available online as a subscription site (available free for users at some record offices and libraries). This is the successor to the Dictionary of National Biography, produced at the end of the nineteenth century, and the newer version contains far more names. The volumes list tens of thousands of individuals in British history – soldiers, sailors, writers, politicians, scholars, clergymen and criminals to name just a few categories. They are arranged alphabetically and there is an article about each life, of varying length, together with references on which the article is based. The online version is to be preferred for three reasons. First, it is updated in the light of new facts and to correct any errors therein. Secondly, even if you do not have a famous ancestor, you may have someone who was associated with, say, Samuel Pepys, and may be mentioned in the said article, and the online search facility allows you to search by name. You can also search by place, so you could discover if there was anyone famous who lived in the same place as your ancestor or attended the same school or college.

  Published sources would seem fairly easy to use, for they are in English, legible and several copies of most exist, making them more accessible than some sources. The major drawback is that they are mostly unindexed, so unless you have a rough idea of the date that a particular event happened, searching blind can be fruitless and lengthy. Secondly, these publications overwhelmingly include the better off in society rather than those with few material goods.

  Chapter 8

  MANORIAL RECORDS

  Manorial records are probably the most single important source for family historians for the centuries prior to the establishment of parish registers in the sixteenth century. They record the largest number of names and include those of people of quite humble social origin, which for this period few other documents, saving the poll tax records, do. However they are probably one of the most underused archives by family historians, partly because some are deterred by the palaeography and Latin, and there is more on this matter in Appendix 1. The manorial records for the place where your immediate post-1538 ancestors resided would be the best place to begin your search.

  England was made up of manors in Anglo-Saxon times and this division persisted, albeit with many changes, until its abolition in 1922. William I’s famous Domesday survey was a record of manors held in 1086. A manor was a geographical and economic unit of land, and they came in various shapes and sizes. It was not always synonymous with parish. For example, the manor of Fulham, held by the Bishop of London in 1086, was made up of numerous parishes: Acton, Ealing, Chiswick and Fulham. Many of these were subdivided into sub-manors. Manors were not owned, but held by a lord, who might be female or a cleric or a knight. All land was technically held by the monarch, who allocated most of it to the mighty subjects of his realm, bishops and secular lords, in return for their military support. In turn they let out manors to their chief followers, often knights or clergy of the middling rank. Many of these tenants held several manors, and most of these were supervised by a bailiff; few had manor houses which are usually associated with manors.

  Each manor was divided into the lord’s own land, called the demesne, land that was held by the lord’s tenants, and finally common land and wasteland. There were two types of tenant. First, there were the villeins, who worked on the demesne for part of their time, in return for their tenancy. Then there were the freemen who held their tenancies by the payment of a cash rent to the lord. On the tenant’s death a sum, known as a heriot, had to be paid to the lord. For the heir to enter into the property, an entry fee, known as a relief, had to be paid to the lord. These tenants often made up the juries in the manorial courts. Some tenants held land by both forms of payment. Villein tenure evolved into a copyhold tenancy (so called because both lord and villein had a copy of the latter’s title to his tenancy) in which labour services were replaced by rent, a process speeded up by the Black Death of the fourteenth century. Most tenants held land by copyhold tenure, and copyhold land could not be sold. After a tenant’s death, the lord could grant it to anyone else or could allow the heir to take it over. Much depended on manorial custom, which varied between manors.

  Frith Manor, Mill Hill, Middlesex. Paul Lang’s collection.

  Boscombe Manor. Paul Lang’s collection.

  Tenants could sub-let part of their land, but this would cease on the death of the sub-tenant, who would often be a cottar or tenant at will, who were lower down in the social hierarchy.

  The decline of the manor as a unit, though not as a legal entity, resulted in the parish increasing its powers in the sixteenth century. Some disappeared altogether. One important institution was the manor court, and it was this which produced the crucial records of the manor’s tenants and their activities.

  Manor Courts

  There were two types of manor court. The first was the court baron, or curia baronis. It was usually held every three weeks. It concerned the customs of the manor, relating to land tenure and use, and also served to uphold the payment of all dues and services owed to the lord. Disputes between tenants could be settled here, such as complaints of trespass and the settlement of small claims. The court also appointed its own officers, principally the reeve or bailiff who collected the lord’s dues, and the hayward, who oversaw the repair of fences and boundaries between landholdings.

  Then there was the court leet, or curia letis, which was held less often, perhaps twice annually. It dealt with the operation of frankpledge, or visus franciplegii. This was a system of mutual responsibility based on a group of about ten households to uphold law and order. The offences it dealt with were common nuisances, affrays and breaking the assize of bread and ale. The latter regulated the sale of goods. The court could fine or imprison offenders. Its principal official was the constable. A fine was called an amercement because the offender was at the court’s mercy, and it would decide his penalty. There was a jury of twelve men who possessed property (worth at least £10 per year from 1696).

  However, these courts’ functions were not always sharply differentiated. They could be held in the lord’s hall, or in the open air or in an ecclesiastical building if the lord was a clergyman. Usually the bailiff presided, but occasionally it could be the lord himself. Attendance by villeins was compulsory. Freemen had a greater leeway in attending, but there was no hard and fast rule. This court survived until the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, though it was superseded by the parish, as noted in Chapter 3.

  Manorial documents do not survive before the thirteenth century, though as noted the institution is centuries older. By the end of the century they exist in great quantity, but their survival varies considerably from manor to manor.

  These documents are usually set forward in the same way, which makes them easier to deal with once a few have been looked at. For the courts leet, at the top of the parchment roll will be the name
of the type of court, the day of the week and the date. Then there will be the list of penalties paid by those tenants who did not attend the court. Those non-attendees who did not send apologies were given heavier fines (known as amercements). Then there is a list of changes in tenancy, including surrenders and admissions, and details of entry fines paid. When a tenant died, this would be noted and his heir named in what is known as an inquisition post mortem (about property, not on how the individual died). They would have their right acknowledged and would pay a forfeit, often in the shape of a beast, termed a heriot. There may also be a list of witnesses. There should also be a little information about the individual who inherited the land, with his age, and proofs given by witnesses of this fact. Other new tenants, who purchased their tenancy, would also be named here. Descriptions of property were often given.

  Overseer and villeins. Paul Lang’s collection.

  For the years just after 1348, the impact of the Black Death may be noted, but the records are not explicit. For example, they may state that land has been passed to someone from another who has died.

  For courts baron, there is a list of disputes to be dealt with, with names, detail of offence and penalty paid by the offenders. There may also be a list of the court jury and officials present. Court rolls for Ruislip Manor, for example, show that in 1246, Isabella, Peter’s widow, was fined 18d for her son John’s trespassing in the lord’s wood. Hugh Tree’s beasts were in the lord’s garden and he was fined 6d, whilst Walter Hill and Hugh Slipper stood as his securities. In a later court roll, it was stated that Lucy Mill had committed adultery and had her property seized by the manor.

  A court roll for the manor of Northolt for 1508 reads as follows, and shows the information that can be obtained therein.

  Headboroughs say that John Hacche, and Edward Romyn owe suit of Court and are in default, each fined 2d.

  John Rous is a brewer of ale and break the assize. 4d.

  John Gybbes has allowed his beasts to trespass in the corn fields of the tenants of the manor, fined 3d.

  A ram has been found straying, a proclamation to be made.

  Alice Tonnell, widow who holds copyhold land of two half virgates, one called ‘Shepards’ and the other ‘Hillers’ lying diversely in the common fields of Northall has surrendered them to the use of John Gybbes who does not attend, ordered to attend the next court under penalty.

  Humfry Hegger, brother of John Hegger, son of William Hegger aged 11 years wishes to be admitted to a messuage and a virgate of land which was held by John Hegger when he died. Humfry is admitted but the land is to be held by George Hegger until Humfry is aged 24 years. Fine 20d.

  George Stevyns who holds of the lord a tenement and 3 acres of land, one acre in ‘Tymlowe feld’, one acre in ‘Estfeld’ abutting on ‘Longe Furlong’ and three acres lying next to ‘Shirwyns croft’ has surrendered to the use of John Rous. Fine paid.

  Margery the wife of John Cokke has a ditch containing 30 perches, fine 6d.

  Apart from these court records, known as court rolls, there were less common documents.

  Rentals and Extents

  These are far less common than court rolls. Rentals and surveys of the manor which were only made from time to time, often when the manor changed hands, and these documents, as with the court rolls, often list people, describe the nature of their tenure, the services they rendered to the lords and describe their holdings. For urban parishes, street names are often given. Property descriptions are sometimes given.

  Minute books and draft court rolls can be useful substitutes when the original court rolls do not exist. Suit books and call books list those who attended.

  Other manorial records include accounts, but these rarely mention individuals, rather the sums of money accruing from various agricultural products. Custumals might be more useful, for they list the rents, services and obligations owed by tenants to the lord. However few were created after the mid-fourteenth century; and in many manors, oral testimony was relied on instead of the written record.

  Villeins fattening pigs. Paul Lang’s collection.

  In order to track down the whereabouts of such documents, use the Manorial Documents Register, which is currently incomplete, but work is ongoing to complete the national coverage. Yorkshire, Middlesex, Hampshire, Surrey and Norfolk are included amongst others. It can be searched online at www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/mdr. The London Metropolitan Archive holds the archives of many manors in Middlesex, but some are held at TNA, especially manors held by the Crown and elsewhere; the colleges of the two ancient universities held several manors in southern England and so the library of a particular college may be a place you might have to visit. Westminster Abbey muniments room holds some. Some are in private hands.

  Some manorial court rolls have been transcribed and so are more easily accessible for most researchers – some for early fifteenth-century Harrow are found with the originals at the LMA for instance. Some record societies have also transcribed some medieval court rolls. For those which are not translated, a useful guide is Denis Stuart’s Manorial Records (1992). It contains a number of exercises for the student to practise upon, as well as a handy dictionary of terms often found therein.

  However, it is worth remembering that manorial tenure continued up to 1922, so there are manorial records which are written in English and so are easier to use. Not all survive, but for some manors there are centuries worth of records in existence.

  Not every inhabitant of manors is listed in these records. Women and children are less likely to appear. Nor are servants or the poorest likely to be listed. However about three-quarters of adult male tenants do.

  Tenants of Crown lands can be identified in the Parliamentary Survey of Crown Lands of 1649 and 1650, in TNA, E317, which describes land held by the said tenants. Sales of land are in CRES39/67–74 and E320.

  Inquisitions post mortem occurred prior to 1660. When a landholder died, there had to be an enquiry held by the royal escheator (the King’s local representative) of the county. This would determine what land was held under what terms, would note the former landholder and decide who the successor was. Records are at TNA, C132–42 and at E149–50, which cover 1236–1660.

  Manorial archives prior to the sixteenth century are the best single type of records for family historians as they record the largest numbers of names, though as noted they are far from comprehensive. They do, however, present the best chance of finding ancestors prior to parish registers. Having located ancestors in the earliest parish registers you can, these should be your next port of call. Hopefully there will be court rolls for the manors in the parish where your ancestors dwelt.

  Chapter 9

  PROPERTY RECORDS

  Property is and was a key source of wealth and thus power. Recording its ownership and changes in its status and owners has been of prime importance throughout the centuries. Indeed, in the twelfth century, forged deeds for ecclesiastical property became commonplace. The survival of deeds is another matter. From the whole of the centuries of Saxon England, only 2,000 survive; but in the thirteenth century alone there are tens of thousands. It has been estimated that the latter estimate is but the tip of the iceberg of perhaps eight million which were created. In the Saxon era, most deeds issued from the monarch, whereas in the twelfth century private deeds were created, but this explosion of documentation resulted from even peasants being accustomed to the use of documents in property transactions. More and more, society was relying on the written word rather than the oral tradition, and this is good news for historians. Another boon is that in 1199 the clerks of the Chancery, a key department of the King’s government, began keeping copies of all the charters they issued. Most of what we know about property is when it changed hands and so there was a need to record what had happened.

  Houses opposite church, Saffron Walden, 2011. Author’s collection.

  There is no one set of records for this period to property on a national scale. After 1837 there are several: t
ithe apportionments, Land Valuations and the Farm Survey for instance. Instead there is a variety of source material for the propertied Englishman. Remember that many adults – servants and labourers, for instance – did not own property, and that female owners were a distinct minority.

  Deeds

  Since the Middle Ages, deeds have been drawn up to legally convey property (technically hereditaments) from one party to another. A deed involves at least two parties. Initially two copies of the document were created on the same piece of parchment and then they were cut along a wavy line, so if there were any doubts as to the authenticity of the deed, the two could be matched up. There are three types of land: freehold, which is owned for an indefinite period, leasehold, which is for a limited duration, and copyhold, which is held from a manor by special tenure.

  With the increase of the middle class deeds reached their peak in the nineteenth century, with many being created and kept. Until 1925 it was necessary to retain all deeds relating to a property, and these ever growing bundles were passed on to each new purchaser. However, owing to changes in the law of property in the twentieth century, it is no longer necessary to retain deeds going back more than fifteen years before the present owner acquires the property. Banks and solicitors have no need to retain vast numbers of deeds. This has resulted in a great many collections of deeds finding their way into local authority record offices, often via the agency of the British Records Association, which acts as a clearing house for the distribution of archives. Many other deeds were simply thrown away; some ended up as lampshade covers and others can sometimes be found in secondhand bookshops.