Manorial Court

ofSheffield, York, England

1704

Translation and transcription

by:

What is a Manor?• A unit of English territorial organization,

originally of the nature of a feudal lordship.• Manors. Manors, not villages, were the economic and social units of

life in the early Middle Ages. A manor consisted of a manor house, one or more villages, and up to several thousand acres of land divided into meadow, pasture, forest, and cultivated fields. The fields were further divided into strips; 1/3 for the lord of the manor, less for the church, and the remainder for the peasants and serfs. This land was shared out so that each person had an equal share of good and poor. At least half the work week was spent on the land belonging to the lord and the church. Time might also be spent doing maintenance and on special projects such as clearing land, cutting firewood, and building roads and bridges. The rest of the time the villagers were free to work their own land.

Sources: Britain Express, and OED Online

History of the English Manor•

Imported from

C

ontinental Europe

•Introduced during A

nglo-Saxon P

eriod

•E

xpanded following

Norm

an Conquest

•T

hrived during the M

iddle Ages

•L

ost popularity in H

igh Middle A

ges due to increased population, urbanization, plague, and other factors

Medieval Manor House

Cast of Characters

• Ducis• Dominus Manorij• Liberus• Villanus• Senescallus• Ballivus

• Duke• Lord of the Manor• Freeman [i.e. free peasant]• Villein [i.e. bound peasant]• Steward• Bailiff

Types of Manorial Court Meetings

• Court Baron: The assembly of freehold tenants of a manor under the presidency of the lord or his steward. Usually held every THREE WEEKS.

• View of Frankpledge: A court held periodically for the production of the members of a tithing, later of a hundred or manor. Held every SIX MONTHS. AKA Court Leet.

Sources: OED Online, and Stuart

Structure of Manorial Court Records

• Title of the Court• Name of the Lord of the Manor [optional]• Date• Name of steward before whom the court

was held• Court proceeding• Closing statement: money brought to the

bailiff

Common Terminology & Phrases

• Ad hanc curiam = To this court• predictus = beforesaid• ad opus et usum = use and behoof [benefit or

advantage]• fecit fidelitatem = made fealty, i.e. made an oath of

allegiance to the lord• sursumreddit in manus Domini Manerij = surrendered

into the hands of the Lord of the Manor• secundum consuetudinem manerij = according to

manorial customSources: OED

Online,Stuart, and A to Zax

Curia BaronisSheffeild SS – Curia Baron[is] pr[e]d[icti] Ducis tent[a] ib[ide]m p[er] Man[er]io Suo pr[e]d[icto] sexto die Aprilis Anno D[omi]ni 1704 Coram sen[es]callo pr[e]d[icto]

Ad hanc Cur[iam] pr[e]sentat & Comp[ara]tu[it] est q[uo]d ante hoc Scil[ice]t Decimo

Octavo die Januarii ult[imo] pr[e]d[icto] p[er] Rob[er]tus Stones de Bradway in Com[itato] Derb[yshire] gen[erosus] extra Cur[ia] Man[er]ij pr[e]d[icti] p[er] manus Joh[ann]is Woodrove gen[erosi] Ric[ard]i Revell gen[erosi] & Henrici Bromhead tr[iu]m[vir] Customar[ia] tentium Man[er]ij pr[e]d[icti] Qui quid[a]m Ric[ard]us Jurat &t [et], sursumreddidit in manus D[o]m[ini] man[er]ij pr[e]d[icti] S[e]c[un]d[u]m Cons[uetudinem] ejusd[e]m Man[er]ij, Revercoem (p[os]t mortem Ethelred[i] Matris i[m]p[ri]m[i]s prd [predicti] Rob[er]ti Stones) totius istius Customari Messuagij sive tenti Co[mmun]it[as] vocat[us] Netherhouse & unius bovat terram Pasler, e[t] quinq[ue] acrar[um] terr[e] Assert … p[er]tin[entia] adinde spectan[s] sive in aliquo modo p[er]tin[entio] scituat iacen[tem] & existen[tem] in Stullwood infra man[er]iu[m] & p[ar]oc[ia]li[m] de Sheffield pr[e]d[ictem] Et Oies [?] & sing[u]los ab [or ad] Customar[ias] Terras & Tenta Que Nic[ola]us Stones avus prd [predictus] Rob[er]ti Stones perquisivit sibi & hered[um] suis imp[ro]pin[quis] de Willo [Wilhelmo] Greaves Juniore, infra maneri[um] prd [predictus], Et Revercoem & Revercoes Reman[ere]in Reman[ere] in eord[e]m[]; ad solum propiu[m] opus & usum Josephi Banks de Sheffield prd [predictus] gen[orosi] heredu[m] & assignator[um] suor[um] imp[er]p[et]uum Et ad null[um] ad usum[?] Intencoes aut pr[o]porta quecunqz [quoecunque] s[e]c[un]d[u]m Cons[uetudinem] ejusd[e]m Man[er]ii Cui quid[a]m Josepho d[omi]nus p[er] sen[es]callu[m] su[u]m prd [predictum] concessit inde se[is]inam h[ab]end[um] sibi hered[em] & assign[atos] suis imperp[etuu]m s[e]c[un]d[u]m Cons[uetudinem] ejusd[e]m man[er]ij Qui Admis[sus] est inde tenens & fecit fid[e]l[i]t[e]m et Dat D[omi]no de fine p[ro] Ingr[ess]u suo Quinqz [Quinque] solid[os] Manibz [Manibus] Balli[v]j Man[er]ij prd [predictus]

Court BaronSheffeild SS –Court Baron of the beforesaid Duke, held in the same place for [or by] the beforesaid manor itself on the sixth day of April in the Year of our Lord 1704 in the presence of the beforesaid steward [Joseph Bankes].

To this court presents [appears] & appears before [or in front] this namely Eighteenth day of January last before said [year] by Robert Stones of Bradway in the County of Derby, gentleman from outside of the before said Manor Court from hand to hand of John Woodrove, gentleman, Richard Revell, gentleman, & Henry Bromhead, mayor, Customary [Court Baron] held of the beforesaid Manor and the certain Richard Jurat and, he surrendered into the hands of the Lord of the before said manor according to custom of the same manor, Revercoem (after the death of Ethelred Matris the first before said Robert Stones) of the whole of this Customary Messuage or held commonalty [commonly] called Netherhouse & one … Pasler land and five acres of land appurtenances belonging to or in any manner belonging to situated, lying & existing in Stullwood among the manor & parish of the before said Sheffeild and ... & each [or every single one] for the Court Baron lands and held … Nicholas Stones grandfather of the before said Robert Stones purchased for himself & his heirs in the neighborhood of William Greaves Junior, between the before said manor, and Revercoem & Revercoes to remain in and to remain to the own sole use and behoof of the before said Joseph Banks, gentleman, his heirs and assignes in perpetuity and to none to use Intencoes or purports whithersoever according to the custom of the same manor which he, the Lord, by his beforesaid steward grants seisan [possession] to have to him, his heirs and assignees in perpetuity according to the custom of the same manor who was admitted tenant and did fealty and gives to the Lord the fine for his entry, five solidos [shillings], into the hands of the before said bailiff of the manor.

Secretary Hand:Manor Court, 1704

Sheffeild [misspelling of Sheffield, city in Yorkshire, England, West Riding District], noun, undeclinedis or ss?Curia, noun, nominative case, feminine, singularBaron[is], noun, genitive case, masculine, singularpr[e]d[icti], present passive participle, genitive case, masculine, singular, modifying baronisDucis, noun, genitive case, masculine, singulartent[a], perfect passive participle, nominative case, feminine, singularib[ide]m, adverbp[er], prepositionman[er]io, noun, ablative case, object of the preposition per, singular, masculinesuo, adjective, ablative case, modifying manerio, singular, masculine, second declensionpr[e]d[icto], present passive participle, ablative case, masculine, singular, modifying the word maneriosexto, adjective, ordinal number, genitive case, clarifies diedie, noun, ablative case, feminine, singular, fifth declensionAprilis, noun, genitive case, masculine, singular, third declensionAnno, noun, ablative case, masculine, singular, second declensionD[o]m[ini], noun, genitive case, masculine, singular, second declension1704, noun, cardinal numberCoram, preposition and adverbSen[es]callo, noun, ablative case, masculine, singular, second declensionpr[e]d[icto], present passive participle, ablative case, masculine, singular, modifying the word senescalloAd, prepositionhanc, relative pronounCur[iam], noun, accusative case, object of the preposition ad, singular, femininepr[e]sentat, verb, perfect, active, indicative, third person, singular, transitive&, abbreviation for the copulative conjunction signifying the word andComp[ara]tu[it], verb, perfect, active, indicate, third person, singular, transitive

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