IX. BOOK largest in Europe, as the Seine, the Elbe, the Rhine, and the Danube, were so frozen, that, for above thirty days, waggons passed over them as if over bridges." 823. The harvests devastated by hail. A terrible pestilence among men and cattle." 824. A dreadful and long winter. Not only animals, but many of the human species, perished by the intenseness of the cold.38 832. This year began with excessive rains. A frost succeeded so sudden and intense, that the iced roads were nearly impassable by horses." 834. Great storms and excessive falls of rain.40 851. Severe famine on the continent.41 869. Great famine and mortality in England." 874. A swarm of locusts laid waste the provinces of France. A famine so dreadful followed, that, in the hyperbolical language of the writers, nearly a third part of the population perished. 875. A long and inclement winter, succeeded with unusual falls of snow. The frost lasted from the first of November to the end of March." 43 913. A severe winter. 956. A very mortal pestilence.** 976. A severe famine in England. A frost from 1st November to end of March. 986. A great mortality amongst cattle in England.* 987. A dreadful flux and fever in England." 988. A summer of extreme heat. 989. Great inundations. Very hot summer, unhealthy and unfruitful. Great drought and famine; much snow and rain; CHAP. and no sowing.+7 1005. A great and dreadful famine in England. 1006. The same over all Europe.* 1014. Great sea flood. 1016. Great hail, thunder, and lightning."9 1022. Extreme heat in the summer. 1039. A severe winter. 1041. Inclement seasons all the year, and unproductive ; and great mortality amongst the cattle." 1043-4. A dreadful famine in England and the continent. A sester of wheat sold for above sixty pennies." 1047: An uncommon fall of snow. Trees broken by it." 1048. Earthquake at Worcester, Derby, and other places; and a great mortality." Of the Anglo-Saxon husbandry we may remark, that Domesday Survey gives us some indications that the cultivation of the church lands was much superior to that of any other order of society. They have much less wood upon them, and less common of pasture; and what they had appears often in smaller and more irregular pieces; while their meadow was more abundant, and in more numerous distributions. Sig. Gembl. 591. 47 Lamb. Schaff p. 158. Sigeb. Gembl. 589. 48 Sim Dun. 165. 49 Sax. Chron. 146. 5 Sig. Gembl. 593. 5 Sax. Chron. 157. The MS. Claud. C. 9. Lamb. Schaff. 158. sextarius of wheat sold for five shillings, 52 Sim. Dun. 180. Sig. Gembl. 597. I. BOOK WHI CHAP. II. Their Proprietorship in Land and Tenures. HEN the Anglo-Saxons established themselves in Britain, a complete revolution in the possession of landed property must have taken place, so far as it concerned the persons of the proprietors. They succeeded by the sword. All the chieftains of the octarchy had many years of warfare to wage, before they could extort the occupation of the country. In such fierce assaults, and such desperate resistance, the largest part of the proprietary body of the Britons must have perished. What system of tenures the Anglo-Saxon conquerors established, will be best known from the language of their grants. Some antiquaries have promulged very inaccurate ideas on this subject; and we can only hope to escape error, by consulting the documents, and studying the legal phrases, of the Anglo-Saxon period. We find the land distinguished in their laws by various epithets. We there meet with boc lande, gafole land, folc land, bisceopa land, thegne's land, neat land, and frigan earthe. The proprietors of land are called dryhtne, hlaforde, agende or land hlaforde, and land agende." The occupiers of land were named ceorl, geneat, landesman, tunesman," and such like. From Domesday-book, we find, that of some lands, the king was the chief proprietor; of others, the bishops and abbots; of others, several earls and persons of inferior dignity. A few specimens may be given. Thus in Sussex *Wilkins, Leges Sax. p. 43. 47. 49.65.76. 55 Ibid. p. 2. 10. 11. 15. 21. 8. 58. 63. 5 Ibid. p. 18. 47. 101. 105. These were the tenentes in capite, the great proprietors in demesne. The men who resided on the land, and in the burgs under these in this county, may be seen in Domesday-book. In other counties, we find the same description of persons possessing land, with the addition of others. Thus the great proprietors in Hertfordshire were the king, the archbishop of Canterbury, five bishops, three abbots, an abbess, two canons, four earls or comites, twenty-four less dignified individuals, and three ladies. Two of these ladies are described as wives. Thus: "Rothais, wife of Richard, son of earl Gislebert, holds Standor, and defends herself for eleven hides; Adeliz, wife of Hugo of Grentmaisnil, holds Brochesborne, and defends herself for five hides and a half." The other was the daughter of Radulf Tailgebosch, and held four hides in Hoderdon. In Buckinghamshire the chief proprietors were, the king, the archbishop, five bishops, two abbots, an abbess, a canon, a presbyter, two earls, thirty-eight other individuals; the queen, countess Judith Azelina, wife of Radulf Tailgebosch, the king, thane, and eleemosiners. But subordinate tenures are also mentioned in this valuable record. Thus the abbess of Berching held Tiburn (Tyburn) VOL. II. Ꮓ BOOK IX. under the king, and the canons of St. Paul held of the king five hides in Fulham. Many tenures of this sort appear."7 To several tenures it is added, that the possessors could not give or sell the land without leave." Other tenants are mentioned, who could turn themselves, with their land, wherever they pleased." Land held in elemosinam, or frankalmoigne, also appears." Of other tenants it is said, that they held certain manors, but rendered no service to the abbot, except thirty shillings a year." Sochmanni, and the terra sochmannorum, are mentioned: of two of them it is expressed, that they could sell without leave; while another is declared unable to give or sell without his lord's leave. Two other sochmanni are called Men of the bishop of London.62 One of the sochmen, who could do what he chose with the land, was a canon of St. Paul's. Of the tenures which appear from the Anglo-Saxon grants, the first that may be noticed is that of pure freehold of inheritance, unconnected with any limitation or service. Thus, in a conveyance made between 691 and 694, the kinsman of the king of Essex gives some land, amounting to 40 manentium. The conveying words are, "I Hodilredus, the kinsman "of Sebbi, in the province of the East Saxons, with his con"sent, of my own will, in sound mind, and by just advice, "for ever deliver to thee, and, from my right, transcribe into "thine, the land, &c., with all things belonging to it, with "the fields, wood, meadows, and marsh, that, as well thou as thy posterity, may hold, possess, and have free power to do with the land whatsoever thou wilt." In another, dated in 704, from a king to a bishop, of 30 cassatorum, at Tincenhom, in Middlesex, the words are, 6.6 66 9963 Domesday-book, fo. 12. 62 Ibid. fo. 11. 129. "We 63 MS. Augustus, 2. 26. printed in Smith's Appendix, to Bede, p. 748. |