STRAY NOTES, PREHISTORIC, SAXON, AND NORMAN. 239 



Marci. This William, as we have seen, held one hide of land for 

 1 6s., and was accustomed to defend it against the king, i.e., he and 

 not the Chapter had to pay all the king's dues. 



A certain Ralph de Marci, already referred to, held land at 

 Astoca for a manor and 80 acres at the time of the Domesday 

 Survey. This Ralph, or another bearing the same name, entered 

 upon lands of the Dean and Chapter as we have already seen. In 

 or before 11 20, when Ralph died, the Chapter granted to his son 

 William and his heirs, all the lands which his father, Ralph, held in 

 Navestock on the day of his death, for a yearly payment of i6s. 

 in full. 



William's son or grandson, Ralph de Marci in 1152, refused to 

 pay his just dues, and the then Firmarii — Theodoric and Robert de 

 Turri — stipulated that the Chapter should consequently release them 

 from all loss which they might sustain thereby. 



We have no information as to the compromise which was made, 

 but it was evident that the dispute had been settled in some form, 

 inasmuch, as de Breante — Ralph's son-in-law, and in right of his 

 wife, is now represented as holding one hide of the aforesaid property 

 acquired by the first Ralph of the Domesday period. It is worthy of 

 note, however, that the Dean and Chapter were sufficiently tired 

 of the de Marci family, and, therefore, took the precaution to make 

 William de Breante responsible for satisfying the Crown for all 

 demands upon such one hide to which allusion has been made. 



But William de Breante and his wife lend additional interest to 

 their holding, from the fact that between 1218 and 1222, William 

 in right of his wife, had liberty given him by Robert, Dean of S. 

 Paul's, with the consent of Walter Niger, the then Vicar (and likewise 

 Prebendary of Rugmere) to found a Chapel and a Chantry in his 

 Court at Navestock, provided he and his heirs maintained a 

 Chaplain at his own charge, sworn to preserve the liberty of the 

 mother Church and to pay the Vicar all the profits he should then 

 receive and admit none of the Parishioners to confess or other holy 

 offices there under pain of being suspended by the ^''icar. The 

 Founder also and the heirs of the said Joan his wife, or whoever else 

 had the said Chapel under his lordship, were also sworn to 

 preset ve the rights of the mother Church under like pain. In which 

 Chapel the Chaplain was to administer the Mass only with Bread 

 and Holy Water forbearing all other Holy Offices saving that at 

 Easter the Founder and his Wife and heirs, with their family and 



