A HISTORY OF NORTHAMPTONSHIRE 



tion charters. King Stephen gave the abbot a grant 

 of free warren in Kettering^'* and the abbey held the 

 manor attached to the office of Sacrist, in demesne, 

 until its dissolution in 1540.^^ 



In 1544 the manor and advovvson of the rectory of 

 Kettering were granted to William Lord Parr in tail 

 male.2' Lord Parr died two years later without male 

 issue and Kettering reverted to the Crown. In 1560 

 a grant was made to William Garrard and others,-'" 

 which they surrendered two years later. 



The manor of Kettering from which the site of 

 the manor {q.v.) had been separated was granted in 

 1624 to Sir Henry Hobart and others for 99 years, in 

 trust for Charles Princeof Wales, afterwards Charles I.^* 

 In 1628 the trustees assigned their interest to William 

 Williams, Robert Mitchell and others, citizens of 

 London, reserving a rent of £66 7/. lo\d.-^ In the 

 same year Charles I mortgaged the reversion in fee 

 of the manor and much other property, to Edward 

 Ditchfield and others^' representing the City of 

 London, for a large sum of money. Sir Henry Hobart 

 and the other trustees had apparently conveyed the 

 remainder of their lease of the manor subject to the 

 rent of ^66 7/. loW. to Sir Edward Watson, who was 

 holding it in 1628, while Peter Cawston held the 

 market tolls, etc.^ The interest of William Williams 

 and the other trustees was sold in 1630 to William 

 Child and Thomas Gardiner, and in the same year 

 Edward Ditchfield and the others sold the reversion 

 in fee to John Child and Daniel Britten subject to 

 the fee farm rent of ^^66 "js. \Q\dp It appears that 

 Sir Lewis Watson, assignee of the lease of the manor, 

 John Sawyer, Everard Sturges and certain others. 



Watson, E.irl of Rocl- 

 ingh.im. Ardent a cbeve- 

 Ton azure bctwfen three 

 martlets saitle with three 

 crescents or on the cheve- 

 Ton. 



Sawvkr. Lozeii^y or and 

 azure a piile gu}rs ivith 

 three scallops or thereon. 



copyholders of tlic manor, hearing that the King was 

 selling the manor, desired to purchase it. They 

 quarrelled, however, over the terms on which the 

 purchase should be made, and Sir Lewis Watson 

 lirought an action against Sawyer and the others for 

 non-performance of the agreement. In the mean- 

 while Sawyer and nine others obtained the residue of 

 the term of 99 years from William Child and Thomas 

 Gardiner and John Child and Daniel Britten sold 

 the reversion in fee of the manor to Robert Breton of 



Teton, Valentine Goodman of Blaston and eight 

 others.'" Thus the manor became divided into ten 

 shares. In 1634 ^^^ shareholders sold to Sir Edward 

 Watso.a and Edward Watson, at the nomination of 

 Sir Lewis Watson, all the fairs and markets, the 

 common bakehouse, erc.^' 



The shareholders of the manor in 1641 were Edward 

 Watson, created Lord Rockingham in 1645, who held 

 six shares, and Edmund Sawyer, William Good, 

 William Billing and John Drury,'^ who owned the 

 remaining four shares. The Sawyers acquired a 

 second tenth and their two tenths were obtained 

 by John Duke of Montagu in 1724. He also acquired 

 two other shares in 1726 and 1729 from Mrs. Falkner 

 and Mrs. Bass, thus bringing his holding up to 

 four tenths. '^ The Duke's daughter, Mary Duchess 

 of Montagu, had an only daughter Elizabeth, who 

 married Henry Duke of Buccleuch, and these four 

 shares came to the present Duke of Buccleuch. The 

 other six tenths remained in the Watson family 

 Earls and Marquesses of Rockingham and Lords 

 Sondes, and were held by Mr. George Lewis Watson 

 at the time of his death on 31 Dec. 1899.** They 

 then passed to the Rev. Wentworth Watson and on 

 his death without issue on 5 July 1925, Sir Michael 

 Culme Seymour, a minor, grandson of Mary G. Culme 

 Seymour, sister of George Lewis Watson, succeeded 

 to the property which was vested in the hands of 

 trustees, called the Manor trustees. 



The fee farm rent of ^^66 yj. lo^d. was granted in 

 1635 to James Duke of Lenox,^ who settled it on 

 George and Bernard Stuart. They in 1652 assigned 

 their interest to Thomas Gorstelow and John Knight 

 on behalf of Sir Jeffrey Palmer, Bt., attorney general. 

 Sir Jeffrey settled it on his son Lewis and Jane his 

 wife in 1654, and he on his son Sir Geoffrey Palmer. 

 Sir Geoffrey in 1728 sold it to trustees for John Duke 

 of Montagu, from whom it passed with his shares 

 of the manor to the Duke of Buccleuch until extin- 

 guished in 1891.^" 



In 1582 the market tolls and rights, the profits 

 of the common bakehouse and the annual returns 

 called eleven ' dussens ' or tithings, were leased for 

 21 years to Edward Depupper. In 1 592 a furtlier 

 term of 21 years was granted to Peter Cawston/" 

 who was still holding in 1628. The fairs and markets 

 and bakehouse were in 1634 sold by Robert Breton, 

 Valentine Goodman and others, trustees for John 

 Sawyer, Francis Sawyer and others, to Sir Edward 

 Watson and Edward Watson, at the nomination of 

 Sir Lewis Watson.-"* In 1661 Sir Edward Watson, 

 then Lord Rockingham, received a grant of three 

 yearly fairs at Kettering on Tuesday before the feast 

 of the Passover, Tuesday before tiie feast of Michael- 

 mas, and Tuesd.iy before the feast of St. Thomas.** 

 The market rights were, on 16 March, 1881, sold by 

 George Lewis Watson to the old Local Board, and 

 the market is now controlled and owned by the 

 Lhban District Council. 



" Reg. Rob. Swaflham, fol. xlii. 



" falor Ecil. (Kcc. Com.), iv, 279. 



■' I., and P. lien. Illl, vol. xix, (i) 

 r. '41 (75)- 



"' Pat. R. zEllz. pt. 13, 



" Ibid. 22jai. I,pt. 16. 



" Bull,op.cit.,23. 



" P»t. R. 4 Cha.. I, pi. 35; ^ Cliai. I, 

 pi. ig. 



" Ibid. 4Chai. I, pt. 35. 



" Bull, op. cit. cii. Cloic R. 6 Chai. I, 

 pt. 17, no. 21. 



'" Cloic R. 7 CliaJ. I, pt. i^, no. 5; 

 Exchcj. Ililli ft Acci. Nortlumpt. Mich. 

 7 Ch.T». I, no. 97. 



" Hull, op. cit. 27, cii. rio«p R. 9 

 Chai. I, pt. iH, no. 6. 



220 



" Hull, op. cit. cit. Exchcq. Decreet & 

 Orders, i0-2i Chai. II, fol. 46A. 



" Dull, op. cit. 31. ''Ibid. 



" I'ai. K. II Ch,i«. I,pt. I J. 



-'' Rllll, op. cii. 2iJ, 30. 

 '' I'at. R. 34 Eli/., pi. II, m. 17 j Hull, 

 op. cii. p. 14. 



*" Cloic U. 9 Chai. I, pt. 18, no. 6. 

 " r.il. R. 13 Chat. II, pt. 17, no. 24. 



