vii] The Tenants and their Land. 1400 — 1575. 85 



obtained their freedom \ But the class is so large, outnumbering 

 apparently each of the other classes, that it seems very unlikely that 

 it should have been altogether derived from them. It may have 

 been considerably augmented by new comers to the manor, but the 

 most probable hypothesis appears to be that the nucleus of this class 

 consisted of representatives of former free sokemen's families. 



In 1400 many, probably most, of the freeholders {libere tenentes) 

 held a few acres of copyhold land, but none of them apparently held 

 any considerable amount of copyhold of Forncett manor. The 

 holdings of the free copyholders {native tenentes) also, in so far at 

 least as they held of Forncett, were, as a rule, very small. 



The table on p. 82 indicates the status of the tenants that at the 

 time of their death held an area of 15 acres or more of copyhold^. 

 Between 1401 and 1500 in only 23 cases (8 per cent.) did the tenant 

 hold more than 15 acres by this tenure. Of these 23 tenants 13 were 

 freemen and 10 were serfs. In the period 1 546-1 560 all but one of the 

 tenants of the larger holdings were freemen; and as the Survey of 1565 

 shows, these largest copyholders were as a rule the large freeholders. 



We have next to consider how far the larger properties in copy- 

 hold held by freemen were acquired by a process of slow accumulation, 

 lasting through generations, and how far they were acquired by large 

 single investments of capital ; and in this connection we have also 

 to consider whether the tenants of these larger properties were of 

 local origin, or were merchants and townspeople. 



In Appendix VI. a list is given of the tenants of Forncett manor 

 in 1565, and of their holdings in that year. 



Of these 175 tenants, 14 tenants, representing 11 families, held 

 more than 50 acres each. 



Now, of these 1 1 families whose representatives held more than 

 50 acres apiece, at least nine, if we may safely judge by the continuity 

 of the surnames, had held of Forncett manor since the early years 

 of the fifteenth century. Of these nine, some belonged to the local 

 gentry ; others were of humbler social position. In the former class 

 were the Baxters, Brownes, Buxtons, and Revest Of the two families 

 who entered the manor later, one, the Shermans, was of gentle rank. 



^ John Drill, who bears a servile surname, is mentioned among the 'native tenentes,' 

 but there are no indications that any considerable proportion of this class had a servile 

 origin. 



^ 'Copyhold' throughout this chapter includes 'soiled' land. 



^ For the Browne family, who, in the early seventeenth century, were owners of Tacol- 

 neston or Dovedale's manor and of Williams' manor in Tacolneston, see Blomefield, op. cit. 

 V. 166-169; for the Buxton family, owners of many neighbouring manors, see Ibid. v. 276, 



