90 The Tenants and their Land. 1400 — 1575. [cH. 



* from the yoke of servitude.' At the same time four other families, 

 besides the Baxters, were freed, the writs of manumission being 

 practically the same in all cases. Each writ was said to have been 

 granted ' in consideration of certain sums of money.' 



We have a probable clue to the amount paid in one instance, for 

 just before his manumission one of the manumitted serfs, John Dosy, 

 surrendered his lands to two tenants on condition that they pay to 

 the Duke the sum of £\2Q^. 



The Bole Family. In 1443 Roger Bole died, seized of one 

 messuage and if acres. The rather small fines paid by his children 

 for license to marry are explained on the ground of poverty. Shortly 

 before his death in 1467 Roger's son, Robert, was seized of 4 J acres, 

 which passed to Walter Bole. Walter seems to have alienated this 

 land. What became of him afterwards does not appear. His son 

 paid chevage from 1466 to 1472. Between 1428 and 1506 three 

 other bondmen paid chevage. 



A second son of Roger Bole died in 1477, seized of a messuage 

 and 22 acres. He was also a lessee of the manor of Williams, for 

 which a yearly rent of £^. 6s. Zd. was paid. Apparently this branch 

 of the family became extinct in the male line in the early part of the 

 sixteenth century. 



The Bolitout Family. The most noteworthy circumstances in the 

 records of this family during the fifteenth century are the relatively 

 large amounts of land held by some of its members. Thus in 14 10 

 one tenant had 78 acres and four messuages, and two others, possibly 

 heirs of the first, had 44 acres in 1425 and 1474 respectively. Most 

 of the other tenants, of whom at least eleven may be distinguished, 

 held from 4 to 6 acres, although one held as much as 16 and another 

 less than 2 acres. 



In the year 1500 there were four tenants of this name. Of these 

 one seems to have left the manor and to have become a chevage- 

 paying tenant. A second also * surrendered ' his land and paid 

 chevage from a neighbouring village. His will^ dated 1506, shows 

 that he held a house and land, although not of Forncett manor. His 

 bequests were insignificant — \2d. to the parish church, a cow to his 

 wife, and to each of his four daughters ' if it may be borne.' Corn 

 and cattle were to be sold to pay his debts, including a debt of loos. 



^ Appendix XIII. xci. For other instances of the payment of large sums for manu- 

 mission, see the paper by A. Savine, 'Bondmen under the Tudors,' Transactions, Royal 

 Historical Society, N. S. xvii. 



2 Appendix XIII. Ixxxi. 



