EAST MEON HUNDRED 



EAST MEON 



ing their fences, but the great wood belonging to the 

 lord was of late destroyed except some very little and 

 young oaks all at present not worth above 30*.' " 



The boundaries of the manor are given in great 

 detail and show well what a large area it covered M : 

 ' This manor lieth part in Hampshire and part in 

 Sussex and is bounded as follows, viz. : By a bound 

 post standing in Basing Dean parting this manor and 

 the manor of West Meon west . . . and by 

 the parish of West Tisted upon the north-west to 

 Hoar Thorns, and so by the manor of Colemeare and 

 a wood called Colemearewood on the north 

 and from thence upon the manor of Prior's Dean 

 upon the north-east to the rising of a litile brook in 

 Brooker's mead, and so by that little brook to the 

 parish of Liss, and thence to Wheatham dell and the 

 yew-tree at Wheatham Green, and by a little lake to 

 the Prince's Bridge, and so by the river to Lord's 

 mill and from thence by a little stream unto Kettler's 

 brook and so by the highway to Polehill, then by a 

 footpath to Tilmer gate . . . from thence to Beer- 

 land boundring upon the manor of Berriton, from 

 thence to a great oak standing in the midst of Ches- 

 combe and so abutting upon the manor of Berriton 

 and Mapledurham upon the south-east unto a great 

 ash standing on the side of Butser Hill . . . and 

 so to the lower gate of Hiden abutting upon the 

 parish of Clanfield, on the south from the aforesaid 

 gate to Broad Halfpenny abutting upon the parish of 

 Katherington, thence to Pye Lane abutting upon the 

 parish of Hambledon . . . from thence abutting 

 upon the parish of West Meon, upon the south-west 

 as far as Westbury, from thence towards the west upon 

 certain lands belonging to Westbury, and so upon 

 the land of Peak farm towards the north-west upon 

 the parish of Privett . . . and so to Basing 

 Post standing in Basing Dean aforesaid.' Certain 

 payments were made from the manor to various 

 officials of the bishopric the measurer of the tithe- 

 corn and wheat of the rectory, the surveyor and 

 steward of the lordships belonging to the bishopric, 

 the treasurer of 'Wolvesey,' the bailiff of the bailiwick 

 of East Meon, the clerk of the bailiwick of East Meon 

 and Meonchurch, and two reeves and a beadle, and 

 the net annual value of the manor was estimated at 



The park of East Meon belonged to the 

 PARK bishops, who were careful to maintain their 

 right of free warren and free chase." The 

 following description is given of the park in the Sur- 

 vey of 1647 : ' There is also belonging to this manor 

 a park, situate and lying near the town of East Meon, 

 known by the name of East Meon Park, lying between 

 the way that leadeth from East Meon church and 



88 The rights of the tenants of the 

 manor regarding this common were 

 strictly enforced. On 4 April, 1651, 

 a certain Giles Hall of Petersfield was 

 fined 2J. for cutting and carrying away 

 two loads of bushes out of the Stroud to 

 Petersheld, being none of the customary 

 tenants of the manor (Eccl. Com. Ct. R. 

 bJle. 99, No. 9). 



84 East Meon manor comprised the fol- 

 lowing tithings : Ambersham, Forcomb or 

 Foxcomb, Aldersnapp, Froxfield, Long- 

 hurst, Ramsdean, Week. Oakshott, Lang- 

 rish, Bordean, Ro.hercombe, Ashford, 

 Oxcnbourn, Meon Manor, Meonchurch, 

 Coomb, and Riplington. 



86 Thus in 1279 a commission of oyer 



Petersfield called Hide Lane on the south, and 

 another highway that leadeth from East Meon to 

 Alton on the north-west ; on the east are the grounds 

 belonging to Magdalen College Oxford and the lands 

 of Sir William Lewis kt. with the lands of other 

 tenants ; on the south-west is the church and church- 

 yard of East Meon ; on the north the grounds belong- 

 ing to the manor of " Bearly." 36 The park has a lodge 

 with five rooms, two little out-barns, a garden, a hop- 

 yard all paled about and contains \\ acres. This 

 park is paled about, but hath not any deer therein. 

 It is now stored with conies. It containeth by 

 estimation 500 acres, and is worth per annum by im- 

 provement 70, and is now in possession of Sir 

 William Lewis, bart. He claimeth to hold the office 

 of keeper and the keeping of the park aforesaid and of 

 the deer in the same park and all the herbage, pannage 

 and agistment of it (competent and sufficient herbage 

 and feeding for eight score deer in the same park 

 always excepted), and also the office of measuring the 

 tithe-corn and wheat of the rectory of East Meon 

 with all the profits to the said offices belonging. There 

 is not any tithe to be paid for this park." . . . The 

 grant was made to Queen Elizabeth by John Watson, 

 bishop of Winchester, amongst other things, by inden- 

 ture 14 December 24 Elizabeth. By her majesty 

 assigned over to John Stockman by indenture 28 

 March 24 Elizabeth, 38 which said John assigned the 

 same to William Neale . . . The right of this lease 

 descended to his son Sir Thomas Neale, 89 and from him 

 to his son Thomas Neale, who by indenture 1 3 Feb. 

 10 Charles granted the same to Sir William Lewis, for 

 which he is to pay per annum two hundred conies 

 worth per annum $, as also herbage in the park 

 for a hundred and sixty deer worth .40. The 

 present profits of the park which may be made of 

 beechen timber and firewood, now worth .900, all 

 " bots " " being allowed.' 



There is no longer a park in East Meon, although 

 the name is preserved in the modern Park Farm and 

 Park Down. 



An annual fair held near South Farm in a field 

 called Fair Field or Chapel Close " originally belonged 

 to the lords of the manor of East Meon. It was 

 kept on the Lady Day in harvest, and the annual 

 profits therefrom were assessed at ^i los." in 1647. 

 It existed until about ten years ago, by which time it 

 had come to be a horse-fair held in the village itself. 



At the time of the Domesday Survey there were 

 six mills worth forty shillings in ' Menes,' a which was 

 practically identical with the modern hundred of East 

 Meon. The following mills are mentioned in a rent- 

 roll of the manor of East Meon for 1567 " : a mill 

 called South Mill in the tithing of East Meon held 



and terminer was granted to Robert Ful- 

 conis and William de Brayboef touching 

 the persons who broke the parks of 

 Nicholas bishop of Winchester of East 

 Meon &c., hunted therein and carried 

 away deer (Pat. 7 Edw. I, m. 5 d.). 

 Again in 1371 William bishop of Win- 

 chester brought a similar plea against 

 certain malefactors, who, besides breaking 

 into his parks ani chases had also fished 

 in his fisheries, and taken and carried 

 away fish to the value of 200, and beasts 

 from the said parks and chases, and also 

 hares, pheasants, and partridges (Pat. 45 

 Edw. Ill, pt. i, m. 27 d ). 



86 The modern Bereleigh. 



" At the present day Park Farm and 



6 7 



all the lands belonging to it, Park Down, 

 &c., occupying the site of the Park, are 

 tithe-free. 



88 Vide also Pat. 24 Eliz. pt. 6. 



89 Lord of the manor of Warnford. 



40 House-hot, post-bot; pale-bot, and 

 rail-bot. 



41 So called because there was formerly 

 a chapel of ease there called St. Mary's in 

 the Field. This chapel is mentioned as 

 early as 1318, but in 1703 is described at 

 'quite doun' (Stowe MS. 845, fol. 56). 



48 MS. ptntt Mr. J. Silvester of Frox- 

 field. 



48 V.C.H. Hant,, i, 452*. 

 44 MS. penes Mr. J. Silvester. 



