A HISTORY OF HAMPSHIRE 



prizes or rewards to boys resident in the four inter- 

 ested parishes qualified as therein mentioned, or in 

 payments to encourage continuance at school of such 

 boys, or in exhibitions, evening classes, or technical 

 instruction. The official trustees hold a sum of 4.0 



Local Loans 3 per cent, stock, which under the 

 provisions of the scheme is to be maintained as a 

 repair fund. 



By deed 1872 a national school was founded for 

 this parish and Exton. 168 



MEONSTOKE 



Menestoche (xi cent.) ; Mienestoch, Mionstoke 

 (xii cent.) ; Manestoke, Menestoke (xiii cent.) ; Mune- 

 stoke, Munestokes, Maonestoke, Moenestoke (xiv 

 cent.). 



Meonstoke parish, covering an area of 2,055 acres, 

 lies five miles north-east of Bishop's Waltham, and 

 about one and a half miles north of Droxford. The 

 village is situated in the extreme west of the parish, 

 close to the river, the church being on the left bank 

 of the stream, while the village lies to the south and 

 east, on the lower slopes of the east side of the valley. 

 The houses are built along two streets which meet at 

 right angles, the one running eastward from Cor- 

 hampton, and the other following the line of the 

 river and going southwards to Soberton. A swiftly- 

 flowing mill-race near the bridge at the west end of 

 the village probably marks the site of the mill which 

 is mentioned in Domesday Book, 1 and is included in 

 the extent of the manor of Meonstoke Waleraund 

 taken in the reign of Edward II.* The smithy stands 

 close by, to the north of the road, and by the Buck's 

 Head Inn a little path runs off north to the church 

 of St. Andrew. The rectory, which stands on the 

 higher ground east of the church, was built in 1895, 

 replacing the old rectory-house, which, with the glebe, 

 was sold in that year. There are few old cottages, 

 since the greater part of the village was burnt down 

 at the beginning of the eighteenth century, and in 

 place of the older houses were built rows of houses 

 [fronting on the street and entered by tall flights of 

 steps. The manor house lying to the east is the resi- 

 dence of Dr. George William Butler. To the east of 

 the village runs the Meon Valley branch of the South 

 Western Railway, and beyond it rise the downs, Old 

 Winchester Hill, in the north-east corner of the 

 parish, reaching a height of 650 ft. The only 

 houses in the eastern part of the parish are a few 

 scattered farms reached by rough roads which in some 

 cases are merely tracks across the downs. The south- 

 eastern corner of the parish is well wooded, containing 

 Little Sheardley Wood, Great Sheardley Wood, Stoke 

 Wood, and Stockram Copse. There are 987 acres of 

 arable land in the parish, 1 34^ acres of permanent 

 grass, and 31 J acres of woods and plantations. 8 

 Meonstoke Down was inclosed in 1863. 



The soil is chalk and loam, the subsoil chalk and 

 flint. The chief crops are wheat, oats, and barley. 

 The following field-names are found in the four- 

 teenth century : ' Jamesland, Crouchland, and 

 Martinsland.' 4 



MEONSTOKE formed part of the 

 MANORS lands of King Edward the Confessor, 

 being then assessed at one and a half 

 hides. At the time of the Domesday Survey it was 

 part of the ancient demesne of the crown, and was 

 therefore not assessed.* In 1 1 80 Meonstoke was the 

 land of Henry de Bulleis. 6 He was succeeded by 

 Hamon de Bulleis, who died in 1 187, when it passed 

 to the crown. 7 Until the reign of Henry III Meon- 

 stoke formed part of the sources of the royal ferm. 

 Thus in 1 189 Richard de la Bere accounted for 20 

 farm of Meonstoke, paying thence 10 marks for her 

 dowry to Joan widow of Hamon. 8 Again in 1202 

 Thomas de Hoe paid 40 marks for two years' farm of 

 Meonstoke. In the reign of Henry III Meonstoke 

 was divided into three portions worth respectively 

 10, .5, and 2 a year, 9 and from this time there 

 were three manors of Meonstoke each with a dis- 

 tinct history until the later consolidation in the 

 time of William of Wykeham. 



MEONSTOKE ffJLERJUND, afterwards 

 MEONSTOKE FERRERS. The first mention of 

 the largest of these portions as a separate manor 

 seems to be in 1224, when the sheriff was ordered 

 to give seisin to Pain de Chaworth of his land 

 in Meonstoke. 10 This land was afterwards granted 

 to William de Percy, who, however, cannot have 

 held it long, as in 1239 Henry III granted it to 

 Fulk de Montgomery, with the proviso, however, 

 that if the property were restored by the crown 

 to the heirs of William de Percy, Fulk should 

 receive ^30 yearly from the exchequer, until he 

 received an equivalent grant of escheated lands." 

 In 1231 Fulk sold the manor to Sir John Maunsel, 

 chancellor of St. Paul's," who in the same year 

 obtained a grant of a weekly market on Monday at 

 Meonstoke and of a yearly fair there on the vigil, 

 the feast, and the morrow of St. Margaret, 18 and two 

 years later a grant of free warren in all his lands in 

 Hampshire. 14 Sir John stood high in favour with 

 Henry III, who heaped preferments on him with so 

 lavish a hand that at one period he was holding no 

 fewer than seventy benefices of different kinds. When 

 Simon de Montfort became supreme the king was 

 forced, though much against his will, to deprive his 

 favourite of his possessions, granting them by letters 

 patent in 1263 to Simon de Montfort the younger. 15 

 After the battle of Evesham, Meonstoke escheated to 

 the king, who granted it to Geoffrey de Percy, prob- 

 ably the heir of William de Percy, who in 1 268 sold 



15 V.C.H. Hanti, ii, 398. 



1 Ibid, i, 4523. 



' Inq. p.m. 2 Edw. II, No. 80. 



8 Statistics from Bd. of Agric. (1905). 



4 Inq. p.m. 26 Edw. Ill (and Nos.), No. 



56. 



V.C.H. Hants, i, 452,1. 



Pipe R. 26 Hen. II. While Henry 



was lord of Meonstoke, he granted in free 

 alms to the church of St. Mary of South- 

 wick and the canons of that place 21. in 

 his manor of Meonstoke, payable every 

 year on the Feast of the Assumption of 

 the Blessed Virgin Mary (Add. MS. 33285, 

 fol. 176). 



7 Pipe R. 33 Hen. II. 



254 



Ibid. I Ric. I. 



Vide Assize R. Mich. 8 Edw. I. 

 10 Close, 8 Hen. Ill, pt. I, m. 8. 

 " Chart. R. 23 Hen. Ill, m. 3. 

 "Ibid. 31 Hen. Ill, m. 12. 



" Ibid. m. II. 



" Ibid. 33 Hen. Ill, m. 3. 



Pat. 47 Hen. Ill, m. 5. 



