A HISTORY OF HAMPSHIRE 



square red-brick building, stands on high ground 

 immediately behind the barns. North-east of the 

 farm on the curve of the road as it turns east is 

 the church of St. Mary, standing behind a low brick 

 wall. East of the church fronting on the road 

 is a picturesque block of two thatched and timbered 

 cottages, beyond which high downland stretches to the 

 north-east. Up the downland the road curves, and 

 being lost to sight from the village passes on the north 

 between fine woodland and down country, past two 

 or three outlying thatched cottages, out of the parish. 

 Bermondspit House is in the south-east of the parish 

 on the border between Nutley and Preston Candover. 



The soil of the whole parish is chalk and clay with 

 a subsoil of chalk, and crops of wheat, turnips, oats, 

 and barley are produced on the 556^ acres of arable 

 land which lies for the most part south and east of 

 the village. The 174! acres given up to permanent 

 grass are for the most part in the west where the 

 downland stretches away to Dummer. Of the 

 386f acres of woodland, Norton's Wood, bearing 

 the name of early lords of the manor of Nutley, 

 covers nearly the whole of the north-east of the 

 parish, while Nutley Wood covers the north-west part 

 of the parish that lies between the main road and 

 the western boundary. 



At the time of Domesday Survey, 

 MANOR Henry the treasurer held NUTLET, 

 assessed at aj hides. Of this manor, 

 Geoffrey Mareschal held a hide, and at the same 

 time i virgate, but not of the manor. 1 No further 

 information exists concerning the treasurer's lands, 

 and probably the family of Geoffrey Mareschal, or de 

 Venuz, obtained the whole of Nutley, as in the 

 thirteenth century John de Venuz held Nutley by 

 serjeanty of being marshal of the king's household.' 



In the reign of Henry III, Constance de Venuz, 

 daughter of the above-mentioned John, and lady of 

 the manor, conveyed 24 acres in Nutley to Gilbert de 

 Dene, evidently her tenant." Gilbert afterwards 

 brought an unsuccessful action against her for trespass. 4 

 It was through his marriage with the same Constance, 

 heiress of Nutley, that the famous Adam Gurdon be- 

 came possessed of the manor. 4 In the reign of 

 Edward I Joan daughter of Adam Gurdon received 

 licence from the king to enfeoff James de Norton 

 and Elizabeth his wife of the manor,* described 

 as held of the king in chief as a member of the 

 manor of Worldham, by John de Venuz, the service 

 due being that of great serjeanty, namely, 'that 

 Joan together with the said John should carry a 

 Marshal's rod yearly in the king's house.' ' The 

 Nortons continued in possession * for 400 years, ever 

 described as holding of the crown by great serjeanty, 

 once varied by the term ' knight service.' ' In the 



Vert 



eighteenth century Elizabeth Norton married Francis 

 Paulet of Amport, and their son Norton Paulct be- 

 came lord of the manor. He disposed of Nutley to 

 Thomas Hall in 1745.' With Elizabeth Hall, his 

 granddaughter, heiress of her 

 brother Thomas Hall of Pres- 

 ton Candover, the manor 

 passed to George Purefoy Jer- 

 voise of Herriard, she being 

 his first wife." His descen- 

 dant, Captain Richard Purefoy 

 Purefoy, sold it in 1905 to 

 Mr. J. C. A. Hall and Mr. 

 C. Wade, in whose hands the 

 manor now is." 



It is evident that some 

 property in Nutley remained 



to the family of de Venuz after the marriage of Con- 

 stance de Venuz to Adam Gurdon, as in 1317 John 

 le Mareschal, then lord of East Worldham," granted 

 that manor with its rent from Nutley Manor to 

 John de Burghersh." The grant was said to be only 

 for the grantor's life; however, in 1374, John, the 

 son of the said John de Burghersh, granted the manor 

 of East Worldham and all lands and rent from Nutley 

 to the crown." In spite of this, Alice de la Pole, 

 duchess of Suffolk, a descendant of John de Burghersh, 

 petitioned Edward IV for the restoration of lands in 

 Nutley and East Worldham ' once held by John de 

 Venuz,' which she said had been granted to her and 

 the duke of Suffolk by King Henry VI." The same 

 had come into the hands of Edward IV in the first 

 year of his reign, but were regranted to the duchess 

 upon her petition." 



Upon the attainder of Edmund, duke of Suffolk, 

 these lands must again have passed into royal possession, 

 which perhaps accounts for the fact that Humphrey 

 Bridges (to whom a grant may have been made), 

 holding land in Nutley of the crown, received licence 

 to alienate the same to John Myllyngate and Anne 

 his wife." In 1669 there was a lawsuit between 

 the granddaughters of John Myllyngate, Mary wife 

 of John Coates, and Amy wife of William Soper." 

 The plaintiff Mary stated that her father had settled 

 his estates upon his daughters, but that William Soper 

 had carefully lived close to his father-in-law, and had 

 obtained the family deeds from him as well as a settle- 

 ment to the use of his wife. The defendants, how- 

 ever, maintained that the land had been settled upon 

 Amy as eldest child, and that the plaintiff and her 

 husband had been non-suited when they laid claim to 

 the moiety seven years back, and for yielding up their 

 claim had received money from William Soper. The 

 defendants apparently won their case,* and the Sopers 

 continued to hold their property. In 1736 Patience 



ly.C.H. Hants, i, 500*. 

 Testa de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 233*. 

 Feet of F. Mil. 3 Hen. III. 

 Bracnn'i Note Bk. 1433. 

 Herald and Genealogist, v, 321. 

 Inq. a.q.d. 34 Edw. I, No. 175 ; Pat. 

 34 Edw. I, m. 3. 



7 Inq. a.q.d. 34 Edw. I, No. 175. 



8 Feud. Aids, ii, 313; Chan. Inq. p.m. 



44 Edw. Ill (ist Nos.), No. 50; ibid. 



45 Edw. Ill (Add. Nos.), No. 91 ; Exch. 

 Inq. 28 Hen. VIII, file 988, No. 8 ; 

 Chan. Inq. p.m. 34 Eliz. pt. 2, No. 118 ; 

 Feet of F. Mich. 8 Jas. I. Richard Norton 

 .received pardon from Henry VI for re- 



tettling hit estates upon himself and hit 

 heirs without royal licence (Cal. of Pat. 

 1422-9, p. 198). 



Chan. Inq. p.m. 44 Edw. Ill (ist 

 Nos.), No. 50. 



10 Feet of F. Hants, 18*19 Gco - U- 



11 Ex inform. Capt. R. P. Purefoy. 

 19 Ibid. 



" Vide East Worldham. 



Anct. D. (P.R.O.), A. 3254. 



Ibid. 3250. 



11 Cal. of Pat. 1467-77, p. 66, vide 

 East Worldham. 



W Ibid. Presumably these lands were 

 part of the dowry of the duchess. Upon 



37 



the Rolls of Parliament of the reign of 

 Edward IV careful provision is made that 

 no Act of Resumption or other Act be to 

 the prejudice of Alice duchess of Suffolk, 

 or her son John duke of Suffolk, who 

 entered into all his father's possessions 

 (Cal. of Pat. 1461-7, p. 261 ; Parl. R. 

 Edw. IV). 



18 Pat. 21 Eliz.pt. 6, m. 38 ; Feet of F. 

 Hants, Hit. 22 Eliz. This property con- 

 sisted of lands called Me Graunge or Farm 

 of Dummer Nutley and Basing.' 



19 Chan. Proc. Bridges, bdle. 5 5, No. 26, 

 Coates and Soper. 



Feet of F. Hants, Trin. 22 Chas. II. 



