ELMBRIDGE HUNDRED 



ESHER 



nephew, Lewis Thomas, Lord Sondes," who in 1805 

 sold the estate in parcels. The house and park at 

 Esher were purchased by John Spicer," whose son, 

 J. W. Spicer, succeeded him in iSji. 3 * The present 

 owner is Sir Edgar Vincent, K.C.M.G. 



There was a manor-house at Esher in early times, 

 which was enlarged by John, Bishop of Winchester, in 

 1331." Bishop Waynflete* 4 built a stately brick 

 mansion on the banks of the River Mole in Esher 

 Park, the gate-house of which still remains and 

 bears his name." This house perhaps did not satisfy 

 the gorgeous ideas of Cardinal Wolsey, to whom it 

 was lent by Bishop Fox in 1519. The latter wrote 

 on this occasion, ' Would God that the poor lodging 

 of Esher did content your Grace as it rejoiceth me 

 that it can please you to use it.' " When Wolsey in 

 1528 succeeded Fox as bishop he gave directions for 

 the repair and partial rebuilding of this house ; and 

 after his disgrace he took up his residence there for 

 some time.* 8 In a survey of the manor taken in the 

 reign of Edward VI it is stated that besides the 

 ' sumptuously built ' mansion-house there were an 

 orchard and garden, with a park adjoining, 3 miles 

 in circuit.* 9 When restored to the see of Winchester 

 by Queen Mary the manor comprised, besides the 

 park, the rabbit-warren, about 185 acres of land, and 

 the land called Northwood in Cobham. 40 



Henry Pelham, the statesman, employed Kent to 

 rebuild wings to the gate-house." The main part 

 of the standing gate-house is of Waynflete's time. 

 The porch is undoubtedly Kent's, and he probably 

 altered the windows. How much of the original 

 house wa standing when he built in 1729 is unknown, 

 but the view in Salmon seems to show the great hall 

 on the side of a quadrangle opposite to the gate- 

 house. 



Mr. John Spicer pulled down Pelham's additions, 

 leaving the original gate-house, and rebuilt on a new 

 and higher site. The present house, of Palladian style, 

 with Ionic porticoes, commands fine views, and the 

 grounds are well planted and very picturesque. 



ESHER WATEniLE.l^. 675 Frithwald, subre- 

 gulus of Surrey, and Bishop Erkenwald are said to have 

 granted to Chertsey Abbey 5 manias at Esher. 41a This 

 grant was confirmed by King Edward in I o62,"and dur- 

 ing his reign an Englishman gave to the abbey 2 hides of 

 land in Esher belonging to the manor of Esher. 43 At 

 the time of the Domesday Survey the monks had 

 5$ hides of land in Esher, rated at only 5 virgates, 

 which were held of them by William de Wateville. 44 

 The land apparently continued in the possession 

 of the Wateville family till the reign of Henry III, 

 when Robert de Wateville held under the Abbot of 



Chertsey a fourth part of a knight's fee in Esher ; 4 * 

 and this constituted the manor of Esher Wate- 

 ville. The manor descended to Matilda daugh- 

 ter of Robert de Wateville, probably son of the Robert 

 mentioned above. She had three husbands, Reginald 

 de Imworth, 46 Richard Russell," and Nicholas de 

 Wynton. 48 John de Imworth, son of Reginald and 

 Matilda, conveyed the reversion of the manor to 

 Margery and Joan, co-heiresses of Nicholas de Wynton 

 and Matilda. 4 ' Margery married William de Mil- 

 bourn, in whose family the manor remained. 60 



In August 1 344 it was held by John de Milbourne, 41 

 and in 1360 it was settled on him and his wife Isabel, 

 with remainder to William their son, and the heirs of 

 his body, and in default to the right heirs of John." 

 John, then known as John Milbourne senior, was still 

 living in 1383." In 1533 the manor was in the 

 hands of Cecilia Sympson, widow, daughter and heir 

 of Sir Thomas Milbourne. 44 As late as 1539 Mar- 

 garet York, widow, had a life interest in part of the 

 manor ; " two years later Cecilia Sympson enfeoffed 

 trustees of the manor to the use of herself for life, 

 then to Margaret Hardwen for life, with remainder 

 to the heirs of her cousin William Fawkner. 46 In 

 1567 William Fawkner was holding the manor," and 

 in 1572 he conveyed it to Thomas Brockholes. 46 

 The latter in the following year conveyed the manor 

 with view of frankpledge to Richard Hatton. 59 In 

 1614 Richard Hatton and Robert Hatton levied 

 a fine and made a settlement in jointure of this 

 manor on Alice, wife of Robert Hatton. 60 Robert 

 and Alice were holding in 1628," but shortly after 

 this the corporation of Kingston purchased the manor 

 from Robert Hatton with the manor-house and 

 about 45 acres of land, to be settled for charitable 

 uses. 61 In 1716-17 the Duke of Newcastle, owner 

 of Claremont, procured an Act of Parliament for 

 vesting in himself this estate, subject to the payment 

 of a perpetual fee-farm rent to Kingston of <)^. 6i It 

 was afterwards 'transferred with Esher Episcopi to 

 other proprietors, 64 and so ultimately came into 

 the hands of Leopold King of the Belgians, 64 and 

 subsequently reverted to the Crown. The Duchess 

 of Albany is now lady of the manor. 



The house now known as Milbourne was presented 

 by Princess Charlotte to Major-General Sir Robert 

 William Gardiner, K.C.B. 86 It is now the seat of 

 Mr. William Hartmann, J.P. 



The manor of S4NDON or S4NDOWN, also 

 called S4NDON CH4PEL and occasionally BUR- 

 tfOOD, is said to have been the original endowment 

 of the hospital of Sandon, in this parish, given by 

 Robert de Wateville in the time of Henry II. 67 The 



Recov. R. Hit 45 Geo. III. 



m Sarr. Arch. Coll. rii, 214. 



88 Brayley, Hist, if Surr. ii, 437. 



***!. Pat. 1330-4, p. 99. 



86 Bihop from 1447 to 1486. 



M Surr. Arch. Cull, vii, 203. 



*IL. and P. Hen. fill, iii (l), 414. 



88 Ibid, iy (3), 6076, 6555 ; Stow, Chroti. 

 921, 922. 



" Brayley, Hist, of Surr. ii, 429. 



*> Pat. I Mary, pt. i*, m. 1 8. 



41 V/*lfole,Anecdotes of Painting, iii, 490. 

 A plan by J. Rocque, 1739, was engraved, 

 and there is a view in Salmon's Antiq. of 

 Surr. 1736. 



41a Birch, Cart. Sax. i, no. 39. 



<a Kemble, Cod. Dipt, iv, no. 812. 



48 V.C.H. Surr. i, 307*. 



44 Ibid. 307, 308. 



46 Testa de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 22oi ; 

 Cat. Close, 1227-31, p. 242. 

 See Add. Chart. 5534. 

 " See Feet of F. Surr. 1 2 Edw. I, no. 1 3. 



48 Ibid. 18 Edw. I, no. 25. 



49 Deeds quoted by Manning and Bray, 

 op. cit. ii, 744. 



w Ibid. ; Tear Book 17 & 18 Ed-w. Ill 

 (Rolls Ser.), 414,415. 



61 Cal. of Pat. 1343-5, p. 407. 



M Manning and Bray, Hist. Surr. ii, 



744- 



58 Feet of F. Surr. Trin. 7 Ric. II, no. 

 1 6. 



" Ibid. Mich. 25 Hen. VIII. 



" Recov. R. Mich. 30 Hen. VIII, rot. 

 435 ; East. 31 Hen. VIII, rot. 334. 



449 



" Manning and Bray, Hist. Surr. ii, 



744- 



Feet of F. Div. Co. Hil. 9 Eliz. 



68 Recov. R. Mich. 14 & 15 Eliz. 

 rot. 159; Feet of F. Mich. 14 & 

 15 Eliz. 



Ibid. Mich. 15 & 1 6 Eliz. 



60 Ibid. Mich. 1 1 Jas. I. 



Ibid. Eat. 4 Chas. I. 



68 Brayley, Hist. Surr. ii, 431. 



68 Manning and Bray, Hist. Surr. ii, 

 744, 745 ; Stat. 3 Geo. I, cap. 10. 



64 Feet of F. Surr. Mich. 59 Geo. III. 



" See above under manor of Esher. 



68 Brayley, Hist. Surr. ii, 450. 



" Manning and Bray, Hist. Surr. ii, 

 749; cf. V.C.ll. Surr. ii, 118, 119. 



57 



