A HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX 



which runs across the narrow part of the parish, 

 and from the latter a road leads southwards to 

 Chertsey Bridge. 



There was formerly a wooden bridge here con- 

 necting the counties of Middlesex and Surrey, of 

 which either county maintained half.' About 

 1770 the Middlesex part was much out of repair, 

 and the magistrates of Middlesex prevailed on those 

 of Surrey to join in building a stone bridge. 

 When the contractor had finished the number of 

 ' arches he had undertaken, they did not reach to 

 the Surrey shore, and it cost that county a large 

 sum to make good the deficiency. 1 



Much land in the parish belongs to Captain 

 Thomas Wood of Gwernyfed Park, Three Cocks, 

 Brecknockshire. Littleton House, which was 

 originally the family seat of the Woods, was burnt 

 down in 1874. It was a large brick mansion, 

 surrounded by a park and grounds of 600 acres, 

 and is said to have been built during the reign of 

 William III, by the workmen who were then 

 employed at Hampton Court. 4 This seems all the 

 more likely considering that the Thomas Wood of 

 that time was ranger at Hampton Court.' Little- 

 ton House contained Hogarth's famous picture 

 ' Actors Dressing,' which was destroyed when the 

 house was burnt. 6 A portion of the house has been 

 rebuilt, and is now the residence of Mr. Richard 

 Burbridge. It stands behind the church to the 

 south of the village, and the waters of the River 

 Ash form a natural boundary to the grounds. 



Another considerable house, ' the Manor House,' 

 is the residence of Mr. Theodore Bouwens. 



Littleton was inclosed in 1848 under the 

 General Inclosures Act. 7 There are 1,138 acres 

 in the parish, of which 325 acres are arable, 5 24 

 acres are permanent grass, and 2 70 acres are wood- 

 land, and 1 9 acres are water.* The population is 

 principally dependent on agriculture. The soil is 

 sandy loam, and the subsoil gravel. The chief 

 crops are wheat, barley, clover, mangold-wurzel, 

 peas, and beans. 



A weir is mentioned in 1235, when it was 

 conveyed by William le Sire to Robert de 

 Beauchamp.* 



LITTLETON is not mentioned 

 MANORS by name in the Domesday Survey. 

 In the reign of Edward the Confessor 

 it was probably included in the estate of Achi, a 

 servant of the king.'" The ' soke ' then belonged 

 to Staines. Achi's manor, assessed at 8 hides, 

 passed to Robert Blund, to whom it belonged in 



1086, when it was said to be in Laleham." But 

 it has been seen that the estate was probably too 

 large to have been included as a whole within the 

 present bounds of that parish," and as the two 

 parishes are contiguous, and as the descendants of 

 Robert Blunt held Littleton in the time of 

 Henry II," it may be concluded that in the llth 

 century the latter formed part of the 8 hides 

 ascribed to Laleham. 



Littleton is first mentioned by name about 

 1 1 66, when it was held as one knight's fee 

 in the barony of William Blunt, Baron of Ix- 

 worth, by whom it had been inherited from his 

 father Gilbert, who held it in the reign of 

 Henry I." It still formed part of the barony in 

 the latter half of the 1 3th century," but on the 

 division of the Blunt lands after the death of 

 William Blunt at the battle of Evesham (1265)," 

 the mesne overlordship of the fee does not appear 

 to have passed to either of his heirs. It appears 

 to have been by l 3 1 6 in the hands of the Abbey 

 and Convent of Westminster," who had tempor- 

 alities there as early as 1291," and it is probable 

 that the abbey may have received a grant of it 

 towards the end of the 1 3th century. It was 

 apparently held of them in 1528. 



In n 66 Littleton was held of the Blunts 

 by Robert de Littleton." It apparently de- 

 scended to Osbert de Littleton, who conveyed it 

 in 1 204 to Robert de Leveland," the son of 

 Nathaniel de Leveland and Desirea, his wife, of 

 Leveland in Kent." His family held the offices 

 of custodian of the royal palace of Westminster and 

 of the Fleet Prison," which offices descended at 

 this time with the manor of Leveland." The 

 Leveland inheritance came in the reign of 

 Henry III to an heiress, Margaret de Leveland, 

 who married first Giles de Badlesmere," and 

 secondly Fulk de Peyforer," but having no issue 

 by either marriage, her heir was found to be Ralph 

 de Grendon. 16 On his death, which occurred 

 about 1280, he was succeeded by his brother 

 Stephen, who was also known as de Leveland," 

 and who left an only daughter and heiress Joan." 

 She married John Shenche or Sench, by whom 

 she had a son of the same name," who died in 

 1 349 and was succeeded by Margaret his daughter.* 

 Margaret died in 1361, and her heir was found to 

 be Roger, son of Roger Sapurton, 81 who held the 

 manor of Littleton," and also the offices of 

 custodian of Westminster Palace and the Fleet 

 Prison. 8 * After the death of Roger the manor 



* Manning, Hitl. of Surr. iii, 205. 



* Ibid. 



4 Keane, Beauties of Midd. 1 78. 



* Burke, Landed Gentry (1906), 1842. 



* Firth, MM. 167. 



7 Slater, Engl. Peasantry anJ the 

 Enclosure of Common Fields, 185. 



* Inf. supplied bjr the Bd. of 

 Agrie. (1905). 



' Feet of F. Lond. and Midd. 19 

 Hen. Ill, no. 1 16. 



10 Dom. Bk. (Ree. Com.), i, 131. 



u Ibid. ; tee descent of manor of 

 Billet! in Laleham. 



11 See deiccnt of manor of Billeti in 

 Laleham. 



" Red. Bk. of Excb. (Roll. Ser.), i, 

 409 ; Lib. Niger (ed. Hearne), i, 297. 

 " Ibid. 



15 Testa dt Nivill (Ree. Com.), 360, 

 361, 362. 



16 G.E.C. Complete Peerage, i. 



17 Feud. Aids, iii, 372. 



"Pofe Nieb. Tax. (Ree. Com.), 

 1 6. 



19 Red Bit. of Exch. (Rolli Ser.), i, 

 409 ; Lib. Niger, i, 197. 



*> Feet of F. Lond. and Midd. 5 John, 

 no. 27. 



11 Round, C*!. of Doc. France, i, 488. 



M Mador, Hist, of Exch. i, 514; 

 Rat. Ctmallarii (Ree. Com.), 99, 103 ; 



402 



Rot. de Oklat. tt Fin. (Ree. Com.), i, 

 492. 



** Hatted, Hist, of Kent, ii, 770. 



14 Pat. 40 Hen. Ill ; MS. quoted by 

 Madox, op. cit. 



85 Chan. Inq. p.m. 5 Edw. I, no. 17. 



* Hatted, Hist, of Kent, ii, 771. 



97 Chan. Inq. p.m. 8 Edw. I, no. 16. 



* Hatted, op. cit. ii, 771. 



" Chan. Inq. p.m. 6 Edw. Ill, no. 

 65. 



Ibid. 23 Edw. Ill, pt. ii, no. 127. 



11 Ibid. 36 Edw. Ill, pt. ii, no. 33. 



** Plac. in Cane, file 29, no. I. 



" Chan. Inq. p.m. 12 Hen. VI, no. 

 19. 



