ONGAR HUNDRED 



LOUGHTON 



The present Debden Hall was built about 1930 to 

 replace a previous building on the site which was de- 

 molished in the previous year.*^ A photograph of the 

 earlier building {c. 1898 ?) shows a large house of two 

 stories and attics having a pedimented doorcase and a 

 long range of outbuildings. The house appears to have 

 dated from the early 19th century.54 



The two manors held in 1086 by Peter de Valognes 

 probably included what later became known as MONK 

 WOOD. In 1 166 Phihp de Snaring held \ knight's 

 fee and Geoffrey de Snaring J knight's fee, both of the 

 honor of Valognes. ss These tenements were probably 

 in Loughton, for early in the 13th century the Snaring 

 family held an important position in the parish, part of 

 which was for a time named after them.s* Before 1 240 

 a wood in 'Loughton Snarryngs' had come to be divided 

 between the abbeys of Stratford Langthorne and 

 Waltham. Three-quarters of the wood had been 

 granted to Stratford by Ralph de Assartis; the remain- 

 ing quarter had been granted to Waltham by Geoffrey 

 Reyntot and Roger Fitz Ailmar.57 Ralph de Assartis is 

 known to have been a tenant of Geoffrey de Snaring.s^ 

 In 1236 he was holding \ knight's fee in Loughton of 

 the barony of Valognes. 59 



In 1 240 an agreement was made between the abbeys 

 of Stratford and Waltham concerning their timber 

 rights in their jointly owned wood. When one abbot 

 wished to fell timber in the wood he was to notify the 

 bailiff of the other abbot. Four trees of equal value 

 were then to be selected, of which Stratford was to 

 take the first, second, and fourth choices, and Waltham 

 the third. Trees not required for immediate felling 

 might be marked by either abbey for future use.*° 



The portion of the wood owned by Waltham Abbey 

 became merged from the 13th century in the main 

 manor of Loughton (see above). The three-quarters 

 owned by Stratford became known as Monk Wood 

 and remained the property of that abbey until the 

 Dissolution. 



Like the manor of Loughton Monk Wood became 

 part of the Duchy of Lancaster in the i6th century, 

 and appears to have been leased along with the manor. 

 In 1582 the wood was said to contain 53 acres but in 

 16 1 2 its area was loi acres of which 74 acres com- 

 prised Great Monk Wood and 27 acres Little Monk 

 Wood.*' There was sometimes doubt whether the 

 wood was demesne or waste land. Historically there 

 is little doubt that it was demesne.*^ 



After the i6th century Monk Wood descended 

 along with the manor of Loughton. In 1767, when 

 Alderton Hall was leased, it was provided that the 

 lessee should receive 1,000 faggots and 100 logs every 

 year from the wood. In 1787 this was altered to 500 

 faggots and 250 logs.*' 



In 1 8 5 1 Monk Wood contained 97 acres of which 

 73 acres were in Great Monk Wood and 24 acres in 

 Little Monk Wood.** 



There is a legend of Monk Wood which concerns a 

 monk who murdered a maiden.*' 



The advowson of the rectory of Loughton has always 

 descended along with the manor. The 

 CHURCHES present patron is Cmdr. J. W. Mait- 

 land, M.P.** 



The rectory was never appropriated. It was valued 

 at ^5 in about 1254, at ^^2 in 1291, and ^5 6s. %d. in 

 1428.*^ In 1535 the value was returned as ;^i8 4^.*^ 

 Tithe was commuted in 185 1 for ;^5i8.*' It would 

 have produced much more than this if a partial com- 

 mutation had not taken place long before, by which 

 1,052 acres belonging to the lord of the manor had 

 been freed from tithes in kind in return for an annual 

 'modus' of ;^3 IS. On another 326 acres the tithe rent 

 was assessed at a much lower rate than in the main body 

 of the parish. There were 45 acres of glebe in 1851.'° 

 It had increased from 36 acres in 1610 and 41 acres in 

 1714.^' The old rectory house in Rectory Lane has 

 been demohshed. 



The original parish church of ST. NICHOLAS 

 stood beside Loughton Hall.'^ After the building of 

 the new parish church of St. John in 1 846 most of the 

 old church was demolished, but the chancel was pre- 

 served as a mortuary chapel until 1877 when it also 

 was removed. The old church consisted of nave, 

 chancel, north aisle, south porch, and weather-boarded 

 tower with shingled spire. Nave and chancel were of 

 the same width (about 18 ft.) and together measured 

 about 60 ft. in length. A sketch of 182 1 shows a large 

 15th-century window at the east end of the chancel. 

 This is said to have been replaced before the final 

 demolition of the church by an iron window. '3 In the 

 south wall of the chancel there was a two-light window, 

 and also a low-side window. The aisle of the church 

 measured about 18 ft. by 54 ft. At its east end there 

 was a chapel divided from the rest of the aisle by a 

 wooden screen with a central doorway. The tower was 

 of two stages, the lower of which projected to allow 

 space for a vestry. 



Julia Stokesby, by her will proved 1384, left 20/. 

 to the work of the church.'* The form of the bequest 

 suggests that building operations were then in progress. 

 The will of John Stoner (proved 1540) directed that 

 he should be buried in the chapel of Our Lady in the 

 parish church of Loughton.'s George Stoner, son of 

 John, similarly directed (1558) that he should be 

 buried in the 'new chapel' in the church.'* This 

 chapel was probably that at the east end of the aisle 

 which was later regarded as the private chapel of the 

 lord of the manor. William Harryson of Loughton by 

 his will proved 1540 left \os. towards the building of 

 the steeple." The tower and spire were repaired in 

 1737. General repairs to the church were carried out 

 in 1825-7 and 1829. 



In about 1768 the church had three bells. '^ One 

 of them is said to have been sold at the end of the i8th 



53 Inf. from the present occupier of 

 Debden Hall. 



5* E.R.O., Sah Cat. B. 9. 



55 RcdBk. ofExch. (Rolls Ser.), 360. 



5' Waller, Loughton, i, 156. 



5' Ibid. 58 Ibid. 



59 £k. of Fees, 579. 



'" Waller, Loughton, i, 156; Eaex 

 Naturalist, v, 1 74. 



^' Essex Naturalist, v, 1775 and see 

 above, Manor of Loughton. 



'2 Waller, Loughton, i, 52, 10-11; cf. 

 E.R.O., D/CT 255. 



63 Waller, Loughton, i, 11, 



't E.R.O., D/CT 255. 



'5 E. Hardingham, Lays and Legends of 

 the Forest of Essex, 113. 



66 Newcourt, Repert. ii, 395-6 ; Morant, 

 Essex, i, 164; Kelly's Dir. Essex (1862 f.); 

 Chel. Dioc. Tear Bk. 1952. 



0' E.A.T. N.s. xviii, 17; Tax Eccl. 

 (Rec. Com.), 24; Feud. Aids, ii, 204. 



'8 yalor Eccl. (Rec. Com.), i, 435. 



'9 E.R.O., D/CT 225. 



■"> Ibid. 



'" E.R.O., T/P i(). For the history of 



the glebe see Waller, Loughton, i, 55, 

 119-22. 



'2 The following account is based on 

 W. C. Waller, 'Some account of the 

 vanished church of St. Nicholas, Lough- 

 ton', E.A.T. N.s. xir, 275 f. (illustrated). 



73 This alteration was said to have been 

 made by Archdeacon Hamilton, rector 

 1805-51. 



'* Waller, Loughton, ii, i. 



'5 Ibid. 5. 



'<■ Ibid. 8, " Ibid. 74. 



" Morant, Essex, i, 1 64. 



ES. IV 



121 



K 



