A HISTORY OF ESSEX 



Thomas C. Chisenhale-Marsh (i 8 11-75) of Gaynes 

 Park published an edition and translation of the Essex 

 portion of Domesday Book, f'or John Molyns (d. 

 1591) see below. Church. 



In 1086 a manor of THETDON, assessed at i hide 

 and 40 acres, was held in demesne by Eudo 

 MANORS daplfer. Before the Conquest it had be- 

 longed to Ulmar.'s Another manor of 

 Theydon, held in 1066 by Suen, was held in demesne 

 in 1086 by William son of Constantine. This manor 

 was assessed at 2 hides and 40 acres.^^ It is probable 

 that both these Domesday manors were in Theydon 

 Garnon. It appears that they continued to have 

 separate tenants in chief but that during the 12th 

 century they came to be held by a single tenant in 

 demesne, whose manor later became known as that of 

 THETDON GARNON. 



Eudo dapifer died in 1 1 20 and his honor escheated 

 to the Crown.'s Part of it, including Theydon 

 Garnon, was granted by Henry II soon after his 

 accession to his chamberlain Warin Fitz Ceroid. He 

 died in about 11 59 and was succeeded by his brother 

 Henry Fitz Ceroid (d. 1174 or 1175). Henry's son 

 and successor, Warin Fitz Ceroid, held the honor until 

 his death in 12 16. He was succeeded by his daughter 

 Margery, who married Baldwin de Rivers. She died 

 in 1252, leaving as her heir her grandson Baldwin de 

 Rivers, Earl of Devon, who died without issue in 1262 

 and was succeeded by his sister Isabel, who married 

 William de Forz. Isabel died in 1293. One of her 

 heirs was Warin de Lisle, great-grandson of Henry 

 Fitz Ceroid, brother of Warin Fitz Ceroid (d. 1 216).'* 

 Warin succeeded to the part of Eudo's honor that had 

 been held by Isabel and that included Theydon 

 Garnon, and from this time the part of the manor of 

 Theydon Garnon held in 1086 by Eudo was held by 

 the tenants in demesne as of the honor of Lisle, which 

 came to the Crown in 1368 and was later merged in 

 the Duchy of Lancaster.'^ In 1368 the tenant of 

 Theydon Garnon had suit at the two courts of the 

 honor, at Walbrook (London) and Arkesden (Essex), 

 every three weeks.^s In 1821 the Duchy still claimed 

 the right to exclude county coroners from the parish, 

 on the ground that it was parcel of the Duchy liberties.^' 



The descent of the tenancy in chief of the manor 

 held in 1086 by William son of Constantine is not 

 certain, but it is likely that it passed in the 12th century 

 to the Munchensy family, who during the same period 

 became tenants in chief of William son of Constan tine's 

 other manor of Southcote in Stone (Bucks.).*" In 

 1258 the tenant in demesne of the manor of Theydon 

 Garnon was found to hold \ knight's fee of Denise de 

 Munchensy, widow of Warin de Munchensy. *> This 

 fee descended to her granddaughter Denise de 

 Munchensy who died in 1 3 1 3 leaving as her heir her 

 cousin Aymer de Valence, Earl of Pembroke. ^^ He 

 died in 1324, holding \\ knights' fees in Theydon, 



Leighs, and Latchingdon, for which he was owed 

 service by William Gernon, and also \ fee held by 'the 

 lady of Theydon'. 83 In 1325 the escheator was directed 

 to deliver this \ fee, valued at 60/. a year, and the 

 4| fees, valued at ;^30, to Aymer's widow, Mary, in 

 dower. ^ Aymer's lands were divided among coheirs, 

 one of whom was Lawrence, Lord de Hastinges (d. 

 1348), later Earl of Pembroke, and it is evident that 

 the \ fee with the 4} fees fell to John de Hastinges, 

 Earl of Pembroke, who died seised of them in 1375. '^ 

 In 1435 4J fees in Theydon Garnon, Leighs and 

 Latchingdon and also the \ fee were held, presumably 

 in dower, by Joan (who died in that year), widow of 

 William de Beauchamp, Lord Bergavenny,** who had 

 been one of the heirs of John de Hastinges (d. 1389) 

 Earl of Pembroke. 8' These fees passed to Joan's 

 grandson Edward Neville, Lord Bergavenny, who died 

 in 1476.88 



In 1 166 Ralph son of Peter son of Constantine held 

 2 knights' fees of Henry Fitz Ceroid as of the fees late 

 of Eudo Japifer.^9 Ralph was probably but not certainly 

 related to the Domesday tenant William son of 

 Constantine. In 1200 Ralph son of Peter granted to 

 Ralph Gernon for life a marsh in Theydon and other 

 property, to hold for is. \d. at a scutage of 20.^.'° In 

 1207 the king confirmed to Gernon the hundred of 

 Lexden and the gift which Ralph son of Peter made to 

 him of all his land in Theydon, in exchange for Ralph's 

 land in Fowlmere (Cambs.)." In 1220 Cecily, widow 

 of Richard son of Ralph, released to Ralph Gernon all 

 claim to the property in Theydon which she held in 

 dower, as Gernon had granted her J of all her husband's 

 land in Fowlmere for her dower and also the custody 

 of the other f until her sons in Gernon's custody came 

 of age. '^ In 1224 the sheriff of Essex was directed to 

 let Ralph Gernon have his scutage of 2 knights' fees 

 of the fee late of Warin Fitz Ceroid. '^ In 1235—6 

 Gernon held of Margery de Rivers 2 knights' fees in 

 Theydon and elsewhere.'* He died in 1247 leaving 

 his son William as heir. Part of the manor was said to 

 be held for \ knight's fee of the heirs of Ongar (i.e. the 

 Rivers family of Stanford Rivers and Chipping Ongar, 

 q.v.). It is not clear how this tenure had become asso- 

 ciated with Theydon Garnon. '5 In 1212 Gernon had 

 held 6 fees of the honor of Ongar.'* There is apparently 

 no later evidence of a connexion between Theydon 

 Garnon and the honor of Ongar than that of 1 265 (see 

 below) when the connexion appears to have been 

 successfully denied by the tenant of Theydon Garnon. 

 Most of the manor was in 1245 held of Margery de 

 Rivers; there was then no mention of the tenure of the 

 Munchensy family. The demesne of the manor was 

 said to be worth j^4 i is. a year, the rents of assize 

 fj] 19/. \\d., the customary services 37/. 4^., pasture 

 and meadow £t. i6i. 2d., and a mill 30/. The total 

 annual value was thus ^18 19/. \o\d.'>'' 



William Gernon died in 1258 holding part of the 



" y.C.}i. Essex, i, 49+A. 



'< Ibid. 563a. 



" For the Honor of Eudo dapifer see 

 W. Farrer, Honors and Knights' Fees, iii, 

 165-74, upo" which the account of the 

 tenancy in chief of this part of Theydon 

 Garnon is based. 



" Complete Peerage, iv, 316-23, viii, 

 48—49; Cai. In^. p.m. iii, pp. 98—99. 



" Complete Peerage, viii, 71-77; W. 

 Hardy, Charts, of Duchy of Lanes. 26—31. 



" Cat. Close, 1364-9, 494-5. 



" E.R.O., D/P152/18/14. 



8° For Southcote see F.C.H. Bucks, n, 

 308-9. For the Munchensys see Ger- 

 mains in Kclvedon Hatch. 



" Cat. Inq. p.m. i, p. 121. 



8^ Complete Peerage, ix, 424; Cal. Inq. 

 p.m. V, p. 268. 



*3 Cal. Inq. p.m. vi, p. 332. 



** Cal. Close, 1 323-7, 267. 



*5 Complete Peerage, X, 393; Cal. Inq. 

 p.m. ix, p. 118. 



86 C. 39/76/35. 



8' Complete Peerage, i, 24. 



88 Cal. Inq. p.m. (Rec. Com.), v, p. 379. 



262 



89 Red Bk. of Exch. 355; cf. Farrer, 

 Hons. and Knights' Fees, iii, 202. 



•"> Feet of F. Essex, \, 23. 



»' Rot. Chart. (Rec. Com.), i, 171*; 

 Farrer, Feud. Cambs. 217-18. 



92 Cur.Reg.R.\m,T,n.%. 



93 Rot. Litt. Claus. (Rec. Com.), i, 618, 

 643. 



9< Bk. of Fees, 477, cf. 608. 

 95 Cal. Inq. p.m. l, p. 292. 

 «' Red. Bk. of Exch. 612. 

 " Ci 32/44/3. 



