105 Domesday and Feudal Statistics 



is left indefinite ; but certain it seems the feudal 

 tenure of Normandy, as portrayed by that author, 

 was the antecessor of that introduced into England. 



Just as some of the milites of D. B. and 1166 

 ' are demonstrably and presumably not " Knights," 

 so also in the return of the milites of the Abbot of 

 Peterboro' (Chron. Pet. t. Hen. I.) occur soche- 

 manni et serviunt cum militibus, but it would be 

 hard to credit their appearance as " Knights " 

 habentes equos, et loricas, et c as sides, et clypeos, et 

 lanceas, in exercitu^ tho' they might very well 

 serve in nummis. 



Without falling back on the writ described as 

 Service of startling in Feudal England (p. ^07) ; the writ, 



Evesham 'L'J J 1 l?ir T*J , T\ U 



Abbey, in p. 304, ibid., and also m Ellis Introd. to D. B., 

 txercitu. VQ \ t '^ ^ 44 ^ e( L 1833) i n which the Abbot of 

 Evesham is ordered to lead 5 milites [in his charter 

 4-^, and ^ fee new ; returns 4^ fees for scutage 

 (aid) 14 Hen. II., and 38 Hen. III., and recog- 

 nizes the service of as many in exercitu, 5 Ed. I., 

 and 4 Ed. II.], there is no refusing"''" the conclusion 



Thepre- * The stat ement that Ranulf Flambard (Bp. Durham), 

 decessor of , . , r , , . , . , 1-111 in 



Ranulf devised feudal service, can obtain but little beyond our halls 



Flambard of learning, for his predecessor temporarily lost that Bpriclc 

 fordefect ( IQ 88)> in that, after oral summons he withdrew himself, and 

 of service, his militfs, in the King's necessity, etc.: this was Bp. Wm. sancti 

 etc. Carilefi [the American Plac. Ang. Norm., ed. 1879, cites the 



case, giving reference, but not identifying the prelate, but vide 

 Simeon of Durham], whom Lanfranc proposed to treat after 

 the manner of Bp. Odo /. Wm. I. Indeed strictly contem- 

 porary evidence (Hist. Eccl. 'Dun., written there) renders it 

 clear that Bp. Walcher's neglect in restraining his milites led 

 to his death in 1080 : it may be suggested that A.S. history 

 would yield a more suitable range for ihzYmagines Historiarum 

 of the romantic school, as furnishing for speculative genius a 

 scope both ample and comparatively secure. 



