THEIR CONDITION IN 1066 129 



called was not at liberty to sell his lands, nor to commend 

 himself to any person other than him to whom he owed soke. 

 I can find no example in Cambridgeshire of a man who was 

 said to be the man of another and was restrained from sale, 

 owing soke to any person other than him whose man he was. 

 On nine manors of the Abbot of Ely in Cambridgeshire, there 

 were fifty-nine sokemen restrained from sale and commenda- 

 tion ; but these estates were the ancient possessions of the 

 abbey, and it is distinctly stated that the sokeman at Cotten- 

 ham of the Abbot of Ely could not sell his land, because it 

 was the demesne of the Church. 1 Similarly, the tenants on 

 the ancient possessions of the Abbeys of Worcester, Abingdon, 

 and Glastonbury were all restrained from commendation. 



One noteworthy variation of the phrase expressing re- 

 straint on commendation is found in the Exeter Domesday, 

 where it is stated that certain land at Cerne "could not 

 be separated from the service " of Milton Abbey ; " 2 and 

 occasionally in Domesday Book the statement that certain 

 land could not be separated from the Church is followed 

 by another statement that " thence the tenant served the 

 Church (inde serviebat ecclesiam}" 3 A further example of the 

 connection of service with the restraint on commendation is 

 to be found at Ower (Hants), where Elsi held certain land 

 of the Abbot of Glastonbury, and could not go where he 

 pleased, but always rendered gafol to the abbot. 4 



Such land, which the tenants could not sell without 

 licence, is shown by Mr. Round, from the Ely Inquest, to have 

 been called thegnland; 5 and at Christian Malford reference 

 is made in Domesday Book to the thegnland, which could 

 not be separated from the Church. 6 Hence we understand 

 why it was recorded that at Coleburne the abbot had I hide 

 of thegnland in his demesne. 7 Many of these thegnlands 



1 D. B., I. 201 b i. 2 Exon. D., 41. 3 D. B., I. 72 b i. 



4 Id., I. 43 b i. 5 F. E., 28-35. 6 D. B., I. 66 b i. 



7 D. B., I. 67 a 2. 



