THEIR CONDITION IN 1086 147 



in Cambridgeshire had been killed off, but that they had 

 suffered an economic change, and had been depressed into 

 the villan class ; in addition to their other services, their 

 new lord exacted week-work from them. We have already 

 noticed the Benfleet case of a freeman who was made one of 

 the villans : and although no such precise statement can be 

 found elsewhere, yet it is not hard to find cases where free- 

 men and sokemen have been depressed to the status of 

 villans. Brize Norton (Oxon.) was in 1066 assessed at 

 15 hides: fourteen thegns held I4H iJV, which after the 

 Conquest passed to Roger of Ivri, who granted the property 

 to Fulco. In 1086 Fulco had in demense 5 hides " of the 

 land of the villans," where he had five teams and one knight, 

 and there were thirteen villans. 1 The statement that he had 

 " 5 hides of the land of the villans " must mean that this land 

 had formerly formed part of the holdings of the villagers, 

 from which he had evicted them. The change from " thegn " 

 to " villan " shows that the inhabitants who formerly had 

 rendered military service to the King, were now obliged to 

 perform week-work on their lord's demesne. The knight 

 was evidently in possession of the holding, or perhaps only of 

 the house, of the fourteenth thegn. But one of those who 

 had held land in Brize Norton in 1066 apparently retained 

 his holding in 1086 and his status as a freeholder. For in 

 the list of "King's ministers" Godwin appears as holding 

 2^ virgates at Norton of the King. 2 



Hugh de Forth held land at Pesinges and Piham, in Kent, 

 in 1086, where three and a half teams were employed and six 

 villans lived. But in 1066 these lands had been held by six 

 men who could go where they would with their lands. May 

 we not see in these six villans the depressed successors of six 

 freeholders or gafolgelders ? 3 



In Eversholt (Beds.) Ansgot of Rochester held 2 hides 



1 D. B., I. 158 b 2. 2 Id., I. 160 b 2. 



3 D. B., I. 10 b 2 ; quoted Z>. B. and B., 64. 



