The English Cottagers of the Middle Age^. 7 



c'ass. The class of cottagers are the hordarii^ 82,119 in number, 

 distribute! in due proportion in every part of England, and con- 

 stantly associated with the viUani, 108,407 in number. Here we 

 have evidently the customary tenants and the cottagers. Unfor- 

 tunately Domesday Bjok rarely gives any information as to the 

 obligations of the several classes. We have however, a few item^ 

 of information. In the first place the hordarii are regularly asso- 

 ciated with the villani,^ from which it appears that they occupied 

 the village and not the lord's demesne. In one case their labor 

 is put at one day in the week." And although as a rule, the hold- 

 ings are not given, yet in several manors of the county of 

 Middlesex they are given in detail ; and here we find the hordarii 

 holding five and six acres apiece ; also holdings in common — 6 

 hordarii of 30 acres, 16 of 2 hides (acres not given), 36 of 3 hides, 

 4 of 40 acres, and 8 of 1 virgate (or one-fourth of a hide). From 

 these data it follows with certainty that the hordarii were an out- 

 growth of the village community ; that they were originally vil- 

 lagers like the villani. They would appear also to have held 

 their lands by prescription and not at will ; but this is not a pos- 

 itive inference, and on other accounts seems hardly probable. 



With regard to the cotirii, we learn just about as much as with 

 regard to the hordarii. We find these too associated with the 

 villani,^ anl find them holding four and five acres apiece, or mere 

 gardens for a shilling each," or, in common, 3 with 9 acres, 2 

 with 4 acre?, 22 with half a hide, and 46 with a whole hide. 

 These facts prove thit the cotarii likewise were an outgrowth of 

 the village community, and belonged properly to the class of 

 villani. Bat the cota/-iY and coscfi^i are so few in number and so 

 scittered, that we can iofer very little in regard to them. 



^ Vol. I, f 4. a; Leminges in Kent; ceDtum et unus villaaus cum xvi bor- 

 dariis habentes Iv carucas. f. 284 c; Colingeliara iu Nottinghamshire; vii 

 villaai et xx bordarii habeates xiv carucas. f. 350. Tatenai in Lincolnshire; 

 V villani et ii bordarii arantes v bobus. 



-Vol. I, f. 186. Ewies in Herefordshire, xii bordarii operantcs uno die 

 ebdomeda. 



"Vol.1, f. 9. a. Wichehame in Kent, xxxvi villani cum xsxii cotariis 

 habeat ix carucas. 



■'Vol. I, f. 1-23. Westminster in Middlesex. 



