AMOUNDERNESS HUNDRED 



comprising also Treales, Wesham, Out Rawcliffe, Little 

 Marton, Greenhalgh, Plumpton and other lands. A 

 court had been held during the year. To the king 

 were paid rents resolute of 13/. \d. for the lordships 

 ofWeeton and Treales, iar. for the fishery at Marton 

 Mere and 4J. for the township of Wesham. 18 



PREESE was held, together with a portion of 

 Newton-with- Scales, by a local family, having been 

 given by Warine Bussel to Gillemichael son of Efward, 



KIRKHAM 



who had married his daughter, as the fourth part of 

 a knight's fee. 19 It descended in the Prees family, 20 

 of whom little is known, 21 until about 1360. In 

 1 40 1, after the death of Margery de Prees, it was 

 found that she had held the manor of the king as of 

 the honour of Penwortham by knight's service and 

 I zd. rent, and that the heir was her nephew, Edmund 

 Skillicorne. 22 It descended to Nicholas Skillicorne, 

 who heads the pedigree recorded in 1567, 23 and then 



18 The free tenants of Weeton paid 

 3 1 s. z\d. j also 3.1. sake-fee. The tenants 

 of Treales paid $s. yd. sake-fee 5 those of 

 Wesham paid 41. ; and John Boteler of 

 Out Rawcliffe paid id. as the price of a 

 pair of gloves for that estate. The tenants 

 at will in Weeton paid £13 i6j. %d.\ the 

 value of the works and boon hens was 

 qs. yd. The profits of the court amounted 

 to %s., but the steward's expenses absorbed 

 2s. 4</. of that sum, 



19 Lanes. Inq. and Extents, i, 29. The 

 heir in 1212 had three of the original 

 four plough-lands, and was a minor in 

 ward of the Archdeacon of Stafford and 

 William de Harcourt. 



Robert son of Gillemichael (ibid, i, 90) 

 gave an oxgang in Preese, viz. the 

 sixteenth part of the whole vill, saving 

 his demesne of Wray, to the canons of 

 Cockersand in free alms ; Chartul. (Chet. 

 Soc), i, 200. He as Robert de Whitting- 

 ton added three parts of a field called 

 Wray lying between Preese and Ayk- 

 scough ; ibid. 201. 



Gillemichael had a son Gospatrick, who 

 gave land in Burton in Kendal to Cocker- 

 sand ; ibid, iii, 1008. Gospatrick Prat 

 in 121 2 held land in the adjacent Dalton ; 

 Lanes. Inq. and Extents, i, 90. William 

 son of Henry or William de Hothwaite 

 had land in Burton and Dalton in 1228 ; 

 Final Cone, i, 54. ; Cockersand Chartul. iii, 

 1010. He may be the William de Prees 

 of 1235 ; Final Cone. 71. 



The heir of the above-named Robert 

 was probably the William de Prees acting 

 as juror in 1242, when he held the fourth 

 part of a knight's fee in Preese and 

 Newton of the fee of the Earl of Lincoln 

 (Penwortham) ; Lanes. Inq. and Extents, 

 i, 151-2. He occurs down to 1258 (ibid. 

 i, 212) and Robert de Prees in 1286 

 (ibid, i, 265), another William acting as 

 juror in 1297 and holding the fourth part 

 of a fee in Preese and Newton in 1302 ; 

 ibid, i, 289, 316. 



There were three Roberts contem- 

 porary ; for in 1278 Maud widow of 

 Robert son of Austin de Prees claimed a 

 messuage, toft and oxgang of land against 

 Robert son of William de Prees, who 

 called Robert son of Robert son of Austin 

 to warrant him, which younger Robert 

 appeared accordingly; De Banco R. 27, 

 m. 38; 30, m. 13. He had then to 

 give dower to Maud; ibid. 31, m. 44. 

 Maud claimed dower in Preese against 

 Robert son of William de Singleton in 

 respect of a messuage, toft and 2 ox- 

 gangs of land, and against Robert son 

 of William de Prees ; ibid. 27, m. 60. 

 Robert de Prees was defendant in another 

 plea of dower in 1292 ; Assize R, 408, 

 m. 30. 



20 William de Prees, as stated already, 

 was tenant in 1297 and 1302. He was, 

 no doubt, the William distrained to do 

 homage to Edward II in 1322 for two 

 plough-lands in Preese held by the fourth 

 part of a knight's fee ; Lanes. Inq. and 

 Extents, ii, 136. It should be noticed 

 that Robert de Prees was to do homage for 



the plough-land in Newton ; ibid. William 

 de Prees and Amery his wife were plaintiffs 

 in 1323-4 ; Assize R.425, m. 2. Amery 

 daughter of Henry de Walley in her 

 widowhood in 1328 granted to one of her 

 sons, Henry de Hacconsall, part of her 

 father's land with remainder to John son 

 of another of her sons, Robert de Prees ; 

 Towncley MS. C 8, 5 (Chet. Lib.), Edw. 

 Ill, no. 12. 



In 1338 William de Penereth and Emma 

 his wife did not prosecute a claim for a 

 messuage and 2 oxgangs of land in Preese 

 put forward against Robert de Prees, Alice 

 his wife, William the son of Robert, 

 Maud his wife, Edmund son of Robert, 

 Henry de Hacconsall and Ellen his wife. 

 Henry was in possession, having entered 

 by Robert de Prees; Assize R. 1425, 

 m. 2 d., 6 d. 



A Robert de Middleton seems to have 

 been in possession about 1358 as bailiff" 

 for William de Caton and Joan his wife ; 

 Assize R. 438, m. 4, 14. 



In 1361 the heir of William son of 

 Robert de Prees held the fourth part of a 

 knight's fee in Preese and Newton ; Inq. 

 p.m. 35 Edw. Ill, pt. i, no. 122. Cf. Feud. 

 Aids, iii, 87. 



21 Between 1354 and 1361 the Duke 

 of Lancaster granted to Adam Skillicorne 

 the custody of the lands of William son of 

 Robert de Prees, deceased, with the 

 marriage of John son and heir of William ; 

 Dep. Keeper's R.p. xxxii, App. 344. There 

 are other allusions to Adam in the same 

 report ; it appears that he became coroner 

 for the county and died probably in 1383, 

 when a new officer was appointed ; ibid. 

 356. John Skillicorne probably suc- 

 ceeded, but he died in 1385 ; ibid. 3 58. 



Adam son of William Skillicorne gave 

 2 marks for a writ of entry in June 1364 ; 

 Fine R. 165, m. 11. Lands, &c, in 

 Newton and Preese were in the hands of 

 Adam Skillicorne in 1371, but nothing is 

 said of any manor ; Final Cone. (Rec. Soc. 

 Lanes, and Ches.), ii, 180. 



A little earlier (1368) William son of 

 William de Prees, in right of his brother 

 John, had established his title to a mes- 

 suage, &c, in Weeton against Adam de 

 Skillicorne and William de Becconsaw, 

 who had entry by Robert de Middleton 

 and Alice his wife; De Banco R. 431, 

 m. 309. 



M Lanes. Inq. p.m. (Chet. Soc), i, 76. 

 The guardianship of the heir was granted 

 to William de Rigmaiden ; Dep. Keeper's 

 Rep. xl, App. 531. It seems probable that 

 Adam Skillicorne had married his daughter 

 to John de Prees, at the same time 

 securing the manor to her and her heirs. 

 Nicholas de Prees put in a claim soon 

 afterwards ; Lanes. Inq. p.m. i, 75. 



A story at variance with the above 

 record was related in 1535, it being stated 

 that various lands and the manor of Preese 

 were through William de Southworth, 

 vicar of Poulton, settled on Adam Skilli- 

 corne and Alice then his wife, with re- 

 mainder to his son Edmund ; Duchy of 

 Lane. Inq. p.m. vii, no. 3. The fine 



177 



above cited, referring apparently to the 

 same act, says nothing of a * manor.' 

 The same inquisition recites a settlement 

 by Edmund Skillicorne and Margaret his 

 wife. 



The writ of diem cl. extr. in the case 

 of Edmund Skillicorne was issued 12 

 Mar. 1400-1 ; Dep. Keeper's Rep. xxxiii, 

 App. 2. The inquisition states that he 

 held burgages, &c, in Lancaster in con- 

 junction with Margery his wife, daughter 

 of Thomas Rigmaiden. William Skilli- 

 corne, his son and heir, was fifteen years 

 old ; Lanes. Inq. p.m. (Chet. Soc), i, 75. 



William, born at Wedacre in Garstang 

 on 8 Sept. 1385, proved his age in 1408 ; 

 ibid, i, 91. He held the manor of Preese 

 by the fourth part of a knight's fee in 

 1431 j Feud. Aids, iii, 95. The writ of 

 diem cl. extr. after his death was issued 

 6 July 1437; Dep. Keeper's Rep. xxxiii, 

 App. 37. His son was the John Skilli- 

 corne who died in 1478 holding the 

 manor of Preese and lands, &c, in Newton 

 of the king as of his duchy by a rent of 

 6d., also lands, &c, in Warton, Preston 

 and Lancaster. William his son and heir 

 was forty-eight years old ; Lanes. Inq. p.m. 

 (Chet. Soc), ii, 105. John Skillicorne, 

 William his son, Richard and James sons 

 of William Skillicorne, were burgesses at 

 the Preston Guild of 1459 j Guild R. 

 (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and Ches.), 1,2. 



William, who married Agnes Lawrence 

 of Scotforth (Pal. of Lane. Plea R. 163, 

 m. 20), died before 20 Feb. 1495-6, when 

 the writ diem cl. extr. was issued ; 

 Townelcy MS. CC, no. 6 3 8. The inquisi- 

 tion stated that he held the manor of 

 Preese and 2 oxgangs of land in Newton 

 of the king's honour of Penwortham by 

 knight's service and 6d. rent ; Towneley 

 MS. 'Lanes. Tenures' (in possession of 

 W. Farrer), 8. 



William was succeeded by a son John, 

 whose grandson Richard died in 1534 

 leaving four daughters, the eldest being 

 only ten years old, by his wife Isabel 

 daughter of Ralph Langton of Newton ; 

 Duchy of Lane Inq. p.m. vii, no. 3, 

 where the descent is given thus : Adam 

 -s. Edmund — s. William -s. John -s. 

 William -s. John -s. William -s. Richard. 

 The heir male was Nicholas Skillicorne, 

 then thirty years of age. John Skillicorne 

 was of Preese in 1523, when he had a 

 dispute with the Abbot of Whalley as to 

 common of pasture on Carr Marsh on the 

 border of Staining ; Ducatus Lane. (Rec. 

 Com.), ii, 31. His wife at that time was 

 Margaret sister of James Anderton of 

 Worden in Leyland ; Duchy of Lane. Inq. 

 p.m. v, no. 51. Afterwards (in 1528) he 

 married Anne, James's widow ; she died 

 in 1 534 ; ibid, vii, no. 3 ; Ducatus Lane. 

 ii, 37. John was living in 1532. 



From a further inquiry made about 

 1556 it appears that Richard's four 

 daughters were then living and married. 



n Visit. (Chet. Soc), 52 j Nicholas is 

 described as son of John Skillicorne. He 

 had a son William and grandson Nicholas. 

 The elder Nicholas and his three sons 



23 



