FLITT HUNDRED 



STREATLEY 



In 1087 Pirot held land in Streatley, of which one 

 hide and one-third (the marriage portion of his wife) 

 belonged to the fee of Nigel de Albini." This hold- 

 ing, which became part of the barony, of Cainhoe, 

 and was situated in the hamlet of Sharpenhoe, re- 

 appears later, though it never attained the status of 

 a manor. Testa de Nevill states that John Fitz 

 Hugh held a fee here of this barony, and in 

 1264 William de Albini died seised of a fee in 

 Sharpenhoe.** In 1302 William de Norton and 

 Isabella his wife held of this barony in Sharpenhoe," 

 and in 1 346 their land had passed into the hands of 

 Peter de St. Croix. No further mention, however, 

 has been found subsequent to the fourteenth century." 



The abbot of Wobum owned land and meadows 

 in this parish which he obtained by the gift of William 

 de Locels, probably the son of the William de Locels 

 who owned Streatley manor at the time of the Sur- 

 vey." In 1 29 1 the value of these meadows was 

 £,1 1 3/.," and in 1 302 the extent was 2 virgates, for 

 which the abbot rendered service of one-eighth of a 

 knight's fee," and in 1337 the value remained un- 

 altered.^ These lands are probably the same as those 

 termed 'Abbots' Lands,' which belonged in 1630 to 

 Luke Norton, lord of Sharpenhoe manor.** 



At the time of the Survey the bailiff of the hun- 

 dred of Flitt held two-thirds of a virgate which had 

 formerly been ih Streatley, but which Bondi the 

 Staller had annexed to the king's manor of Luton, 

 where it is henceforward to be found." 



In 1266 Robert son of John Thorpe was granted a 

 charter of free warren in his manor of Sharpenhoe,** and 

 George Thorpe received a similar charter in 1 3 1 6." 



The church of ST. MARGARET has 

 CHURCH a nave 53 ft. 6 in. by 18 ft. with north 

 and south aisles, a chancel 1 7 ft. 6 in. by 

 1 7 ft. 3 in., the axis of which is deflected southwards, 

 and a west tower 12 ft. square within the walls. 

 The whole church is plastered or rough-cast outside 

 and thickly yellow-washed within, and, beyond the 

 arcades of the nave, has few architectural attractions ; 

 these arcades are of four bays, c. 1340, with arches of 

 two chamfered orders and octagonal shafts with moulded 

 capitals. The north and south doorways of the nave 

 are of the same date, with continuous mouldings, 

 but all the windows are of the fifteenth century, of two 

 cinquefoiled lights with tracery in the head. The east 

 window of the chancel is modem, of three lights with 

 intersecting mullions, and at the south-east of the 

 chancel is a modem trefoiled piscina. The chancel 

 arch is of two chamfered orders, the inner springing 

 from plain corbels. The tower is of the fifteenth cen- 

 tury, with a stair at the south-west, of four stages 

 with an embattled parapet and belfry windows and 

 wooden tracery. In the ground stage is a west win- 

 dow of three lights with tracery over, and the eastem 

 arch is of two moulded orders with half-round shafts 

 to the inner. 



The roofs of the nave and aisles are of low 

 pitch and plain detail, apparently fifteenth-century 

 work, and there are a good many sixteenth-century 

 benches with linen pattern panels, whilst others are 

 plain. 



The front row of pews in the nave is pretty work 

 of c. 1630, the heads of the alternate panels being 

 pierced with open tracery. The pulpit is made up 

 of old material of various dates, having linen pattern 

 panels in its hexagonal body and an eighteenth-cen- 

 tury tester. 



There are image brackets in the north aisle to the 

 south of the east window. In the south aisle to the 

 north of the east window, and in the nave to the north 

 of the chancel arch. The font in the west bay of the 

 south arcades is a very fine example of mid-thirteenth- 

 century detail, having an octagonal bowl with panels 

 of foliage or tracery on each face, and a moulded base 

 to the bowl carried by four engaged shafts with 

 moulded capitals and bases and vertical lines of dog- 

 tooth between the shafts. 



There is one bell by Mears, 1832, and a small bell 

 without inscription. 



The plate consists of a communion cup of 1685 and 

 a paten of 1879. 



The first book of the registers contains baptisms and 

 burials from 1768 to 1811, and the second is the 

 printed marriage book from 1754 to 1 778. The 

 vestry book from 1794 is preserved. 



The Lincoln Episcopal Registers 

 ADFOWSON prove that the advowson, vicarage, 

 and rectory of Streatley belonged to 

 Markyate Priory from its foundation in 1 145.™ The 

 church was confirmed to Markyate in 1402,°' and re- 

 mained in its possession till the Dissolution, at which 

 time the rectory was valued at j^ 1 5." In 1544 the 

 rectory, church, and advowson of the vicarage were 

 granted by the crown to Thomas Norton,*^' whose 

 descendants, Richard, William, and Walter Norton, 

 conveyed the rectory and vicarage in 1 606 to George 

 and Richard Barbour alias Grigge," who, in 1624, 

 transferred their rights to Richard Meade.*^ Ten 

 years later the rectory and vicarage passed from him 

 to Thomas Harris,™ in whose family it remained till 

 1688, when Francis Harris alienated the rectory and 

 vicarage to Hugh Smythe," who at that time owned 

 Sharpenhoe manor. In 1771 James Smythe made a 

 settlement of both rectory and vicarage on William 

 Hale,°° and from this point their history diverges. 

 The rectory appears to have remained with the 

 Smythe family, who were impropriators in 1 836,'' and 

 at the present day the great tithes are shared by 

 G. T. Benison, the trustees of the late Mr. Hugh 

 Smythe, and Mr. F. A. Page-Turner. In 178 1 

 James Buchanan Riddell, lord of Sundon manor, had 

 acquired the right of presentation to Streatley vicar- 

 age,™ and it appears to have since followed the same 

 descent as the advowson of Sundon (q.v.), with which 



<8 V.C.H. Beds, i, 224*. 

 49 Testa de Nevill (Rec Com.) 250* ; 

 Cat. Inq. p.m. Hen. Ill, i, 27. 

 6» Feud. Aids, i, 14. 

 M Ibid. 33. 



52 Plac. de Quo War. (Rec. Com.), 36. 

 68 Pope Nich. Tax. (Rec. Com.), 49. 

 M Feud. Aids, i, 14. 



55 Col. of Pat. 1334-8, P- 493- 



56 Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccccIjct, 



No. 38- , „ 



57 V.CM. Beds, i, 264a. Other Domes- 



day holders of whom no further trace can 

 be found are Hugh, who held J virgate of 

 William Spec (^F.CH. Beds, i, 246a) and 

 Walter, who held i hide of William d'Eu 

 (ibid, i, 233i). 



58 Chart. R. 51 Hen. Ill, pt. i. No. 7. 



53 Ibid. 9 Edw. II, No. 20 J Plac. de 

 Quo War. (Rec. Com.), 44. 



60 V.C.H. Beds, i, 358 ; Dugdale, M.on. 

 iii, 368. 



61 Cal. of Pap. Letters, v, 510. 



6» Valor Eccl. (Rec. Com.), iv, 209. 



66 Pat. 36 Hen. VIII, pt. 8. 



64 Feet of F. Beds. Mich. 4 Jas. I. 



65 Ibid. Mich. 20 Jas. I ; Hil. 22 

 Jas. I. 



66 Ibid. Trin. 10 Chas. I. 



67 Ibid. Div. Cos. Mich. 15 Chas. II 

 Beds. Mich. 35 Chas. II ; Hil. 4 Jas. II 

 Hil. I Will, and Mary ; Inst. Bks. P.R.O. 

 Recov. R. Mich. 35 Chas. II. 



68 Feet of F. Beds. Hil. ii Geo, III. 



69 Clerical Guide, 1836. 

 7« Inst. Bks. P.R.O. 



