A HISTORY OF HERTFORDSHIRE 



The farm called Srortford Park and Park Cottages 

 nurk the site of the park of the Bishops of London. 

 The site of the manor and the farm called Stortford 

 Pari; were held on a lease by Dr. William Stanley, 

 the precentor of St. Paul's, at the beginning of the 

 1 8th century.^ After his death in 1827 the lease 

 was sold, the premises then including 950 acres of 

 land and quit-rents amounting to £13 1 3J , . fa The 

 farm, which now belongs to Mr. F. Wilby, dates 

 from about 1600 and is built of timber and plaster, 

 which was refaced with brick in the 1 8th century. 

 It is composed of a main block and two wings ; in 

 the former is a square chimney stack with V-shaped 

 pikster.. 



Stortford Castle was the head of the barony of 

 the Bishop of London. 9 The barony consisted of 

 thirty-six and a third knights' fees lying in Hertford 

 and Essex. 10 The service, however, appears to have 



The bishop's feodary held courts leet throughout 

 these lands." The places composing the bishop's 

 liberty in Hertfordshire were Stortford, the two 

 Hadhams, Albury, the three Pelhams, Meesden, 

 Datchworth, Stevenage, Graveley and Chesfield. 

 Castle-ward rents amounting to £$ 15/. 4^. were 

 still payable from lands within these parishes when 

 Salmon wrote (l 728). Sheriffs' warrants for execution 

 within this area were directed to the bailiff of the 

 liberty, who also had a right to strays and to toll of 

 com and cattle in the markets and fairs. 14 



The manor of PI COTS, PIGGOTTS, PEKOTES 

 or PICKETTS, lying in the south-west of the parish, 

 was evidently formed by subinfeudation from the 

 manor of Stortford, of which it was held by a castle- 

 ward rent. 1 * A rental of Stortford of the late 1 3th 

 century mentions ' tenementura Pycot ' under the 

 heading of North Street, but docs not give any addi- 



Back Vitw, Bishop's Stortford 



been commuted for twenty knights in the early 

 13th century," and by 1303 the whole barony is 

 returned as responsible for the service of five fees 

 only. 1 * A similar reduction is noticeable in the assess- 

 ment of Richmond Honour, which fell from 140 fees 

 to five. Castle-ward rents were payable to Stortford 

 by the lands of the barony ; these like the rents 

 of Rochester Castle were due on St. Andrew's Day. 



tional information. 18 In 1351 John de Mounteney 

 of Stanford Rivers, co. Essex, released all his right 

 in 'the land called Picottes ' to James de Thame, 

 citizen of London. 17 The latter possibly left 

 two heiresses, for in 1 377 Thomas Mounjoye 

 and Alice his wife conveyed the manor to John 

 Gemptyng and Agnes Grey and the heirs of Agnes, 

 the quitclaim being from the heirs of Alice. 18 



Hens, e 



:. s Geo. II. 



Maior F. Skeet. > Ftud. Aids, ii, 4 

 l" Red Bk. of Exlk. (Rolls Ser.), 1 

 499 j Tun de Neuili (Ret. Com.), 1 

 The number, probably by a scribal et 

 is given in the latter list as zSJ. 



11 Rid Bk. ofExch. (Rolls Ser.), ii, 5 

 " Ftud. Aids, ii. 



e Mill 



ACCt: 



bale. 



26 ; Cott. Chart. Kxvii, 4.6 ; Bream's 

 Note Bk. (ed. Maitland), no. 27; ; Chan, 

 loq. p.m. (Ser. z), Ix, 147 j CI. Pat. 

 1388-92, p. 44}. "Salmon, op. cit. 279. 

 1; Cussam says that this manor was 

 held by the family of Picot by grand 

 •erjeanty (Hist, of Hem. Braugking Hund. 

 116), but he is probably confusing it with 

 the manor of Heydon in Eisei. Possibly 

 this manor was held by the same family, 

 but not by eerjeanty. 



300 



Remain and Surr. R. 298. 1 

 (scock suggests that this ii the te 

 t which in the 15th century pai 



to the lord of Pico 

 which stood on the well side of North 

 Street, on the site now occupied by the 

 George Hotel (see Hem. Gen. and Am. 

 '"> 3*5)- 



17 Cal. Close, 1349-54, p. 562. 



,a Feet of F. Herl.. ■ Ric. II, no. 4. 



