A HISTORY OF HERTFORDSHIRE 



. Gulc: St. Pitt 



made a sub-enfcoffment of Amwell Manor to a 

 younger branch of the family, the descendants of 

 Geoffrey, who was evidently a younger son of the 

 Ralf de Limesy of the Domesday Book." Ralph de 

 Limesy, grandson of this Geoffrey, left a daughter 

 Felise, who apparently married Robert the son of 

 her guardian Ralph son of Nicholas." Robert son 

 of Ralph son of Nicholas with his wife ' lady Felicia ' 

 had licence, 3 ' and made an agreement in 1252 with 

 the Prior of Hertford to build 

 a free chapel in their "court' 

 at Amwell." 1 Felise died with- 



Ralph, the son of Alan her 

 father's brother, sold Amwell 

 Manor in or shortly before 

 1270 to Richard of Ware, 

 Abbot of Westminster," re- 

 serving a rent of a clove gilly- 

 flower." His nephew and 

 heir Peter dc Limesy" released 

 all right in the manor as mesne 

 lord to the abbey in 1 317." 



The abbot owed knight's ser- *j w(M in gem axurt. 

 vice of one fee to the chief 



lord," which in 1303 was due to Hugh de Odding- 

 selles," grandson of Basile, one of the co-heirs of 

 John de Limesy. ,e Hugh afterwards sold to the 

 abbey all his rights in Amwell as chief lord." A 

 rental of the late 14th century shows that the abbey 

 exacted the service of a half-Ice from Robert son of 

 Robert de Gedding, who was then holding one- 

 quarter of the vill, iD and of another half-fee from 

 the seven tenants of land which had been held by 

 Nicholas Usshel and John Percival, and also of a 

 quarter-fee from the nine tenants of the holding 

 formerly of Stephen de Aldingbourne." 



Abbot Richard promised to assign Amwell Manor 

 to the convent, from the goods of which he had paid 

 Ralph de Limesy 700 marks of silver"; but ic was 

 not until 1288 that Abbot Walter de Wenlak defi- 

 nitely assigned it to the cellarer of the abbey." In 

 1535 the treasurer of outlying estates received the 



oith St. 



In 



289 the 



eve accounted for the manor includ- 

 ed Brother Richard de Waltham 



visited Amwell four times yearly to receive the 

 profit!." Early in the 14th century Sir William 

 de Goldington, kt., lord of the neighbouring manor 

 of Goldingtons,** had a lease of the manor for life." 

 The courts were usually reserved in leases of the 

 demesne lands," and in 1398 the profits of the court! 

 were farmed separately by a collector of rents." In 

 1537 a reversionary lease of the demesne landi, con- 

 tingent upon the death of Gilbert Rooki, was made 

 to Thomas Leigh, Master of the Hospital of Burton 

 St. Lazars, and to his nephew William Leigh, a 

 mercer of London, in survivorship." 



The abbey surrendered to the Crown in January 

 1 5 39-+Q, Kl and in the fol- 

 lowing August Sir Anthony 

 Denny, kt., of Cheshunt, the 

 favourite of Henry VIII and 

 an ardent supporter of the 

 Reformation,' ,, had a grant in 

 tail-male of all the estate of 

 the late abbey at Amwell. 6! 

 Dame Joan, Sir Anthony's 

 beautiful and accomplished 

 widow, purchased from 

 William Leigh his interest in Dlnni, Earl of N01- 



the manor in March I 5 5 2—3," with. Gulti a ulart 

 and after her death herexecu- Zf'Z i'T'" ""'*" 

 tor John Tamworth transferred '" •*"*■? 

 to Henry Denny of Dalonce, 

 co. Essex, the remaining years of Leigh's lease.* 1 



Under the terms of the grant to Sir Anthony the 

 manor descended in tail-male to his son Henry 

 Denny of Chcshunt 1 ' 1 ' and his grandson Robert, a 

 minor at his father's death." The latter was suc- 

 ceeded in 1576 by his brother, Sir Edward Denny, 

 kt., who was created Lord Denny of Waltham in 

 1604 and Earl of Norwich in 1636. M In 1600, 

 desiring to build in a place with good air, Sir 

 Edward wished to cut off the entail and purchase 

 the reversionary rights of the Crown in the manor." 

 Having met with opposition from his uncle, he 

 apparently changed his plans. 70 

 kt., his extravagant son-in-lav 

 of the Crown rights in the 

 1605-6, 7I and in 1607 joine 

 in a sale to Thomas Hobbes the 



Sir James Hay, 

 1 obtained a grant 

 lanor 1 1 February 

 with Sir Edward 

 : elder of Gray'i 



17 Wrottesley, Fed. from Pita R. 5 

 538. The same family held also of 

 elder branch in Yardley, 

 (Bracton, Note Si. [ed. MaitUnd], 

 347-9)- 



Ji Except e Rot. Fin. (Rec. C( 

 i, .77; Wrottesley, loc. cit. 



" 3 Doc. of Westm. Abbey, Press 



Wore 



shelf 4, box 76, 1 



of F. Herts. 36 Hen. Ill, 



Aid,, 



'Wrottesley, op. cit. S3 8. 

 1 Doc. at Westm. no. 4196 ; cf. Dc 

 ico R. 199, m. 116 d.; Cat. Claie, 

 3-18, p. 204; IJI3-IS,p.J4J. The 

 lily of Limesy were tenants of the 

 eyinthe 14th century (Add. R. 2682S, 



26 d. ; Feud. 



« Valor Ecd. (Rec. Com.), i, 41J. 

 "Add. R. 26827. 



60 See under Stanstead St. Margaret'i. 

 " Doc. at Westm. no. 4.211; cf. 



t. 54 He* 

 '+33- 



■■' Hat 



11 Wro 



', loc 



« The fine between the abbot, who was 

 probably a native of Ware, and Ralph 

 Is dated Feb. 1269-70 (Doc. at Westm. 

 no. 4246, cf. no. 4214, 4197), and the 

 charter was enrolled in 54 Hen. Ill 

 (Pat. 54 Hen. Ill, m. 16 d.). ~ 



Her 



■III 3, 



r of 1 



libertie 

 veil 



3 the 

 1 May 



(see the confirmation by Edwart 

 Doc. 4243 ; cf. Assize R. 323, m. 4;). 

 The purchase was undoubtedly made by 

 Richard of Ware, and must therefore have 

 taken place after 1259, when he became 

 abbot (y.C.M. Load, i, 4;;). 

 « Pat. 54 Hen. IIT, m. 26 d. 



few/. A 



* See the account of Caldecote. 



** Doc. at Westm. 4230, About the 

 same time Juliane daughter of Simon of 

 Offley conveyed to her son Robert all her 

 right in the vill (ibid. 4199). 



M Add. R. 26828. This wa. possibly 

 the manor of Geddings in Hoddesdon 

 which was held as of Amwell Manor 

 (Chan. Inq. p.m. [Ser. 2], li, jo). See 

 under Broiboume. 



"Add. R, 26828. 



i! Cat. Pal. 1281-92, p. 416; Doc. at 

 Westm. no. 4246. 



» Cat. Pat. 1281-91, p. 416 ; cf. Cat. 



. Chart. 80, t. 16; 



Chart. 80, F. 26. 



within 



e manor in 1378 {Cat. Pat. IJ77"*'. 



219). 



" F.C.H. Land, i, 447. 



a > Diet. Nat. Biog. 



" L. a«d P. He«. VIII, j 



"" "" rl. Chart. 80, F. it 



>*7 (»()• 



■' Ibi'i 



115. 



4i V.C.H. Limd. 1,449. 

 416 



* Ibid, clxix, 85. 

 M C.E.C. Complete Parage, vi, 100. 

 60 Cecil MSS. (Hist. MSS. Com.), », 

 ; Cat. S. P. Dom. 1598-1601, p. 186. 

 '« Cecil MSS. (Hist. MSS. Com.), », 

 , 80. 



;1 G.E.C. Complete Peerage, iii, 63. 

 " Pa,. , ja,. I, pt. xvi. 



