DOMESDAY SURVEY 



religious purposes, of which the principal one was the care of the poor, under the 

 administration of the bishop and his clergy. Side by side with this provision 

 for the living other gifts to monastic and collegiate churches had been made 

 on behalf of the dead, for prayers for their souls. For this purpose 44 hides, 

 representing some 36,000 acres,^ had been given to various churches before 

 the Confessor's time, followed by 35 hides more in the Confessor's time. * 

 The gifts of the Conqueror and his companions to the saints in alms 

 amount to 34 hides.* Comparatively little of these land gifts was available 

 for what we should call diocesan purposes, and many of the estates given to God 

 were administered by and for the benefit of monasteries outside the county ; 

 nearly all the Conqueror's gifts were to alien establishments. 



Out of the 15 hides and 185 plough-lands in Crediton manor the squires 

 or knights {milites) of the bishop of Exeter and his peasants had among them 

 9 hides and 172 plough-lands. Two centuries later we meet with Umfravil, 

 fitz Stephen, the earl of Devon, Hydon, Peverel, Knighton, Dourish and 

 Lancels* holding under the bishop lands in Crediton. Most of them were 

 probably successors to his Domesday squires. 



More information is available as to the abbot of Tavistock's under-tenants, 

 who, according to his return in 1166, held i8j fees, viz., 17 of old feoffment 

 and I J of new. ° The names of Ermenald, Ralf, Hugh, Robert, Ralf de Tili 

 and Geoffrey are given in the record as under-tenants at Tavistock ; of 

 Walter, Geoffrey, Ralf and a Prankish knight, possibly de Tili, at Hatherleigh ; 

 of Nigel and Robert at Romansleigh. It is probable that Hugh's 2 virgates 

 2 J ferlings represent Wick Dabernon in Milton Abbot i fee* held by Hugh 

 de Wicha in 1166;^ and that Ralf's J virgate is Notley in Tavistock J fee ; * 

 also that Walter's 2j virgates at Hatherleigh represent Broomford and 

 Jacobstowe, Walter being the predecessor in title of Geoffrey de Lega who, in 

 1 166, held il fees of the abbot and ' extorted an additional j fee from his 

 church.' ' 



The detailed consideration of the great lay tenants in chief, whose 

 possessions formed the numerous baronies or honours which are found in 

 this county at a later date, and of their sub-tenants, is reserved for our section 

 on the Feudal Baronage. Suffice it here to remark that the estates of 

 Hugh earl of Chester passed by his forfeiture to the crown, Stowford and 

 Houndbear continuing to be held of the king,^" whilst East Anstey went to 

 the honour of Cardinan. Those of the count of Mortain, after being resumed 

 by Henry I and held by the king or some member of the royal family for two 

 centuries, were in 1337 settled on the prince of Wales. The estates of 



' Trans. Devon Assoc, xxx, 290. ' Ibid. 294. 



' Ibid, xxx, 282, 286. 



* Feud. Aids, i, 337. Trans. Devon Assoc, xxxvi, 356 ; xxxiii, 627. The Red Book (Rolls Ser.), 556, names 

 in 1 2 1 2 Drogo of Teignton, Robert son of Geoffrey, Roger the archbishop, William de Mesthale, Henry the 

 Earl's son, John Malherbe, William Botreaux, Hugh Peverel of Sampford, Richard de Hokeweye and Baldwin 

 de Reddon as holding of the bishop by knights' service. 



* Lib. Nig. 118. Red Bk. of Exch. (Rolls Ser.), J J 8 in 1 2 1 2 says 1 7 J fees. 

 '^ Feud. Aids, i, iZ2. _ _ ^ Lii. Nig. iiS. 



' In Feud. Aids, pp. 354, 402, Notley is said to have been held aforetime by William Cornu. William 

 Cornu also held Thornbury for f fee (Ibid. 327). Now since Ralf was predecessor of W. Cornu at 

 'J'hornbury, it is probable that he also preceded him elsewhere as at Notley {Trans. Devon Assoc, xxxvi, 350). 

 liesides Roger Cornutus is stated to have held 2 knights' fees of the abbot in 1 1 66 (Lib. Nig. 1 1 8). 



' Lib. Nig. 118. T!-ans. Devon Assoc, xxxvi, 352. 



'» Testa de N evi/l (Rec. Cora.), 179*, 190^, 191^. 



