Parishes: Reed = | British History Online

Contents
RE= ED
MA= NORS
Ch= allers
Ch= amberlains
Qu= eenbury
CH= URCH
AD= VOWSON
CH= ARITIES
Fo= otnotes

REED

Rode (x cent.); Retth, Rete (xi = cent.); Rede=20 (xii cent.); Rud, Roed, Ruth (xiii cent.); Estrede (xiv = cent).

The parish of Reed is a long, = narrow piece=20 of land containing about 1,477 acres. By far the greater = portion of=20 the parish consists of arable land, but woods exist, mostly = in the=20 south part, where Reed Wood, the largest in the parish, is = situated.=20 Reed lies high, the ground rising to as much as 500 ft. = above the=20 ordnance datum. It is near the summit of the chalk range, = from which=20 the waters on the north join with the Cam and run into Lynn = Deeps,=20 while those on the south run into the Lea and the Thames. = The chief=20 crops are wheat, barley, beans and roots. The commons of = Reed were=20 inclosed in 1808. (fn= .=20 1)

The village of Reed lies almost = midway=20 between Royston and Buntingford (at which two towns are its = nearest=20 railway stations), and a little to the east of the Roman = road, known=20 as Ermine Street, which connects these towns and forms the = western=20 boundary of the parish. There is a reference to this road as = Arning=20 Street in 1251. (fn= .=20 2) A road runs east through Reed from Ermine Street to = Barkway.=20 Running south from this is a road which forms the main = street of the=20 village, then turns sharply west and south and joins Ermine = Street.=20 At the angle thus formed stands Reed Hall, the manor-house, = close to=20 which is the church of St. Mary. The manor-house of = Queenbury stands=20 east of the road a little further north. There is a = Congregational=20 chapel near Queenbury and brickworks further north. On a = road=20 running parallel with this road are situated the church = mission-room=20 and Wisbridge Farm, to the north-east of these are North = Farm and a=20 smithy, whilst other scattered parts of the village lie at = Fiddler's=20 Green and Billingsgate.

The most distinctive feature of = Reed is the=20 number of homestead moats about it. Two of the more = important of=20 these lie near Reed Hall, one inclosing a rectangular space = of 1=BC=20 acres and the other a space of half an acre. Both are nearly = dry. At=20 Queenbury a moat runs round three sides of the house and = gardens,=20 inclosing altogether a piece of land about 400 ft. square. = There=20 appear to have been two inclosures here originally. At = Fiddler's=20 Green is a dry fosse which forms a square. A moat at Gannock = Green=20 incloses a piece of land 200 ft. by 300 ft., and at Bushwood = a moat=20 incloses a rectangular piece of land containing over half an = acre.=20 There were also probably other moats whose position can now = only be=20 traced by ponds. Such a pond lies west of Reed Hall. It is = large and=20 irregularly shaped, and there seem to be traces that it was = once=20 connected with the two moats which adjoin the house and also = with=20 the moats at Queenbury. Connecting fosses also appear to = have run=20 from Queenbury to the moat at Fiddler's Green. The two ponds = which=20 lie near Goodfellows, a house standing south-east of Reed = Green,=20 also probably mark the site of an old moat. (fn= .=20 3)

There are several greens in the = parish:=20 Fiddler's Green to the east of Queenbury, Gannock Green in = the=20 south, and Reed Green, which lies north of Queenbury.

Among those who have been rectors = of Reed=20 may be mentioned Andrew Willet (1562=961621), a theologian = and=20 Biblical critic of some note. He was also a famous preacher, = and his=20 learning was so great that he was called a walking library. = He held=20 the living of Reed from 1613 to 1615. (fn= .=20 4)

MANORS

Challers

The manor of CHALLERS = (Deschalers, xv=20 cent.), known also as the manor of REED or EAST = REED,=20 was formed from several of a number of holdings which = existed in=20 Reed in the reign of Edward the Confessor. The most = important of=20 these holdings was that of Siret, a man of Earl Harold, = consisting=20 of 4 hides a virgate and a half. (fn= .=20 5) Two other holdings of I hide and I virgate were in = the hands=20 of Sinod, a man of St. Mary Charteris. (fn= .=20 6) One hide was held by Eddeva the Maiden of Archbishop = Stigand,=20 (fn= .=20 7) and two of her men, Leuing, a priest, and Turbern, = each held=20 a hide. (fn= .=20 8) Of these in 1086 Hardwin de Scales had obtained all = the land=20 of Siret and I hide of the land of Sinod, which together = made his=20 manor. (fn= .=20 9) He also held of Count Alan the land which had = belonged to=20 Leuing, the priest. (f= n.=20 10) Eudo Fitz Hubert had obtained the remaining virgate = of=20 Sinod, (f= n.=20 11) and the land of Eddeva the Maiden was held by Osbern = of the=20 Bishop of Bayeux, (f= n.=20 12) and that of her man Turbern was held by Alward of = Count=20 Alan. (f= n.=20 13) Of these smaller holdings no further trace is to be = found,=20 and it is probable that at an early date they became = absorbed in the=20 manor held by Hardwin de Scales. But it is perhaps due to = the varied=20 origin of this manor that, while it was always held of the = king in=20 chief (f= n.=20 14) by barony, (f= n.=20 15) certain portions of it were held of other overlords. = Thirty=20 acres called 'Gannok' (f= n.=20 16) were held of the Dean and Chapter of St. Paul's in = the 14th=20 century. (f= n.=20 17) Other land was held of the Earl of Hertford in 1364, = (f= n.=20 18) and part was held of John de Lancaster as of his = manor of=20 Barkway in 1342. (f= n.=20 19) Challers was probably the head of the Scales' = holding in=20 Hertfordshire, for here they had a little castle, consisting = merely=20 of a moated mound, the remains of which still exist. This = accounts=20 for the fact that the manor was held by barony.

On the death of Hardwin de Scales = his lands=20 were divided between his two sons Richard and Hugh. (f= n.=20 20) Reed evidently fell to the share of Hugh, and from = him=20 descended to his son Henry, (f= n.=20 21) for in the reign of Henry II the abbey of Coggeshall = held=20 land in Reed of the fee of Henry de Scales. (f= n.=20 22) On the death of Henry, his son Hugh succeeded to his = lands=20 in Reed, but in 1195 William de Scales, grandson of the=20 above-mentioned Richard de Scales, brought a suit against = him=20 claiming various lands of his inheritance, including those = in Reed.=20 (f= n.=20 23) The case was adjourned in 1199 for so long as Henry = son of=20 Hugh should be in the service of the king beyond the sea. = (f= n.=20 24) But later it was adjudged that Richard was not = seised of the=20 lands which Hugh held at the time of the death of Henry II, = and=20 judgement was given in favour of Hugh. (f= n.=20 25) On Hugh's death his lands descended to his son = Henry, who=20 made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem and died there, leaving no = children.=20 (f= n.=20 26) His brother Geoffrey was his heir, and did homage = for his=20 lands in 1221. (f= n.=20 27)

=20

Scales. Gules six scallops or.

In 1258 Geoffrey de Scales found = himself too=20 old and infirm to perform in person the services due to the = king for=20 his lands, and at the instance of Queen Eleanor Henry III = granted=20 that his son Geoffrey de Scales should do service in his = stead in=20 the king's armies and expeditions. In consideration of this = Geoffrey=20 de Scales granted his son his lands in Reed and Wyddial on = condition=20 that he should perform these duties and also attend the = courts of=20 the justices in eyre and of the sheriff. (f= n.=20 28) In 1260 Henry III granted Geoffrey de Scales free = warren in=20 his lands in Reed and elsewhere. (f= n.=20 29) Geoffrey de Scales, the father, and his son Geoffrey = both=20 died before 1267, and the custody of Thomas, son of the = younger=20 Geoffrey and a minor, was granted to his mother Eleanor, and = the=20 tenants of his lands were allowed quittance of suit at the = hundred=20 and county court during the minority of the heir. (f= n.=20 30) In 1268 Thomas de Scales brought a suit against = Ralph de=20 Chamberlain for deforcing him of his lands in Reed while he = adhered=20 to the king against Simon de Montfort. (f= n.=20 31) As Thomas was only five years old at this date (f= n.=20 32) the suit must have been brought by his guardian, and = the=20 statement that he adhered to the king must refer rather to = his=20 family than to himself. Eleanor de Scales continued to hold = in=20 custody for her son until 1283. (f= n.=20 33) Thomas then came of age and wished to assume = possession of=20 his lands, but his mother and her second husband, Robert = Angot,=20 opposed this on the ground that he was not yet twenty-one = and that=20 as he had been born at Boulogne he could not be admitted to = proof of=20 age. (f= n.=20 34) An inquisition was held by which it was determined = that he=20 had reached his majority, (f= n.=20 35) and the following year his mother and her husband=20 acknowledged this and restored him his lands. (f= n.=20 36) They obtained a grant of Reed, however, for the term = of=20 their lives. (f= n.=20 37) It had reverted to Thomas de Scales by 1303, (f= n.=20 38) and he continued to hold it till his death in 1341. = (f= n.=20 39) It then comprised a capital messuage worth nothing = beyond=20 repairs, 100 acres of land, of which 70 acres were sown = before his=20 death, 1 acre of meadow and 4 of pasture. There were four = customary=20 tenants.

Thomas de Scales's heir was his = son, also=20 Thomas, aged forty-two. He immediately granted the manor, = with the=20 exception of 30 acres of wood, to John de Scales for life. = (f= n.=20 40) In 1356=967 Thomas de Scales settled the reversion = of the=20 manor on himself and his wife Amice with remainder to his = son Thomas=20 in tail and contingent remainder to another son John. (f= n.=20 41) Thomas de Scales died in 1364, and his son Thomas = must have=20 died before him, as his heir then was his grandson John the = son of=20 Thomas. (f= n.=20 42) John died in 1388, and Reed descended to his son = Thomas, (f= n.=20 43) who held it until his death in February 1442=963, = (f= n.=20 44) His son John, aged twenty, succeeded him, (f= n.=20 45) and was the last of this name to hold the manor, = which had=20 been in the possession of his ancestors for 400 years and by = this=20 date was called after them the manor of Deschallers or = Challers. He=20 died in 1467, leaving three daughters, Alice the wife of = John More=20 of More, co. Oxford, Margaret de Scales, and Anne the wife = of John=20 Harecourt. (f= n.=20 46) The manor of Challers became the possession of Anne. = (f= n.=20 47) On the death of her first husband she married Giles=20 Wellesborne, who also predeceased her. (f= n.=20 48) Both her husbands suffered from financial = embarrassment, as=20 appears from the marriage settlement she made on her = daughter and=20 heir Margery with Humphrey Wellisburne in January 1493=964. = (f= n.=20 49) By this, in consideration of this marriage and of = the fact=20 that Humphrey had paid several of her debts and of the debts = of her=20 two husbands, she granted him the yearly issues of the = manor,=20 receiving only for the maintenance of herself and her maid = 20 marks=20 a year if she made her home with Humphrey or 40 marks if she = lived=20 elsewhere. (f= n.=20 50) Margery seems to have had another suitor, John = Rushton, who=20 alleged a contract between them which Anne refused to = acknowledge.=20 In the event of John Rushton taking any step to annul the = marriage=20 of Humphrey and Margery, Challers was to go by her = settlement to=20 Humphrey for life with reversion to the heirs of Sir John de = Scales,=20 kt., other than the said Margery. (f= n.=20 51) Anne died in March 1493=964, when Margery, her = heiress, was=20 aged eighteen. (f= n.=20 52)

Humphrey Wellisburne died in = 1516, and by=20 his will left his wife all his lands in Great Wycombe for = life and=20 =A340. In return for this, and in accordance with a promise = she had=20 made him, Margery Wellisburne in 1516 conveyed the manors of = Reed=20 and Wyddial to trustees to be settled to her use for life = with=20 remainder to her son Arthur Wellisburne and his heirs, or = failing=20 such heirs to her sons Ardewyn, Jasper and Henry Wellisburne = and=20 their heirs in succession. (f= n.=20 53) Margery married as her second husband Thomas Cheyne, = and in=20 1522 she sold the manor of Reed to Robert Dormer, (f= n.=20 54) to whom Arthur Wellisburne also conveyed his rights = in the=20 manor. (f= n.=20 55) Robert Dormer held the manor until 1530, when he = received=20 licence to alienate it to John Bowles. (f= n.=20 56) In 1543 John Bowles died and his grandson Thomas = inherited=20 his estates. (f= n.=20 57) Thomas Bowles was only thirteen, and his wardship = and=20 marriage with an annuity of =A320 out of his estates were = granted to=20 John Sewester, attorney of the Court of Wards. (f= n.=20 58) In 1557 Thomas sold Challers to William Hyde of = Throcking,=20 (f= n.=20 59) who held it till 1567=968, when he sold it to Robert = Bell of=20 the Middle Temple and Dorothy his wife. (f= n.=20 60) Sir Robert Bell, kt., chief baron of the Exchequer, = died in=20 1576 seised of the manors of Chamberlains and Challers, with = fisheries, free warren, court leet and view of frankpledge. = (f= n.=20 61) His eldest son and heir Edmund Bell of Beaupre, aged = fifteen, succeeded to the property in Norfolk (f= n.=20 62) which Dorothy Bell n=E9e Beaupre had brought her = husband in=20 marriage. (f= n.=20 63) The property in Reed had been settled in 1573 on the = second=20 son Robert Bell with remainder to his father Sir Robert Bell = and his=20 heirs. (f= n.=20 64) Robert Bell was captain of a company in the = Netherlands and=20 died leaving no children. (f= n.=20 65) The manor of Challers appears to have reverted to = his=20 mother, who took for her second husband Sir John Peyton, = Lieutenant=20 of the Tower of London, by whom she had a son John Peyton. = (f= n.=20 66) In 1612 Sir John Peyton, sen., and Sir John Peyton, = jun.,=20 and his wife Alice sold the manor of Challers to Sir Julius = Adelmare=20 alias Caesar, kt. (f= n.=20 67)

Sir Julius was the son of an = Italian named=20 Caesar Adelmare, who came to England in 1550 and was court = physician=20 successively to Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth. (f= n.=20 68) In 1596 Sir Julius was made master of the hospital = of St.=20 Katharine, (f= n.=20 69) and is said to have held a lease of the manor of = Queenbury.=20 (f= n.=20 70) He was appointed chancellor of the Exchequer in = 1606. (f= n.=20 71) He married twice, and in 1625 he settled Reed on = John, (f= n.=20 72) the eldest son by his second marriage. (f= n.=20 73) John Caesar was knighted in 1617, and married Anne = the=20 daughter of William Hungate. (f= n.=20 74) In 1636 his father died and he came into possession = of his=20 property in Reed. (f= n.=20 75) This he continued to hold (f= n.=20 76) until 1668, when with his wife Anne he sold it to = William=20 Newland. (f= n.=20 77) On the death of William it descended to Thomas = Newland, who=20 presented to the church in 1718. (f= n.=20 78) In 1722 Thomas Newland and Mary his wife sold their = property=20 in Reed, which at this date appears for the first time as = one manor=20 styled Challers Chamberlains alias Chamberlains = Challers (see=20 below for Chamberlains), to John Manley and Kendrick = Edesbury for=20 ninety-nine years during their lives and the life of Isaac = Manley of=20 Dublin and of their son George Newland. (f= n.=20 79)

=20

Caesar. Gules a chief argent with six roses=20 countercoloured.

Reed soon after came into the = hands of Sir=20 John Jennings, kt., commander-in-chief in the Mediterranean = in 1711,=20 who presented to the church in 1727. (f= n.=20 80) Sir John died in 1743, (f= n.=20 81) and the manor descended to his son George Jennings, = (f= n.=20 82) who married Mary the daughter of Michael Bourke, = tenth Earl=20 of Clanricarde. (f= n.=20 83) He had a daughter Hester Elizabeth, who married John = Peachey, the only son and heir of Sir James Peachey, bart. = (f= n.=20 84) In 1787 George Jennings settled the manor on John = Peachey=20 and Hester Elizabeth, (f= n.=20 85) and on the death of George Jennings in 1790 it = descended to=20 his daughter and her husband. (f= n.=20 86) In 1794 Sir James Peachey was created Lord Selsey, = and on=20 his death in 1808 his son succeeded to the title. (f= n.=20 87) He held Reed (f= n.=20 88) till his death in 1816, (f= n.=20 89) when it passed to his son Henry John Peachey, third = Lord=20 Selsey, who died in 1838, leaving no children. (f= n.=20 90) His sister the Hon. Caroline Mary Peachey inherited = his=20 estates. (f= n.=20 91) She married the Rev. Leveson Vernon-Harcourt, but = had no=20 children. (f= n.=20 92) On her death in 1871, according to the will of her = mother=20 Hester Elizabeth Jennings, Reed passed to the Rt. Hon. Hugh = Henry=20 Rose, first Lord Strathnairn of Strathnairn and Jhansi, who = was=20 descended through his mother from Philip Jennings of = Dudleston Hall,=20 co. Salop, the father of Sir John Jennings before mentioned. = (f= n.=20 93) He had gained his titles for his services in India. = (f= n.=20 94) He died unmarried in Paris in 1886, (f= n.=20 95) and Reed passed to his brother Sir William Rose, who = only=20 survived him one month. It then descended to Admiral the = Hon. George=20 H. Douglas, the son of his sister the Countess of Morton, = who=20 subsequently sold his lands in Reed to Mr. Edward Pigg of = Chipping,=20 but all manorial rights appear by this date to have lapsed. = (f= n.=20 96)

=20

Jennings. Argent a fesse gules between three plummets=20 sable.

=20

Peachey. Azure a lion ermine with a forked tail and a = quarter=20 argent with a pierced molet gules therein.

Chamberlains

The manor of CHAMBERLAINS = possibly=20 represents that hide of land which before the Conquest was = held by=20 Leuing, a priest, one of Eddeva's men. (f= n.=20 97) In 1086 this land had come into the possession of = Hardwin de=20 Scales, but was held by him of Count Alan of Britanny apart = from his=20 other and more important lands in Reed. (f= n.=20 98) It remained with the descendants of Hardwin de = Scales until=20 the reign of Henry III. (f= n.=20 99) At that time, while they adhered to the king in his = struggle=20 with Simon de Montfort, Ralph le Chamberlain seized some of = their=20 land by force. (= fn.=20 100) A suit was brought against him in 1268 for its = recovery by=20 Thomas de Scales, (= fn.=20 101) but it is probable that Ralph kept possession, for = in 1346=20 his descendant Ralph le Chamberlain was holding land in Reed = of=20 Thomas de Scales by service of half a knight's fee. (= fn.=20 102) It is from this family that the manor takes its = name. Ralph=20 le Chamberlain died in 1346, and his lands descended to his = son=20 Ralph, aged twenty. (= fn.=20 103) Nothing further is heard of the Chamberlains in = Reed, but=20 their lands may have come into the possession of Adam Esmond = or=20 Edmond, who was imprisoned for debt in 1373, at which date = he held 3=20 acres of meadow, 34 acres of pasture and 3 acres of wood in = Reed,=20 (= fn.=20 104) for in 1405 John Edmond was holding the manor of=20 Chamberlains (= fn.=20 105) first mentioned by that name. He conveyed it in = that year=20 to feoffees, (= fn.=20 106) apparently in trust for John Walsingham, (= fn.=20 107) for the latter granted it during the reign of Henry = IV to=20 John Grey and Joan his wife, (= fn.=20 108) and Margaret Walsingham, widow, released all right = in the=20 manor in 1430. (= fn.=20 109) On the death of John Grey Chamberlains descended to = his son=20 Ralph Grey, kt., (= fn.=20 110) who presented to the church in 1450. (= fn.=20 111) He died in 1464, when the manor passed to his son = Ralph,=20 aged at that date twenty-four. (= fn.=20 112)

Shortly after this Chamberlains = came into=20 the possession of John Home, who presented to the church in = 1477.=20 (= fn.=20 113) He must have died soon after, for John Shukburgh, = husband=20 of his daughter Clemency, presented in her right in 1479. = John=20 Shukburgh predeceased his wife, and she took to live with = her her=20 son Thomas with his wife and three children. (= fn.=20 114) Leaving them in her house at Reed, she went to = London,=20 where she married Thomas Staunton, 'contrarie to the will = and mynde'=20 of her son, who refused to allow Staunton to enter the house = at Reed=20 and assaulted his servants. (= fn.=20 115) In consequence he was arrested, but escaped with = the help=20 of his friends and tried to break into the house. (= fn.=20 116) Clemency and her husband brought a suit against her = son in=20 1493, (= fn.=20 117) but in February 1494=965 she joined with her = husband and son=20 in making a settlement of the manor. (= fn.=20 118) By 1511 Chamberlains had descended to John = Shukburgh, (= fn.=20 119) who sold it in 1519 to Robert Dormer. (= fn.=20 120) In 1522 Robert Dormer purchased the manor of = Challers=20 (q.v.), and from this date the two manors have descended=20 together.

Queenbury

The manor of QUEENBURY = (Querenebury,=20 Quinbury, xvi cent.) was held in the time of Edward the = Confessor by=20 Aelfward, a man of Earl Harold. By 1086 it had become part = of the=20 possessions of Count Eustace of Boulogne, and was held of = him by=20 Robert Fitz Rozelin. (= fn.=20 121) Queenbury always remained part of the honour of = Boulogne.=20 (= fn.=20 122) From Robert Fitz Rozelin it passed, as did other = fees held=20 in this county by Robert, to the Trikets, who were possibly = his=20 descendants. (= fn.=20 123) It was held by Hugh Triket, (= fn.=20 124) who was living in the reign of Henry II, and = descended to=20 Simon Triket, who was holding it in 1210. (= fn.=20 125) The Trikets do not again appear in Reed. Apparently = a=20 sub-feoffment of the manor had already been made to John = Fitz=20 Bernard, (= fn.=20 126) and from him it descended to Walter Fitz Bernard. = (= fn.=20 127) In the reign of Henry III he sold it to Queen = Eleanor. (= fn.=20 128) In 1255 Eleanor had caused the dissolution of the = hospital=20 of St. Katharine outside the Tower of London, which had been = founded=20 by Queen Matilda, wife of Stephen, and the patronage of = which was=20 vested in the Queens of England. (= fn.=20 129) She refounded it in 1273, and bestowed on it, among = other=20 estates, all her lands in Reed to be held in frankalmoign = without=20 power of alienation, (= fn.=20 130) a grant which was declared to be to the king's = loss. (= fn.=20 131) It is to this circumstance that the manor of = Queenbury=20 appears to owe its name. In 1278 the hospital claimed in = Reed view=20 of frankpledge, gallows, and assize of bread and ale. (= fn.=20 132) In 1287 it claimed these liberties and also = tumbril. (= fn.=20 133) At the time of the Dissolution the manor was farmed = out for=20 =A37 6s. 8d. (= fn.=20 134) It is probable that Henry VIII intended to dissolve = the=20 hospital, but that it was saved by Anne Boleyn, to whom as = Queen of=20 England it belonged. (= fn.=20 135) Queenbury remained with the hospital of St. = Katharine,=20 which for many years leased it for a term of three lives to = the=20 lords of the manor of Challers. (= fn.=20 136) The Hon. Mrs. Vernon-Harcourt, who died in 1871, = (= fn.=20 137) left the remainder of her lease to her god-daughter = the=20 Hon. Caroline Mary Frances Jervis. (= fn.=20 138) About the year 1900 the hospital of St. Katharine = sold=20 Queenbury, (= fn.=20 139) which passed through several hands before it was = purchased=20 about 1909 by Mr. Thomas E. Brandt, the present owner. (= fn.=20 140)

=20

St. Katharine's Hospital. Party fessewise gules and azure = with a=20 sword lying fessewise in the chief and a broken Katharine = wheel or=20 in the foot

The tithes of the manor of = Queenbury,=20 together with certain lands called the demesne lands of = Mynchey=20 Porcyn, were held by the priory of St. Leonard of = Stratford-at-Bow.=20 (= fn.=20 141) These lands were valued at =A32 in 1535. (= fn.=20 142) After the dissolution of the priory of St. Leonard = they=20 were granted in 1539 to Ralph Sadleir. (= fn.=20 143) He restored them to the Crown in exchange for other = lands=20 in 1547=968, (= fn.=20 144) and they then came into the possession of Richard = Chambers,=20 who died in 1549, and left them to his son Robert, aged = eleven. (= fn.=20 145) Robert Chambers received a quitclaim from a certain = Robert=20 Johnson and his wife Audrey (possibly lessees) in 1562. (= fn.=20 146) In 1573 Francis Ridall, rector of East Reed, = claimed all=20 tithes in East Reed except those from certain freeholds and = demesne=20 lands of the manor of Queenbury, and he brought a suit = against=20 Robert Chambers and his tenant John Cannon, who refused to = pay=20 tithes from the copyhold land of that manor. (= fn.=20 147) Robert Chambers claimed that these tithes never had = belonged to the rector of East Reed. (= fn.=20 148) Mynchey Porcyn and the tithes of Queenbury came = later into=20 the possession of Richard Turner, who in 1597 demised the = close=20 called Mynchens to Thomas Turner for eighty years with = reversion to=20 John Turner. (= fn.=20 149) John Turner died in 1602, and Thomas Turner, aged = sixty,=20 was his brother and heir. (= fn.=20 150) Richard Turner died in 1604, at which date he was = seised of=20 the tithes and the close. (= fn.=20 151) It appears, however, that in lieu of tithes the = rectors of=20 Reed had the right to half an acre of wheat and half an acre = of=20 barley in Queenbury. This, before 1722, had been commuted = for a=20 payment of 40s. chargeable on an acre of land called = Parson's=20 Acre. (= fn.=20 152)

Certain lands in Reed, appendant = to the=20 manor of Sandon, were held by the Dean and Chapter of St. = Paul's in=20 the 10th century, and the latter were confirmed in their = possession=20 by King Athelstan in 939. (= fn.=20 153) These lands are not recorded in the Domesday Survey = in=20 1086, but they remained attached to the manor of Sandon = (q.v.),=20 which was subsequently called Gannocks Manor. In the 14th = century=20 the lands in Reed were also called Gannocks, (= fn.=20 154) and were described as 30 acres of land held of the = Dean and=20 Chapter of St. Paul's. (= fn.=20 155) No record of these lands occurs after this time, = but there=20 still exist in the south of the parish a grove and green = which bear=20 the name of Gannocks.

=20

Plan of Reed Church

CHURCH

The church of ST. MARY = consists of=20 chancel 21 ft. 6 in. by 17 ft., nave 34 ft. by 19 ft., south = porch=20 and west tower 10 ft. 6 in. by 10 ft.; all dimensions taken=20 internally. The walls are of flint with stone dressings, the = roofs=20 are tiled.

The nave appears to belong to a=20 pre-Conquest period, probably about the middle of the 11th = century;=20 part of the chancel dates from about 1350; the west tower is = early=20 15th-century work; the east wall of the chancel, the chancel = arch=20 and the south porch were rebuilt in the 19th century, when = other=20 repairs were made.

The large five-light east window = of the=20 chancel is modern, but parts of the reticulated tracery = belonged to=20 the 14th-century window. In the north wall is a window of = two=20 trefoiled lights with a quatrefoil in the head, of about = 1350 date;=20 the two-light window in the south wall is modern; the = chancel arch=20 also is modern.

In the north wall of the nave are = two=20 windows, each of two cinquefoiled lights under a square = head, and of=20 15th-century date; they have been much repaired; between = them is a=20 blocked north doorway, which has a semicircular head, rudely = moulded, and with a plain tympanum; the jambs have engaged = shafts=20 with roughly voluted capitals under a heavy splayed abacus; = the=20 bases are much decayed. The doorway appears to date from the = beginning of the 12th century. The doorway itself is of = Barnack=20 stone, but the inner arch is of clunch. There are two modern = two-light windows in the south wall of the nave, but the = doorway=20 between them is of late 14th-century work, with arch and = jambs of=20 two orders continuously moulded; the label has foliated = stops. In=20 the east jamb of the doorway outside are remains of a stoup. = In the=20 north-east corner of the nave are remains of the stair to = the=20 roodloft. Each of the four angles of the nave externally is = formed=20 of long-and-short work of Barnack stone. The western angles = have two=20 splayed base-courses, one 2 ft. above the other; the lower = one has=20 the base-course on the angle quoin only, all the rest, which = presumably was carried round the nave, has disappeared; the = upper=20 base-course has also disappeared round the church, but is = carried=20 round the west tower. (= fn.=20 156) The quoin stones are flush with the flint = walling.

The pointed tower arch is of two = splayed=20 orders, and in the north jamb is an ogee-headed shallow = niche, about=20 3 ft. from the ground. The west tower is of three stages, = with an=20 embattled parapet, except on the east, which is plain. The = west=20 window is of two trefoiled lights, with much of the = stonework=20 restored. Under the window there has been at one time a = rough=20 opening, now blocked. The second stage is pierced on the = south side=20 with a narrow single light; the belfry has a single pointed = light on=20 each face, much worn.

The font is modern, but the = remains of the=20 15th-century one formerly in the garden of Reed Hall, are = now in=20 Barkway Church; the bowl is octagonal, and underneath are = carved=20 flowers and shields and some emblems of the Passion; some = fragments=20 of tracery are also at Reed Hall.

The communion table is of early=20 17th-century work and has turned and moulded legs.

There are no memorials in the = church.

There are three bells: the treble = and=20 second are unmarked, but the tenor, by Robert Oldfeild, is = inscribed=20 'God save the King,' and dated 1614.

The communion plate consists of = paten,=20 1806, small cup, 1804, and another paten, 1863.

The registers are as follows: (i) = baptisms=20 and burials from 1539 to 1768, marriages 1540 to 1752; (iii) = marriages 1755 to 1807. In 1830 there was a book (ii) = baptisms and=20 burials 1768 to 1812, but this has since disappeared.

ADVOWSON

The living of the church of Reed = is a=20 rectory. The advowson was originally held by the Scales = family, who=20 were lords of the manor of Challers. Henry de Scales and = Hugh his=20 son granted it in the reign of Henry II to the Cluniac = convent of=20 Lewes, together with an annual pension. (= fn.=20 157) This pension was still chargeable on the church in = 1428,=20 (= fn.=20 158) but it is probable that at some time while the = convent of=20 Lewes was in the king's hands during the wars with France = the=20 advowson was acquired by the lord of Chamberlains, or that = the=20 convent itself alienated it, for in 1405 John Edmond, lord = of the=20 manor of Chamberlains, held the advowson, (= fn.=20 159) and from this date it descended until lately with = that=20 manor (q.v.). When Admiral the Hon. George H. Douglas sold = his lands=20 in Reed he retained the advowson, and it is held at the = present time=20 by his son, Captain George Sholto Douglas. The parish of = Reed was=20 united to that of Barkway in 1800.

CHARITIES

In 1602 Richard Turner by his = will gave=20 20s. a year to the poor. This sum is paid out of the = close=20 called 'Barton's' and is distributed in bread.

Footnotes

1	Com. Pleas D. Enr. Trin. 10 Geo. IV, m. = 23.
2	Cal. Chart. R. 1226=9657, p. 360.
3	East Herts. Arch. Soc. Trans. ii, = 266=968.
4	Dict. Nat. Biog.
5	V.C.H. Herts. i, 339a.
6	Ibid. 339a, 329a.
7	Ibid. 310a.
8	Ibid. 319.
9	Ibid. 339a.
10	Ibid. 319. See manor of Chamberlains.
11	Ibid. 329a.
12	Ibid. 310a.
13	Ibid. 319.
14	Abbrev. Rot. Orig. (Rec. Com.), i, 25; = Cal.=20 Pat. 1340=963, p. 384; Chan. Inq. p.m. 29 Edw. III = (2nd=20 nos.), no. 4; 38 Edw. III, no. 10; 11 Ric. II, no. = 15.
15	Feud. Aids, ii, 433, 434.
16	Chan. Inq. p.m. 38 Edw. III, no. 10.
17	Ibid.
18	Ibid. 16 Edw. III (2nd nos.), no. 41; Inq. a.q.d. = file=20 317, no. 4; Chan. Inq. p.m. 38 Edw. III, no. = 10.
19	Chan. Inq. p.m. 16 Edw. III (2nd nos.), no. = 41.
20	Abbrev. Plac. (Rec. Com.), 99.
21	Dugdale, Baronage, i, 616.
22	Cal. Pat. 1388=9692, p. 79.
23	Abbrev. Plac. (Rec. Com.), 99.
24	Rot. Cur. Reg. (Rec. Com.), i, 410.
25	Abbrev. Plac. (Rec. Com.), 99.
26	Excerpta e Rot. Fin. (Rec. Com.), i, = 69.
27	Ibid.
28	Cal. Pat. 1247=9658, p. 626.
29	Ibid. 1258=9666, p. 117.
30	Close, 51 Hen. III, m. 6.
31	Abbrev. Plac. (Rec. Com.), 177.
32	See Coram Rege R. 88, m. 1 (Hil. 13 Edw. = I).
33	Assize R. 323; see Fine R. 4 Edw. I, m. 28; Cal. = Inq.=20 p.m. Edw. I, 45.
34	Coram Rege R. 88, m. 1 (Hil. 13 Edw. I).
35	Cal. Inq. p.m. Edw. I, 309.
36	Abbrev. Plac. (Rec. Com.), 206; Coram Rege R. = 88,=20 m. 1 (Hil. 13 Edw. I).
37	Assize R. 325.
38	Feud. Aids, ii, 432, 433.
39	Chan. Inq. p.m. Edw. III, file 64, no. 20.
40	Cal. Pat. 1340=963, p. 384; Inq. a.q.d. file = 261, no.=20 17.
41	Feet of F. Herts. 30 Edw. III, no. 447; Inq. a.q.d. = file=20 317, no. 4.
42	Chan. Inq. p.m. 38 Edw. III, no. 10; 6 Ric. II, no.=20 31.
43	Ibid. 11 Ric. II, no. 15.
44	Ibid. 21 Hen. VI, no. 20.
45	Ibid.
46	Ibid. Edw. IV, file 24, no. 28.
47	Cal. Inq. p.m. Hen. VII, 426=967.
48	Ibid.
49	Ibid.
50	Ibid.
51	Ibid.
52	Ibid.
53	Close, 7 Hen. VIII, no. 41.
54	Ibid. 14 Hen. VIII, no 24; Feet of F. Herts. Mich. = 14 Hen.=20 VIII.
55	Close, 14 Hen. VIII, no. 25.
56	L. and P. Hen. VIII, iv, g. 6751 = (28).
57	Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), lxviii, 14.
58	L. and P. Hen. VIII, xviii (2), g. 449 = (67).
59	Pat. 3 & 4 Phil. and Mary, pt. iv, m. 16; Recov. = R.=20 East. 3 & 4 Phil. and Mary, rot. 560.
60	Pat. 10 Eliz. pt. iv, m. 6.
61	Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), clxxxii, 28.
62	Ibid.
63	Visit. of Norf. (Harl. Soc. xxxii), = 34.
64	Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), clxxxii, 28.
65	Visit. of Norf. (Harl. Soc. xxxii), = 34.
66	Visit. of Norf. (Harl. Soc. xxxii), = 34.
67	Feet of F. Herts. Trin. 10 Jas. I; see Feet of F. = Div. Co.=20 Mich. 10 Jas. I.
68	Lodge, Life of Sir Julius Caesar, = 20.
69	Ibid.
70	Clutterbuck, Hist. and Antiq. of Herts. iii,=20 556.
71	Lodge, op. cit. 22.
72	Feet of F. Div. Co. East. 1 Chas. I; Recov. R. East. = 1=20 Chas. I, rot. 36.
73	Lodge, op. cit. 21.
74	Ibid. 53, 54.
75	Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), cccclxxxiv, 159.
76	Recov. R. East. 1649, rot. 46; Feet of F. Herts. = Trin. 16=20 Chas. II.
77	Feet of F. Herts. Trin. 20 Chas. II; see Feet of F. = Herts.=20 East. 35 Chas. II.
78	Inst. Bks. (P.R.O.).
79	Feet of F. Herts. East. 8 Geo. I.
80	Inst. Bks. (P.R.O.).
81	Dict. Nat. Biog.
82	See Feet of F. Herts. Trin. 27 Geo. III; Inst. Bks.=20 (P.R.O.).
83	G.E.C. Complete Peerage, s.v. = Selsey.
84	Ibid.
85	Feet of F. Herts. Trin. 27 Geo. III.
86	See Inst. Bks. (P.R.O.); Clutterbuck, Hist. and = Antiq.=20 of Herts. iii, 554.
87	G.E.C. Complete Peerage, s.v. = Selsey.
88	See Inst. Bks. (P.R.O.).
89	G.E.C. loc. cit.
90	Ibid.
91	Cussans, Hist. of Herts. Odsey Hund. = 141.
92	Ibid.
93	Ibid.
94	G.E.C. Complete Peerage, s.v. = Strathnairn.
95	Ibid.
96	Inform. from Captain Geo. Sholto Douglas.
97	V.C.H. Herts. i, 319.
98	Ibid.
99	Abbrev. Plac. (Rec. Com.), 177.
100	Ibid.
101	Ibid.
102	Cal. Close, 1346=969, pp. 109, 110. Henry le=20 Chamberlain, who held the manor of Nuthampstead for a = short=20 time from 1315, may have been of the same family (see = Cal.=20 Pat. 1313=9617, pp. 283=964).
103	Chan. Inq. p.m. 20 Edw. III, no. 3.
104	Chan. Inq. p.m. 47 Edw. III (1st nos.), no. = 49.
105	Close, 10 Hen. IV, m. 32.
106	Ibid.
107	See Chan. Inq. p.m. 5 Edw. IV, no. = 27b.
108	Ibid.
109	Close, 8 Hen. VI, m. 4.
110	Chan. Inq. p.m. 5 Edw. IV, no. 27b.
111	Clutterbuck, Hist. and Antiq. of Herts. iii,=20 555.
112	Chan. Inq. p.m. 5 Edw. IV, no. 27b.
113	Clutterbuck, loc. cit.; see Star Chamb. Proc. Hen. = VII,=20 no. 59.
114	Star Chamb. Proc. Hen. VII, no. 59.
115	Ibid.
116	Ibid.
117	Ibid.; see Star Chamb. Proc. Hen. VIII, bdle. 20, = no.=20 129.
118	Feet of F. Herts. Hil. 10 Hen. VII.
119	Clutterbuck, Hist. and Antiq. of Herts. iii,=20 555.
120	Close, 11 Hen. VIII, no. 2; Feet of F. Herts. Trin. = 11=20 Hen. VIII.
121	V.C.H. Herts. i, 321a, 282.
122	Liber Niger Scacc. (ed. T. Hearne), i, 389, = 390;=20 Red. Bk. of Exch. (Rolls Ser.), ii, 501, 581; = Testa=20 de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 270, 274; Hund. R. = (Rec.=20 Com.), i, 88.
123	See manors of Corneybury in Wyddial and Barkesdon = Green in=20 Aspenden.
124	Liber Niger Scacc. loc. cit.; Red Bk. of=20 Exch. loc. cit.
125	Red Bk. of Exch. loc. cit.
126	See Liber Niger Scacc. loc. cit.; Testa de = Nevill (Rec. Com.), 270.
127	See Red Bk. of Exch. ii, 581; Testa de=20 Nevill (Rec. Com.), 274.
128	Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 88 seq.
129	Dugdale, Mon. vii, 694.
130	Ibid.; Cal. Chart. R. 1257=961300, p. = 409.
131	Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), i, 88 seq.
132	Assize R. 323.
133	Ibid. 325.
134	Valor Eccl. (Rec. Com.), i, 386.
135	Dugdale, Mon. vii, 694.
136	Cussans, Hist. of Herts. Odsey Hund. 143; see = Feet=20 of F. Herts. East. 8 Geo. I; East. 47 Geo. = III.
137	Cussans, loc. cit.
138	Ibid.
139	Inform. from the Rev. Severne Majendie of St. = Katharine's=20 Hospital.
140	Inform. from Mr. Thomas Brandt of = Queenbury.
141	Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), lxxxviii, 88; Ct. of Req. = bdle.=20 135, no. 1; Dugdale, Mon. iv, 119.
142	Dugdale, loc. cit.
143	L. and P. Hen. VIII, xiv (1), 403 = (44).
144	Dugdale, loc. cit.
145	Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), lxxxviii, 75.
146	Feet of F. Herts. Hil. 4 Eliz.
147	Ct. of Req. bdle. 135, no. 1.
148	Ibid.
149	Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), cclxvii, 55.
150	Ibid.; Ct. of Wards, Misc. Bks. Extents and = Attachments,=20 dcxviii.
151	Chan. Inq. p.m. (Ser. 2), ccccix, 103.
152	a Note in parish register book communicated by Rev. = W. T.=20 Stubbs.
153	Birch, Cart. Sax. ii, 451.
154	Chan. Inq. p.m. 38 Edw. III, no. 10.
155	Ibid. 16 Edw. III (2nd nos.), no. 41; 29 Edw. III = (2nd=20 nos.), no. 4.
156	It is possible that the double basecourse of the = quoins,=20 the upper of which is carried round the 15th-century = tower,=20 together with its disappearance from the nave walls, = may be=20 due to a later re-building of the nave walls, re-using = the old=20 quoin stones. The clunch inner arch of the north door = may give=20 colour to this.
157	Cott. MS. Vesp. F xv, fol. 310.
158	Feud. Aids, ii, 461.
159	Close, 10 Hen. IV, m. = 32.

Parishes=20 Reed

Contents

Parishes=20
Reed