2004/04 pp5–6

 

The Surrey Feet of Fines 1509–1558

 

An intriguing title, Feet of Fines! In reality the explanation is rather mundane – they are the records that were deposited in the Public Record Office from the long-abolished Court of Common Pleas, consisting of the lower part (the foot) of a document on which the ‘Fine’ or ‘Final Concord’ was written in triplicate on a single membrane of parchment, twice in the upper part with the writing parallel to the sides and once at the bottom across the membrane. The two upper sections were separated and went to the two parties involved in the dispute: the lower was lodged with the Court of Common Pleas. The judgements recorded related to the ownership of land and property in cases where there had been doubt, usually because of the absence of documents.

 

The physical form of the record had become fixed as early as July 1195 and remained unchanged down to the statutory abolition of Fines in 1833. Indexed copies of the Feet of Fines for the period 1509–1798 are held by the Public Record Office. Those for Surrey for the early part of that period have been published in Abstracts of Surrey Feet of Fines 1509–1558, volume 19 of the Surrey Record Society, 1946. The work was largely that of C.A.F. Meekings, an assistant keeper at the Public Record Office, who served on the Council of the Surrey Record Society and was responsible for a number of its publications. For the volume in question Meekings provided an introduction which set out the history of the Feet of Fines, and there is a preface by Mr. Hilary Jenkinson, who was Secretary of the Surrey Record Society, giving the background to the publication.

 

Local historians will ask, what is there relating to Epsom and Ewell in the volume? The index refers to five properties in Epsom and nine in Ewell, briefly summarised in the following where the fines are identified by a reference number, as given in the SRS publications, and the year.

 

Epsom

6671551John Mynne v. Robert and Elizabeth Broke involving numerous

properties and more than 700 acres of land.

 

6801552Henry Goldyng v. Henry and Ursula Mynne involving the manor

of Rokesle (Shalford) which was in Ewell, as well as Epsom.

 

8311555Bartholomew Fromondys v. Joan Woodman, widow, involving

45 acres of land.

 

8621556Richard Wryght and Alexander Rutherforth v. Edward and Elizabeth Bavesdyke

                involving a messuage and 70 acres of land.

 

9881557The Lord King (Henry VIII) v. John, Abbot of the Monastery and Convent of St. Peter

                 the Apostle, Chertsey, involving many manors and thousands of acres of land.

(This was the time of the dissolution of Chertsey Abbey)

 

Ewell

61509John Codyngton and Henry Saunder v. John and Margaret

Treglyston involving a messuage and garden in Ewell.

 

541514John and Elizabeth Scotte v. Thomas and Alice Codyngton

involving the rent of the manor of Fenellys and its mill.

 

571514Richard Plestowe and others v. Nicholas and Joan Major involving two messuages

                and 9½ acres of land.

 

1301527Henry Wyat, kt, and others v. Robert and Elizabeth Draper

involving various properties and land, some in Ewell.

 

2811538Thomas Fromond v. Richard and Elizabeth Codyngton

involving various quantities of land, some in Ewell.

 

2791539Richard Bray, senior v. Richard Bray, junior, involving 36

acres of land.

 

7571554Richard Garth v. Edward and Agnes Whytchurche involving

the manor of Mordern including land in Ewell.

 

7851555Thomas Musrege v. Nicholas and Alice Venner involving a

messuage and three acres of land.

 

Source

Abstracts of Surrey Feet of Fines 1509–1558 (Surrey Record Society 19, 1946).

 

Charles Abdy