Add MS 40167-40168

As bound, Vol. I contains all the records before the dissolution of St. Albans Abbey, to which the manor belonged, but it consists of several compilations of different date, the earliest of which was made, as the heading on f. 88 shows, under direction of John Mote, then Cellarer (1354-1374) and afterwards (at the time of the Peasants' Revolt) Prior. For some account of this compilation in book form, which apparently extended to most of the manors in Mote's charge (another is in Add. MS. 40625, below), see Miss A. E. Levett, "The Courts and Court Rolls of St. Albans Abbey" in Trans. of the R. Historical Society, 4th Ser., vii, pp. 52-76. The MS. is imperfect at the beginning, perhaps not wanting here more than one leaf, although a 15th cent. foliation-register at f. 190 b suggests that about six leaves are missing from the first 197. The first complete court is of Fri. after St. Matthias, 30 Hen. 111 [2 Mar. 1246], and hands very similar, if not actually the same scribe, carried down the work to the end of Edw. III [1377]. After this it was probably made up at short intervals to 3 Hen. V, the first entry for which, at the end of a quire (f. 167 b), is cancelled, because repeated in the new quire begun by another hand at f. 168. This second section ends imperfectly in the last year of Hen. V (f. 190 b), followed by a loose leaf of uncertain date. Between the courts for 5 and 6 Hen. V (f. 173) is the heading "Hie non hiabetur curia in isto anno quia clamant tenere per per (sic) cartam et placitare cum abbate Willelmo incipiunt," marked by marginal drawings of a mitre and crozier. The section for Henry VI, which has a separate foliation-register (f. 242 b), was formerly misbound in front of 3 Hen. V (f. 168). It has the heading (f. 192): "Extracta rotulorum de halimotis siue curiis tentis in diuersis maneriis siue dominiis ad porcionem abbatis pertinentibus ab anno primo regis Henrici sexti vsque ad annum eiusdem regis et ab anno tercio prelacionis abbatis lohannis sexti [sc. Whethamstede] usque ad annum Officium rexit hunc scriptor dummodo scripsit / Librum Willelmus Walyngforth nomine dictus"; i.e. it was written during Wallingford's cellarership, which began later than 1445 (see f. 218) and not later than 1452 (see f. 225 b). There are no extracts for Edw. IV- Hen. VII, and those for Henry VIII (on smaller vellum) beg. Thurs. aft. St. Mark, 23 Hen. VIII [27 Apr. 1531] and end with a court the heading of which is blank [1538 ?]. Besides the courts held at Barnet the books include many pleas heard at the Abbey's central court at. St. Albans under the ash-tree (see Miss Levett, op. cit., p. 9). Under 5 Edw. I (f. 16) is a marginal record of the "Tallagium de Barnet," 17 names with sums ranging from 6d. to 18s. There are a few wills proved in the court (19 Ric. 11, 4 Hen. IV, ff. 142 b, 149 b, 150 b, 152 b, 153 b), the Cellarer apparently acting as commissary for the archdeacon of the monastery. Chipping Barnet and East Barnet are sometimes treated as separate manors. A few holdings are noted in a late hand in the margin as belonging to the fee of the kitchener. Vol. II is all in one or more hands of temp. William and Mary, and contains courts from 5 Apr. [1554] to 4 July 1691. For the descent of the lordship during this period through the farnilies of Butler, Weld, Munday and Latton, see Victoria County History of Hertfordshire, ii, p. 331. From 1687 the courts are in the names of Richard Haley and Thomas Marriott. Prefixed to Vol.I (ff. ii, iii) is a paper map (early 18th cent. ?) of Barnet Common, on a scale of about 20 inches to the mile. Vellum (except ff. i-iii of Vol. 1) ; ff. iii+ 263 ; i + 385. 19 in. x 13 in. and 17 in. x 13 1/2 in. Gatherings normally of 8 leaves, but with many insertions. The binding of both volumes was of thick boards covered with rough calf (circ. 1700 ?) with slight blind-tooling. The descent of the manor since 1691 is given in the Victoria County History, l.c.