In 1316, Abbot John Rutherwyke started a survey of all the Abbey's land.  Unfortunately he seems to have only got as far as Egham; and even that not completed.  In 1343 there was an audit of the manor of Henlie near Ash

Nevertheless, from the Egham and Henlie surveys we can gather quite a lot about how the villages in this part of Surrey were managed under the Abbey.

I have used the translations by Turner^{1 p41} and that of the Chertsey Cartulary^{2 Vol 12 p381} to provide the information below (Turner's comments in parenthesis: mine in italics).  

Miscellaneous Income

"the capital site, whose buildings are in need of repairs costing 20s, was surrounded by a four acre garden and yard.  The produce of the garden was estimated at 7s yearly. There was a dove house which would be worth 3s if repaired.  John Aldwyne was the tenant - see below. So even the tenant of the best property lived in a house needing considerable repair; what would the homes of the poorest peasants have been like?  The capital site in the manor of Henlie was "worth nothing" ^{2 Vol 12 p380}

A watermill was valued at 13s. 4d. It is not clear how this income was derived; was it for the rent of the mill or perhaps a tax on each sack milled? (Rutherwyke "purchased" the mill some years later).

Willow beds providing withy cutting worth 12d.  Presumably to make baskets?

Customary tenants might cut for domestic winter fuel four cartloads of heath (peat, heather and gorse) from the lord's common in the forest, giving the lord one measure.  It is not clear how the Abbot could give permission for his tenants to cut fuel in the King's Windsor Forest.

There was a tax, called "Gavelfestre", on each brew house in the manor, amounting to 3s a year.

For pannage, the right to turn out pigs in the Autumn into the woods, on St Martin's day the abbot received 1d. a year for each pig one year old, and a halfpenny for each pig of six months, estimated to produce 10s. yearly.

The tallage, or general tax, at the will of the lord, yielding about 20s. Tallage "at the will of the lord" seems to suggest that by this date the Abbot was not insisting on this now unfashionable tax but wished to retain the right to.

Fines (fees for land transfer), and perquisites of court, with heriots and reliefs, produced 30s. a year.  When a tenant died, the Abbey claimed the tenants best animal (heriot) and the family were required to pay a fee (relief) to transfer the tenancy to them. That these taxes provided the biggest income of all suggests that the amounts were not notional. These taxes which were applied when a family had just lost its likely breadwinner were, as can be imagined, deeply resented.  Even if the Abbey found them morally repugnant, they were the most profitable tax and so the Abbey was reluctant to abolish them.  Even during the Black Death, when families were being decimated, the Abbey continued to insist on this tax and consequently built up considerable wealth.

The Demesne, i.e. lands retained and not leased to freeholders by the Abbey - about 280 acres.

Arable Land .

The arable lands in demesne were about 194 acres valued at £6 12s.  Averaging 8p per acre. No value is given for 43 acres held in Homworth Field; it is possible that this was not tenanted but worked by the Abbey itself - hence its name 'home field'?.

The survey then proceeds to set out in great detail the exact measurements of the various demesne holdings in the arable fields.  For example, in Homworth Field the Abbey has four pieces; Estforlong 13.5 acres, Midelforlong (16.5 acres), West and Cherleforlong (12.5 acres together).  A furlong was 220 yards; an acre was often a strip one furlong long by 22 yards wide - traditionally the area that could be ploughed in one day.  But it appears that the holdings in the common fields were between 12 to 16 times the width of the traditional narrow acre strip.  If the Abbey did not work the land itself, it is likely (see the description of the holdings of tenants below) that these holdings were rented out in individual strips of approximately an acre each.  In which case it would appear that this part of Surrey followed the managed common-field pattern seen in the Midlands)

The Abbey provided the seed for its tenants; the allowance of seed per acre being, "if sown at a suitable time", of wheat or " siligo "¹ two bushels; of beans, peas, vetch or "sprig,"² two and a half bushels; of barley,  draget ³ or large oats, five bushels ; whilst for small oats six bushels were allowed. If the weather was wet the quantities of seed were slightly increased.

The arable land of the demesne was to be ploughed, harrowed and winter sown by the customary tenants; in February and March using their own oats by other customary tenants. The crop of barley had to be counted and all the oat crop delivered to the Abbey.

The rules governing how the tenants should manage the land were so tightly defined that they seem to be more appropriate to labourers on the Abbeys land rather than tenants.  It appears almost that 'tenants' on the demesne were given a plot of land to 'labour on' according to the Abbey's wishes.  The suggestion that the 'tenants' only received seed to sow 'if at the right time' seems to indicate that strips in the common field were managed on the same plan. If so, it is easy to understand why this area could have been subject to the managed common-field pattern more usually seen in the Midlands

Meadow

The meadow land amounted to about 55 acres, and valued at £4 2s, or about 1s. 6d. per acre thus meadow was worth more than twice as much as arable land. Probably because meadowland is a limited resource.  Although additional arable land can be created by enclosing the common; it is not possible to create meadow - "only God can create meadowland". 

This also was the value put upon a meadow at Chalveygarstone, where in summer two cows could be fed, and in winter " according to the weather God gives."  Presumably the two cows were allowed on the meadow once it had been cut and the hay stacked?  Cattle would be reluctantly put on the meadow in Winter since it would be waterlogged and the trampling by the animals could cause much damage.

The hay was to be stacked into ricks containing about one cartload. The serjeants, reeves, beadles or keapers of the meadow to estimate the quantity and then apportion it; including how much is to go to support the Abbey's animals. There were four draught animals requiring twelve cartloads of hay, six of which were to be made into a " mixture " with straw, for the horses and cattle, whilst for the sheep " well seasoned and sweet-smelling stalks of peas and vetch " were to be added.

If straw was used for thatching the grange and cowshed, or sold, the reeve was to keep an account, so that the amount of the straw used for animal food could be ascertained.

Pasture

The pasture, amounting to 31 acres, was valued at 29s. 9d. A strip along a long road was of lesser value.  The whole kept at least 37 cows in Summer.  Pasture seems to mean good quality land, away from the water meadows, capable of feeding cows; as opposed to heathland suitable only for sheep. Presumably the cows were either slaughtered or brought in and fed hay for the Winter.

Wood

A little wood of 21 acres which if animals were also grazed would fetch 6d an acre.

Moor

Some 30 acres of moor, " the soil whereof is at present in common for want of enclosure." By 'moor' we would probably understand 'heathland'.

(The lord's sheepfold was on the high ground at Purnershe).

At Henlie the heathland was worth just 8 acres per penny but produced 12 gallons of honey worth £4 - worth as much as all the 245 acres of arable land.

Park

No park is mentioned at Egham but at Henlie there was a park of 120 acres which provided 10 acres of meadowland plus pasture and pannage.

Tenants

Next we have the name of the chief tenant of the demesne lands, with particulars of his holding, and the rents and services due from him; most if not all the latter could be commuted by a money payment. 

Capital Site

John Aldwyne held the "capital site" and also had half a virgate⁴ of land and meadow adjacent; whilst the remainder of his holding was in parcels of half to 1.5 acres, two in furlongs, scattered all over the manor.  In Chobham, Chobham Park was described when sold as the capital site; so we need not assume that the Abbot always used the 'capital site'.

For the house and half virgate John paid 6d. each quarter.  There is no mention of rent on the farmed land; see note above regarding whether he truly rented the land.

At Christmas he gave a hen or paid 2d. : at Easter five eggs or a farthing : at the Gule of August (August 1st) he rendered one fourteenth of two sheep's carcasses ; " or he will fill a cart with dung whilst it is being carted, and this work is worth sixpence." He had also to plough and harrow half an acre of wheat, and half an acre of oats . . . barley and " beckab "⁵ etc., valued at 9 1/4d. He had also to plough, harrow, and sow with his own oats, half a rood, worth 3d. He was to reap half an acre of beat, oats and barley, or pay 7d. As a boon work he has to share in the reaping of the Abbot's meadow and carry wood, provide tiles for the Abbey, etc.  The entries seem to indicate that he could pay instead of performing his commitments.

I A very fine winter wheat ; the name has been wrongly applied to rye

2 Sprig I cannot identify.

3 Dragetum, Dredge, mixed corn

4 The virgate in Egham appears to have been the normal one of thirty acres

5 Beckab I cannot identify.

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