Summary of Family Properties as at 1455
It is
rather difficult to ascertain the true extent of the families property holdings, as I have already
mentioned a great number of families did not state the full extent of their
estate in official documents, and even though our ancestors were in a position
of authority, I don't see why they should be any different from the rest of the
population,
As rough estimate I have estimated that their
total holdings would have been in excess of
more six hundred acres in properties that they did declare, with probably another three hundred which
they probably didn't being in apposition to fiddle
the books.
On top of the above should added probably a
considerable amount of land which they did not actually own. But was granted to
them during the recipients, lifetime for which he could collect rents. Although these lands were
usually passed on their heirs and successors for a period of numerous
generations, on
payment of a peppercorn rent.
One such transaction was recorded in the Feet
of Fines for Dorset Henry V. 1413. in a transcript
of a somewhat convoluted document, an
agreement by William Chaldecott and Robert Rempston agreeing that they would pay to a Walter Dernford a Brian Jerrad. The price of 40 marks of silver, and thereafter a rent of one pound
of pepper per year.
This was for a twenty acre meadow and various
other pieces of land at Langton and Swanage. This
rent to be paid to Walter and Brian and their heirs and successors
forever.
Land which was declared in official documents
Kimmeridge
area
1. A large
house with fields and Mooreland grazing rights in excess of approximately 120
acres this was over the years referred to as Chaldecotts,
2 .East
Creech a house and lands of approximately 50
acres or more,
3. East
and West Orchard house
and land probably about 130 acres,
0ther.
Quarleston near Winterborne Stickland a large
farm house with approximately50acres
Elsewhere in Dorset
A house and farmland in Wareham known as North Hungerhill With land of an area of about
50 acres.
On top of
these listed above they also owned land
and properties in Shaftesbury and
Dorchester Also Hilton, Buckland Newton and Sherborn
also land and properties in Somerset
some of these were initially held under grant.
After this period when William and Richard
became of age these holdings would be divided and then over the next few generations.
Each of these heirs descendents would add to these over a period, but after the early
1600,s family holdings would dwindle as
the days of vast land acquisition faded.
The main reason for this was that the largest proportion of descendants of one particular branch of the family were
female. therefore a
great deal, of this property went to them and their husbands,
and would disappear from the family
ownership forever.