Normanton
Extract from The
History and Antiquities of the
Antiently Northmanton, and
Normans-town, where several of the Francigenć
who accompanied Robert de Todenei into
In 1205-6, William de Coleville, who was an English baron, agreed to pay
the king a fine of 20 marcs and one palfrey, to have seisin of Normanton, co. Leicester, then of his fee, though
late parcel of the lands of William de Meynilldurant,
and at that time in the king's hands, for that same William left the king's
service in Normandy :
"Willielmus de Coleville dat
20 marcas & unum palfridum pro habendâ de
Normanton, de feodo suo ; que suit Willielmi de Meynilldurant, & que est in manu domini
regis, eo quod, acceptâ ab
eo securitate quod illas 20 marcas
& unum palfridum reddet ad suum scaccarium, tunc ei plenariam seisinam
de predictâ terrâ habere f--at 1."
By an inquision preserved in the Tefta
de Nevill it appears that in the villata
of Normanton, about the year 1240, the second William de Colevill enfeofied Peter Humor of land belonging to the Normans in Normanton to
the amount of a fourth part of a knight's fee ; and
from Peter it devolved (descendit) to William
Menidurant, and one moiety of it came to Robert
de Estre and his brother Jordan, Robert and
Jordan sold their portion to the Knights Templars,
who then held it. It appears also that when the lands of the
That the Knights Templars possessed some lands here,
appears also by a deed, dated at Temple Dynesley, in
Hertfordshire, 43 Henry III, 1258 ; when Amadens
de Morestello, master of the Knights Templars in England, by the advice and consent of a chapter
of his brethern, gave certain lands at Normanton to Henry
de Colvil, knight 3,
whose daughter and heir Beatrix was married to
Hugh de Charnels, knight ; which grant Imbertus
de Peran, a succeeding master of the Templars, by consent of his brethern,
confirmed to the said sir Hugh de Charnels and Beatrix
his wife, by another deed, dated also at Dynesley 4.
In 1312 it appears that Robert de Stepelton
held half a knight's fee in Normanton of John de Hastings, senior,
deceased ; and John de Hastings, junior, the son and heir of the aforesaid John
was then aged 26 5.
In 1315, Margaret, the mother of Edmund de Colvill, deceased, held in dower (nomine
dotis), six bovates of
land, with appurtenances, in Normanton, of the heir of the said Edmund, in dower 6.
In 1324 the possessions of the Knights Templars at
Normanton passed, with those of Easthorpe, into the
possession of the Knights Hostpitallers of St John
of Jerusalem.
A great part of this village belonged to the lord Ros ; for in
1343, William lord Ros of Hamlake
died possed of a quarter of one knight's fee, with
the appurtenances, in Normanton, which Robert and William de Belvoir held 7.
In 1346, William lord Ros, being then in the king's
ward (on aid then given for knighting Edward of Woodstock, the king's eldest
son) was assessed 30s. for three parts of one knight's
fee in Bottesford, Normanton, Redmile,
Barkston, Plungar, and Herdby, parcel of the fee of Ros.
In the same year, Robert Colevill (on the same
occasion) was assessed 30s. for three parts of one
knight's fee in Muston and Normanton, parcel of the
fee of Ros 8.
In 1352-3, William de Ros of Hamlake
died possessed of the moiety of one knight's fee in Normanton, which the prior
of the
In 1363, Margery wife of William de Ros of Hamlake died possessed of one knight's fee in Normanton,
which Robert de Colville and William de Beaver then held 10.
In 1370, Adam de Lymberg, Geoffry
de Brunne, and others, had the king's licence to give
the manors of Muston and Normanton to any religious
house, or to any secular dean, provost, chapter, or society, the statute of
mortmain notwithstanding 11.
In 1383, Thomas de Ros, of Hamlake,
knight, died seised of one carcucate
of land, with the appurtenances, in Normanton, and 40s. rent
there, payable at Easter and Michaelmas ; which land
and rent were held of the prior of the
In 1393, John de Ros of Hamlake
died seised of a carucate
of land, with the appurtenances, and of 40s. rent, all
in Normanton, held of the king in capite, as
of the house of Belver, by knight's service 13.
In 1394, Mary wife of John de Ros of Hamlake, brother and heir of John de Ros,
died seised of 33s. 3d. yearly rent, in Normanton,
held of the king by knight's service 14.
In 1421, John de Ros of Hamlake,
knight, died seised of one carucate
of land, and 100s. rent, with the appurtenances, in
Normanton 15.
In 1486, on the attainder of William lord Hastings, Normanton reverted to the Ros family ; and from them
it came, with other great possessions, by marriage to the family of Manners,
and has lineally descended to John Henry the present duke of
Of the chapel of Normanton, we find that in the reign of king
Henry III. it belonged to the vicar of Bottesford, who was deputed by the rector to perform divine
service there three days in a week 17.
The chapel is now down, and searcely a trace to be
found, though walls were standing within memory of man, but removed for the use
of barns, roads, &c.
The duke of
From the act for inclosing the open fields of Bottesford,
&c. in 1770, it appears that the duke of Rutland was then entitled to the
tithes of all corn arising within the open fields of Normanton ; that the
rector of Muston was entitled to the tithe of hay
arising from 30 acres of land in open meadows there ; and the rector of Bottesford to all the other great and small tithes of the
open fields, and to all the tithes both great and small arising from gardens,
orchards, homesteads, and old inclosures, &c. For
all these several rights, and for those of all others who had any legal claim
of commonage in any of the said open fields, a sufficient compensation was
directed to be made 18.
The hamlet of Normanton at present contains 21 families and 95 inhabitants.
1 Rot. Fin. 7 John, m. 5. |
2 Tesra de Nevill, p. xlviii. |
3 See this deed in the Appendix,
p.12. |
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