parva, 7s. 6d.; to the Archbishop of Canterbury for the Church of Wye, Kent, 7s. 6d.; to the Bishop of Chichester for the Churches of Westfield and Ikelsham, 28. Od.

Rents. To the Lord Burrowes, for rents paid to him for the manor of Lymesfeld, £211s. Od.; to Roger Lewknor, Knight, and the Lord Dacres, for rent paid to them for the manor of Alcyston, £3 10s. 8d.; to the Bishop of Chichester for rents paid to him for tenements in Bexhill, 6s. Od.; to the Vill of Pevensey for the rent of land called "Le Mershe of Pevensey," £5 18. Od.; to John Yelding, Gentleman, for a rent of one pound of wax paid to him for the mill of Pypering, 6s. Od.; to the Dean of Dallyngton for rent due to him, 18s. Od.; for the rent of Maxfeld, £1 1s. Od.

Perpetual Alms.-Alms bestowed annually on the feast of St. Martyn and at the Lord's Supper. in silver, bread, and allec, for the founder of the Abbey, but particularly for Sibilla de Ickelsham, Durand de Sutton, Hugh de Martyn Henry Faber, and others, by the ancient foundation deed of the Abbey, £5 2s. 10d. Fees.-To Thomas, Earl of Wiltshire, Steward of the manors, lands, and tenements of the Abbey, £13 6s. 8d; to Edward Baynton, Knight, Steward of the manor of Bromham, Wiltshire £1 6s. 8d.; to Tyrrell de Heron, Gentleman, Steward of the manor of Hoton, Essex, 13s. 4d.; to Nicholas Carne, Knight, Steward of the manor of Lymesfeld, Surrey, £1 6s. 8d.; to John Baker, Attorney of the Duchy of Lancaster, and Steward of the manor of Wye, Kent, £1 6s. 8d.; to Richard Sackvile, Steward of the manor of Dengemershe, ditto, £2 0s. Od.; to Christopher Wigsell, Receivour of all the manors, lands, and tenements in the counties of Berkshire, Wiltshire, Oxfordshire, and elsewhere, £2 Os. Od.; to Edward Affeld, Receiver of all the manors, lands, and tenements in the counties of Suffolk, Norfolk, and Essex, £1 6s. 8d. To John Chilton, bailiff of Wye, £9 0s. Od. To John Comport, bailiff of Lymesfeld, £2 0s. Od. To Ambrose Comport, bailiff of Battell, £2 6s. 8d. To John Gore, bailiff of the Fraunches of Bromham, 16s. 4d. To Christopher Wygsell, auditor of the Abbey, £2 13s. 4d. To John Adam, receiver and collector of the rents of Dengemershe, £0 7s. 6d. To John Abroke, receiver and collector of rents of Lullyngton, £1 10s. Od. To William Denke, John Siman, Thomas Clarke, John Sykyll, and others, receivers and collectors of different Abbey rents, amounting upon the whole to £63 4s. 31d., issuing out of hereditaments situated in Bernehorne, Battell, Whatlyngton, Seddlescombe, and other parishes adjacent to them in Sussex, and also in Wye, Romney, Byddenden, and Hawkhurst, in Kent, £2 1s. Od.

For a list of some relics of this Abbey, exhibited by the Dowager Lady Webster, on the occasion of the Annual Meeting of our Society, held at Hastings, in August, 1861, see Vol. XIV., p. xii.

NOTES ON NINFIELD AND ITS REGISTERS,

EDITED FROM THE MSS. OF THE LATE

REV. JOHN SHARPE, A. B.

THE memoranda entered in the parish registers have formed portions of our former volumes; but this source of information has not been fully explored. The smallest village often has preserved among its records important facts and interesting matters, and we are pleased to have the opportunity of printing the following extracts made by our late member, the Rev. John Sharpe, in 1796, when he was curate of Ninfield and Hoo.1

These registers seemed so unpromising of interest that the Rev. Wm. Hayley assured Sir W. Burrell they contained "no items worthy of note," and, writing in May, 1780, Mr. Hayley gave the following dismal account of his visit to Ninfield: "The best and roundabout way from Brightling is a very bad one; but as soon as I heard it was a little passable, I last week attempted that expedition."2 Yet Mr. Sharpe copied what is well worth printing; and by the aid of the Subsidy rolls, and the institutions to the Vicarage (kindly copied by Mr. S. Parsons, from extracts made by J. B. Freeland, Esq.) from the Bishops' registers, we are able to show what was the state of this small parish and its inhabitants prior to the last century, and to tell something more of its history, than has been previously printed.

It is known to have formed part of the possessions of the Earl of Eu, but since then the names of the chief owners have been omitted, possibly because of the frequent changes in the spelling of the place, for it was spelt Menefeld, temp. John; Nedrefeud, temp. Hen. III., and Edw. I; Nemenefeud

and Nimesfeld, 1291; Nemenefeld temp. Edw. I. and III; Nemefeld, temp. Ewd. II; and subsequently Nunfield.

On the 24th October, 1204, the sheriff was directed to permit Goslenn de Maresco to hold five marks of land here, which were his brother Peter's.

3

After the Eus had, in 1221, forfeited their English estates, Ninfield passed to the family of Hastings. Matthew Hastings obtained a grant of free warren here in 1271, and died, seized of two knights' fees here," in 1276.

In the subsidy roll of 1295, we find the families of Cherche and Brun [Brown] returned as the principal owners.

Very soon afterwards (1320) the Chantry Chapel of Leigh, in Kent, to which the Church of Fairlight was attached, held lands here, and Ralph, the parson of the chapel, had an inquisition ad quod damnum."

8

We have more owners mentioned in the subsidy roll of 1 Edw. III. (1327).

This return gives us some additional particulars of families and property. The name of the principal holder of land then was one of the Septvann family of Ash, in Kent, who had property at Lidd and Broomhill, and also resided at Milton, near Canterbury, till 1448; an only child, Elizabeth, married

m. 4.

Rot. Lit., Cl. 6 John, m. 13.

Rot. Chart., 55 Henry III., pt. 1,
Inq. p.m., 5 Edw. I., No. 7.

623 Edw. I., E. B., 1781.
7 14 Edw. II., No. 105.
8 E. B., 513.

Sir William Fogg, of Repton, near Ashford. They bore for their arms Azure, three wheat skreens, or fans, or.9

The well-known names of the Milwards and the Ingrams also appear in the list, whilst Stephen at the Standard tends very much to confirm the tradition of Standard Hill, and at any rate shows that the name existed five hundred years since. Seven of the surnames again occur in the subsidy five years later (1332).10

In the Nona Roll we have a sad description of the impoverishment of the place. The Inquisition was taken in the spring of the year 1342, on the oaths of Thomas de Swynham, Robert Ingeram, John Symme, and Stephen de Yonge, and it was found that a great part of cultivated land called Morhall, had been submerged; that Henry Vynch [Finch], of Winchelse, and other freemen of the Cinque Ports, held lands, which were exempt from payment; that 130 acres lay uncultivated that year on account of poverty, as also a portion of land belonging to the Abbot of Begehamme; and further, that there was no merchant in the parish, nor any other person who did not live by the cultivation of the land. Morehall was the manor of the Septvans, and in 1366 Alan de Boxhull had the custody of it till William, son and heir of William de Septvany, came of age. Pat. 40 Edw. III.

The Vynchs or Finchs probably succeeded to the Churches. The land of the Abbey of Bayham had been recently acquired, for it was not in Pope Nicholas' taxation" of 1291.

The Vicarage formed part of the endowment made by the Earl of Eu for the Canons of the Collegiate Chapel of Hastings,12 and we find the names of the Vicars and patrons in the Bishops' books, with additions from the parish Registers between 1611 and 1681; which, as the cover of the first book

9 Hasted's Kent, III., p 587. J. R. Planché, Esq, Rouge Croix, in his pleasant volume of "A Corner of Kent," p. 307, gives the best notices of this important family; but he has not been able to trace the early marriages nor the colla

teral branches; these notices may aid
the discovery.

10 6 Edward III., H.C.H. 9.
11 See Suss. Arch. Coll. ix., p. 162.
12 Ibid. xiii., p. 144.

now existing, states, was bought in 1663 by Mr. John Bowyer, then Vicar.

On the first leaf of the Parish Register, the names of the ministers since 1620 are given

MR. ROGERS, Curate.

MR. STILES, Minister.

MR. BOTTEN.

MR. PERKINS.

MR. CHANTLER.

MR. GILES, who was sequestered, and during his sequestration these persons following were in the long parliament, and old Noll's time, put in one after the other, and took up the tithes, viz.:

MR. WARNER.

MR. HARRISON.

MR. BUSHNEL.
MR. BENNET.