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two houses, the lands in their possession were
administered. It was about this time that Order started to build the
present church of St Peter and St Paul. After the dissolution of there
Knights in the reign of King Henry VIII (1509-47) this estate had the
same owners as the Manor of Sutton-at-Hone. When South Ash Farm was
put up for sale in 1831 it was charged with a quit rent to the Manor
of Sutton-at-Hone, so perhaps the Manor of St Johns Ash overlapped the
Manor of South Ash.
The Manor of Scotgrove
This Manor was situated in the extreme north of the Parish. It was
spelt SKORTEGRAVE in 1253, but seventeen years later a man is referred
to as "de SKOTTESGRAVE". The earliest known owners of this
manor were the Torpels, one of whose ladies with the charming name of
Mabilla held it about 1250 and leased it to the family of de Fawkham,
after which it passed through many hands until it came to the family
of Lambard in the 18th century. There was a chapel here in
the long ago, but early as 1728 the ruined walls stood only 3 or 4
feet above the ground level. There are other foundations of buildings
and a well now covered over. The site is in Chapel Wood, which
together with Chapel Field to the North of it, and nearly opposite the
"Black Lion", is now lined with bungalows along the main
road. We do not know the extent of the ancient Scotgrove Manor, but it
was absorbed into the Manor of Ash many centuries ago.
Of the three Ash Manors, Holliwell was the only one to
hold a Court Leet after 1793, and which continued till 1893, after
which only Court Baron were held.
Court Leets (District Courts) were the lingering remembrance of
earlier days when there Courts had to see to it that all able-bodied
tenants were duly enrolled (frank-pledged) so that they might be
called upon to deal with criminals, foreigners, etc. They had in later
years nothing to do, but might appoint a few officials, e.g. the
Bougholder (bough’s elder) not a policeman but the man expected to
organise local effort against ill-doers. At the COURT LEET of
Holliwell 12 jurymen were sworn, who called themselves "the
jurors of Our Lady Queen (Victoria), and then |
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proceeded to elect a "bousholder" for the
Manor.
Throughout the 100 years there is no entry reporting any
action taken by the borsholder, and the only entries of general
interest under Court Leet were:-
In 1814 – ". . . also the jurors present that new
stocks are necessary and that the same ought to be erected by and at
the expense of the Parish of Ash".
In 1836 - ". . . "The Jurors . . . present that
the stocks within the Manor are considerably out of repair and require
to be forthwith put in proper state and repair".
The stocks of Holliwell Manor stood opposite the "Green
Man".
Court Baron were a sort of Manorial Chancery Court at
which all changes of ownership were recorded.
The accustomed meeting-place for the Manor Courts was at HOLIWELL
MANOR BEECH at the southern end of White Ash Wood and just north of a
field called "Thunder Hole", by the old chalk pit. The
footpath between Ash Church and Ridley Churches passes by it. Now this
Manor Beech lies at the north-western extremity of the Manor of
Holliwell, and one speculates as to what ancient tradition caused
the choice of such a spot. Is it unreasonable to suggest that the
Manor House stood there in ages long gone by? And that since the later
lessees, the Hodsolls, had no use for such a Manor House, having their
own at South Ash, it was allowed by them to decay? In later years –
at all events since 1866 – the Court adjourned after assembling at
the "Beech", to the more comfortable surroundings of the
"White Swan" in Ash. There is no record of a Holliwell Manor
House – may be the old Domesday sub-manor of SONIGES had its manor
house at SORANKS in Fairseat, and when Sonings was later split up into
two its old house went with the southern portion.
The foregoing history is extracted from the three following sources :-
Hasted’s "History of Kent."
Samuel Bagshaw’s "History of Kent 1847."
Local history compiled by the late Commander
F.N. Stagg late chairman of the County Local
History
Committee of the Kent Council of Social Services. |