Tenements for bondmen, 1391
This document attached to a reeve's
account for the manor of Odecombe, in Somerset, records how on 6 June
1391 the council of Roger Mortimer, 4th Earl of March, decided that
the lands of bondmen
should be let only to other serfs, in order to maintain the pool of
labour on the manor. The steward is also reminded that serfs should
not be allowed to leave the manor unless other bonded tenants supported
them. This was to ensure that the Earl should 'not be disinherited
of their blood by allowing them to leave his lordship'.Catalogue reference: SC 6/973/12 (6 June 1391) |
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