Introduction

Painting of interior of Abbey Minor Tithe Barn, Faversham, Kent

Since medieval times, ordinary people were required to pay tithes to their local parish church and its clergy. This meant handing over a tenth (the word tithe literally means a tenth part) of their yearly production of corn, hay, wool etc.

Not surprisingly, tithes were unpopular. Many agreed with John Selden: ''tis ridiculous to say the Tythes is God's part and therefore the clergy must have them".

When the monasteries were dissolved in the 16th century, much church property, including the rights to tithe, passed into the hands of private individuals ('Lay Impropriators'). Over time more land across England and Wales was enclosed and many tithe owners were compensated by allotments of land. In other areas tithe payments in kind were substituted, by agreement between local churchmen and landowners and occupiers, with money payments.

The 1836 Tithe Act saw the government commute tithes throughout the country. Our collection of tithe files, tithe maps and apportionments made under the 1836 Act can help you build up a picture of rural life in England and Wales in the middle of the 19th century.

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For the record:

From the mid 1830s, enquiries on tithe arrangements were carried out in every parish and township throughout England and Wales. The results are here in the Tithe Files IR 18 These files have been heavily weeded but can still include:

The most well used records created under the 1836 Tithe Act include the tithe apportionments and maps. These were created for approximately 75% of the parishes of England and Wales. The apportionments can be found in IR 29. They will reveal:

Tithe maps can be found in IR 30. They were made to accompany the apportionment records. Using the two in conjunction with each other can help you to create a detailed picture of 'land use' in your parish. The maps are often surprisingly colourful and accessible, though they vary greatly in size, scale and accuracy. Some will give you a relatively complete picture: roads, rivers, railway lines, mills, woodlands etc. while others provide only the basic necessities required to illustrate the apportionment.

Parish summaries