Through royal and private patronage, monastic houses were able to build up considerable wealth. One of the first acts of William I after the Battle of Hastings was to found an abbey on the site of his victory, and his followers were quick to follow suit. This fifteenth century estate map for Chertsey Abbey, Surrey, shows that the institution was at the centre of the local community and possessed its own barns, mills and field systems. Monasteries were normally the local lords of the manor, and enjoyed profitable rent from farming or leasing out their lands.
Catalogue reference: E 164/25 f.222 (date: c.1432)
