Medieval Property Transactions in Rutland
Abstracts of Feet of Fines 1197 - 1509
edited and with an introduction by Bridget Wells-Furby
RLHRS Occasional Publication No 10
About this book
The Rutland Local History & Record Society has just produced the latest in its
series of Occasional Publications about the history of this small county, this time
concentrating on local property transactions in the 13th, 14th and 15th centuries.
In the National Archives there are 355 documents, known as Feet of Fines, which
record such transactions for Rutland alone, and it is these that the author, Bridget
Wells-Furby, has summarised and discusses in this book.
These medieval Feet of Fines were used originally in the late 12th century to
resolve legal disputes over land, and this was quickly adopted as the most secure
was of transferring property. The same legal terminology continued long after that
background became a mere fiction.
The 'final concord' or 'fine' recording each transaction was copied in triplicate by
clerks of the king's court; each party kept one part while the third part, the 'foot',
was retained by the court, hence the name by which they are known today. By no
means all such transactions were so recorded, but these 'feet' survive in large
numbers as an unparalleled record of land transfers.
The fines are an important source for manorial histories and genealogical studies, but they also
record the transfer of smaller freeholdings which did not amount to manors, and help to shed light
on lower ranks of society. Some of the Rutland fines include important topographical information
on land holdings and other assets such as mills, fisheries, and church advowsons; a few record
names of tenants as well as those of the parties involved and the justices who heard each case.
The edition runs to 108 pages and provides an English summary of each fine, with full indexes of
the names of people and places, and of subjects. There is also a glossary. The introduction explains
the format of the fines, and discusses some of the ways they may be used. It shows the part played
by women in the fines, the relationship of the fines to the manorial and political geography of the
county, with examples of how and to what end the fines were used by contemporaries. There are also
reproductions of some of the original documents, and in time it is intended to make them all available for
consultation on the Society's website, www.rutlandhistory.org.
Tim Clough, the Society's Honorary Editor, said, 'The Feet of Fines provide an invaluable source of information for
anyone interested in the early history of Rutland, its land and its families, and we are greatly indebted to Bridget
Wells-Furby for all the work she has done in transcribing and discussing these archives. The book will be very
useful to local historians'.
About the author
Bridget Wells-Furby is an independent scholar specialising in the social and economic history of fourteenth-century
England. Her St Andrews University PhD on the Berkeley family of Gloucestershire in that century led to the
publication in 2004 of a calendar of the large medieval archive at Berkeley Castle and, most recently,
The Berkeley Estate 1281-1417: its economy and development (2012). She has also published a calendar of a late-
fifteenth century Suffolk cartulary, The Bohun of Fressingfield Cartulary (2012), and has written various articles on
aspects of social and political history in the period.
The price of this publication is £10.00, or £8.00 for members of RLHRS, plus £2.00 UK postage & packing.
Copies can be obtained at the Rutland County Museum and local bookshops, or ordered on-line via the Society's
website or from www.genfair.co.uk.
For further information please contact Tim Clough, Honorary Editor, Rutland Local History & Record Society, by
email at editor@rutlandhistory.org.
20th March 2013
If you would like to download the order form please click here
Medieval Property Transactions in Rutland
Abstracts of Feet of Fines 1197 - 1509
edited and with an introduction by Bridget Wells-Furby
RLHRS Occasional Publication No 10
About this book
The Rutland Local History & Record Society has
just produced the latest in its series of Occasional
Publications about the history of this small
county, this time concentrating on local property
transactions in the 13th, 14th and 15th centuries.
In the National Archives there are 355 documents,
known as Feet of Fines, which record such
transactions for Rutland alone, and it is these that
the author, Bridget Wells-Furby, has summarised
and discusses in this book.
These medieval Feet of Fines were used originally in the late
12th century to resolve legal disputes over land, and this was
quickly adopted as the most secure was of transferring property.
The same legal terminology continued long after that background
became a mere fiction.
The 'final concord' or 'fine' recording each transaction was copied
in triplicate by clerks of the king's court; each party kept one
part while the third part, the 'foot', was retained by the court,
hence the name by which they are known today. By no means all
such transactions were so recorded, but these 'feet' survive in
large numbers as an unparalleled record of land transfers.
The fines are an important source for manorial histories and
genealogical studies, but they also record the transfer of smaller
freeholdings which did not amount to manors, and help to shed
light on lower ranks of society. Some of the Rutland fines include
important topographical information on land holdings and other
assets such as mills, fisheries, and church advowsons; a few
record names of tenants as well as those of the parties involved
and the justices who heard each case.
The edition runs to 108 pages and provides an English summary of
each fine, with full indexes of the names of people and places,
and of subjects. There is also a glossary. The introduction
explains the format of the fines, and discusses some of the ways
they may be used. It shows the part played by women in the
fines, the relationship of the fines to the manorial and political
geography of the county, with examples of how and to what end
the fines were used by contemporaries. There are also
reproductions of some of the original documents, and in time it is
intended to make them all available for consultation on the
Society's website, www.rutlandhistory.org.
Tim Clough, the Society's Honorary Editor, said, 'The Feet of Fines
provide an invaluable source of information for anyone interested
in the early history of Rutland, its land and its families, and we
are greatly indebted to Bridget Wells-Furby for all the work she
has done in transcribing and discussing these archives. The book
will be very useful to local historians'.
About the author
Bridget Wells-Furby is an independent scholar specialising in the
social and economic history of fourteenth-century England. Her
St Andrews University PhD on the Berkeley family of
Gloucestershire in that century led to the publication in 2004 of a
calendar of the large medieval archive at Berkeley Castle and,
most recently, The Berkeley Estate 1281-1417: its economy and
development (2012). She has also published a calendar of a late-
fifteenth century Suffolk cartulary, The Bohun of Fressingfield
Cartulary (2012), and has written various articles on aspects of
social and political history in the period.
The price of this publication is £10.00, or £8.00 for members of
RLHRS, plus £2.00 UK postage & packing. Copies can be obtained
at the Rutland County Museum and local bookshops, or ordered
on-line via the Society's website or from www.genfair.co.uk.
For further information please contact Tim Clough, Honorary
Editor, Rutland Local History & Record Society, by email at
editor@rutlandhistory.org.
20th March 2013
If you would like to download the order form please click here