history

We can picture Thrybergh before the Norman conquest as an Idyllic little Hamlet atop the hill overlooking its neighbours towards what is now Rotherham.

The Normans were not of French origin but were Northmen who lived in Normandy France, this part of France was given to the Viking Northmen as a peace offering to prevent further attacks.

William the Conqueror it seems had more claim to the throne of England than did his cousin King Harold who ruled England in 1066. In fact William was the heir to the throne nominated but Harold claimed the throne at the deathbed of King Edward in January 1066, which upset t'owd William no end! Incidentally Halley's comet was visible in this year, a sign of doom!

The landing at Hastings was a preconceived plan in which some sources say the Pope of the time Pope Alexander II played a part in. In fact Pope Alexander II blessed a banner of Saint Peter for William, Duke of Normandy, to take with him as protection in the Battle of Hastings.

The plan was fairly simple the Danes would attack York which would take Harold and his army to the North to defend his kingdom, whilst William would invade to the South at Hastings

Harold defeated the Danes in the North and then found himself having to take his tired army back down South to meet William, so it was a tired dishevelled English army that met the fresh army of the Normans. The resulting Norman victory is well recorded, the actual battle was not at Hastings but some miles to the north at Senlac.

Though William held the South it was to be quite a while before the North of England was well and truly under Norman rule, and even then there were constant upheavals within Williams Northern Kingdom.

The owner or Ruler of Thrybergh pre the Doomsday book is said to be Norman?[ Northmann] [ see below ] who was the main landholder in Thrybergh, Dalton, and Brinsworth when Edward the Confessor was on the throne. Norman was a grandson of Alwine and his grandfather was Farthegn who once ruled Yorkshire. Given the fact that Norman was given Thrybergh with other estates in Yorkshire by his grandfather we can assume the village was pretty well established.

Now according to one source Thrybergh was part of the Fiefs of the Barony of Spofford, after the battle of Hastings Which were listed as
Folyfate, Aiketon, Spoford, Ribbeston, Plumpton, Colthorp, Stockton, Lynton, Heselwode, Sutton, Sighelinghale, Lofthowse, Kibelingcotes, Guthmundenham, Cloughton, Pokethorp, Esthorp, Hoton, Fosseton, Wandesford, Nafferton, Queldryke, Wartre, Thriberg, Edelington, Middleton, Stubbum, Skaln, Colesburn, Nesselfeld, Inwely, Wheteley, Askwith, Dalton, Horton, Casteley, Letheley, Walton, Bergheby, Arlesthorp, Soreby, Hemelsby, Steynton, Asmonderby, Merkingfeld, Hornyngton, Wolsington, Yedon, Rondon, Oxton, Tadcastre, Snawes, Haghornby, Gramhope, Kerkby, Kerkby-Orblawers, Carleton, Midhope, Remington, Neusome, Boulton, Horton, Gersington, Lynton, Ketelwell, Thresfeld, Arnecliffe, Addingham, Routherneck, Stynton, Estborne, Malghum, Brunby, Swyndon, Halton, Pathorne, Elgfeld, Thornton, Bunyngeston, Difford, Gisborne, Westeby

As it can be seen these fiefs were not adjoining pieces of land, and the spelling above is from the time recorded. So rather than spoil the fun of putting the modern spellings in, I have left it. As a starter for you the last one is Weatherby.

In 1066 a William of Spofforth [ Spoford ]owned the above but had them taken from him in 1086 for refusing to pay Dane Gelt a tax which was raised to collect money to raise armies to defend England against the Danes. The properties were divided between William de Perci, Archil, Gislebert, or Gilbert Tyson, and the King.

However the William of Spofforth above was actually William De Perci, and according to another source he did lose the above when he had a dispute with the King but had the lands given back to him three years later when he and the King were reconciled.

DOOMSDAY BOOK LANDHOLDERS IN YORKSHIRE.
IN EBORACO CIVITATE. 298 a.

1. REX WILLELMUS.
2. ARCHBIHOP OF YORK AND
CANNONS, AND HIS MEN.
3. BISHOP OF DURHAM.
4. EARL HUGH.
5. EARL MORETON.
6. EARL ALAN.
7. ROBERT DE TODENI.
8. BERENGAR DE TODENI.
9. ILBERT DE LACI.
10. ROGER DE BUSLI.
11. ROBERT MALET.
12. WILLIAM DE WARENE.
13. WILLIAM DE PERCI. .
15. DROGO DE BEURERE.
16. RALPH DE MORTIMER.
17. RALPH PAGANEL.
18. GOISFRIDUS DE LA WIRCE.
19. GOISFRIDUS Al.SELIN.
20. WALTER DE AINCURT.
21. GILBERT DE GAUNT.
22. GILBERT T1SON.

23. RICHARD, FILIUS ERFASTI.
24. HUGH, FILIUS BALDRICI.

25. WILLIAM DE PERCI.
35. ERN'EIS DE BURUN.
36. OSBERN DE ARCHES.
37. ODO AKBAL1STAHIUS.
38. ALBERIGUS DE COCI.
39. GOSPATRiCK. 330 *
40. THAINS OF THE KING.
41. ROGER PICTAVENS1S.
42. ROBERTI DE BRUIS

1 Twenty-nine only of these were greater landholders. The rest were chiefly persons who are called the King's Thanes, who had once had large possessions, but now only held the ravaged remainder of them.
2 The under-tenants in Yorkshire, compared with the extent of the lands, were few. The whole of the Earl of Moretaine's lands in Yorkshire appear to have had but two under-tenants as mesne lords, Nigellus and Ricardus Sur Dive. There are no under-tenants recorded upon the Terra Regis.

Locally the largest landholders were

WILLIAM EARL WARRENE , who was given two hundred and ninety-eight Manors and Lordships, besides twenty-eight towns or hamlets in Yorkshire:

William Earl of Warrenne was second in command at the battle of Hastings, and his colleague in the office of Chief Justiciar.

The first William de Warrenne died 1089, and was buried in the chapter-house of a monastery he had founded at Lewes for monks of the Cluniac order

1st. William, Earl de Guaronne in Normandy, and of Surrey in England.—(By grant from the Conqueror.)
2d. William, son of the above, second Earl de Warrenne.
3d. William, his son, third Earl de Warenne.
4th. Hamlyn Plantagenet, fourth Earl de Warenne.—(By intermarriage with the daughter of the above.)
5th. William, his son, fifth Earl de Warrenne, &c.
6th. John Plantagenet, sixth Earl de Warrenne.
7th. John, grandson of the above, seventh and last Earl de Warrenne and Surrey.

The great earl Warrenne, in a subsequent reign, when he was questioned concerning his right to the lands which he possessed, drew his sword, which he produced as his title ; adding that "William the Bastard " [ William was illegitimate and was often referred to by this title] did not conquer the kingdom himself; but that the barons, and his ancestor among the rest, were joint adventurers in the enterprise."

25. WILLIAM DE PERCI. 46 b.
He, with his brother Seflo (afterwards abbot of Whitby), came into England with the Conqueror. This William being much beloved by that king, and one of his barons, he enjoyed by his bounty .Ambledune., in Hantshire, 32 lordships in Lincolnshire, and 86 in Yorkshire; he also obtained, from Hugh earl of Chester, the lordship of Whitby, with large territories belonging thereto. Apparently a William Mallet obtained the lands of a Asa and Northman, and William was given these lands.

William Mallet was apparently captured by Danish Vikings in 1069 during the attack upon York of that year. .

William de Percy, was given one hundred and nineteen" Manors and Lordships. All the lands within Yorkshire were listed as "Waste Land"

Spoford .—M. Mot. Prat. Silva past. Eurdisc,W. R. Borgescire Wap. Will de perci, page 322."
At the page referred to, we find four lines of ancient characters and abbreviated Latin, apparently a record of extensive domains, once-owned by the family. By which we understand that at the designated page will be found a record of the meadows, woods, and pastures, in the West Riding of Yorkshire, in a certain Wappentake (or hundred) now belonging to William, Earl Percy. •

In the spring of 1068 the northern Earls Edwin and Morcar led a revolt which was quelled by William. In the following year another rebellion broke out in the north and William returned to York. In September 1069 the northern rebels emerged from the uplands where they had taken refuge and joined Danish allies to attack York. William put down this rebellion then proceeded to exterminate the rebels and their supporters in a ruthless and horrific campaign, which became known as the harrying of the North [ Sounds like a Margaret Thatcher policy doesn't it! ]

There was nothing more shameful in the history of the Normans and no one was spared. From parts of Cheshire and Staffordshire to Northumberland the Normans descended like locust leaving nothing in their wake, burning and killing everything in sight, People, farm stock, crops, buildings, and trees. Thrybergh then was to suffer this fate, and if any survived in Thrybergh they were left starving and dying. In some areas cannibalism was recorded , and it was to take approximately nine years before the North of England recovered from the vengeance of William.

An important item is to realise that though the names of Rozelin, Neville, and Heton were listed as Lords of the Manor they were but tenants under Perci, these tenant's could then sub tenant as in the case of the Normanville's who held Thrybergh as sub tenants to the Hetons under Perci.

1086.According to the Doomsday Book Thrybergh was given to William de Perci, who was a chief aid to William the Conqueror . William received Thrybergh for playing a major role in the establishment of Norman rule in Yorkshire which occurred quite some after the conquest. [ See I told you we Yorkies were difficult ].

William de Percy born approx 1030 in Normandy died 1096 on the First Crusade within sight of Jerusalem , William was the founder of the House of Percy in England. His grants of land from William included Brinsworth, Thrybergh, and Dalton.

In 1086 a man called Rozelin held land from William in Brinsworth, Thrybergh and Dalton. Now it is surmised by Harry Speight in his book Lower Wharfedale: 1902 that On the demise of Rozelin before 1096-7, William de Percy ... That the death of Rozelin took place before the death of William de Percy in 1096-7, which was related to the subfued of Bolton which Rozelin held under Percy.

Rozelin had a son ROBERT, FILIUS ROZELIN, who was granted land in Middlesex

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English surnames by Reaney and Wilson there is :

Robertus filius [ Son of ] Rozelin, Rotselini 1086 Derbyshire which is could be our Rozelin.

Also a Rocelin de Riggesbi approx 1150 Gilb transcripts of Charters relating to the Gilbertine houses Lincolnshire

Also a Thomas Roscelin 1221 Ass Assizes Rolls G1Gloustershire

Also a John Russelyn 1316 Wakefield Yorkshire

Also a Amycia Roslyn 1327 SRC. Subsidy Rolls Cambridgeshire

Old French Roscelin, Rocelin, Old German Ruozelin, Roscelinus, a double diminutive of Old German Rozzo.

The name Roslyn is still present in Derbyshire.

However the name Rozelin that occurs in the doomsday book in different counties is believed to be of four separate individuals sharing the name, which once again can add to confusion.

Knights created by John Doxey from an original clipart However Rozelline who held Thrybergh from William De Perci had a Co-heir whose name was Baron Adam Swain who was the son of the founder of the priory of Monkbretton. After the early twelfth century, the most frequent cause for the partitioning of estates was through inheritance by heiresses. In 1159, for example, Adam, son of Sveinn, son of Alric [ This Alric is sometimes referred to as Swain fitz Alric ] died, leaving as his heirs his two daughters, Amabel and Maude, whose respective husbands, William de Neville and Adam de Montbegan, inherited the eight knights’ fees he had held in the honour of Pontefract as well as the knights’ fee he held in the honour of Skipton and probably another fee in the manor of Wakefield” ??
In the book "Conquest, Anarchy, and Lordship: Yorkshire, 1066-1154" by Paul Dalton it states - honour of Skipton in Yorkshire were held on similar terms to pre- Northmann. But Northmann also held lands which passed by 1086 to Rozelin!

1166 William De Neville whose Knight fee's consisted of Manors of Thrybergh, Brinsworth, Dalton, and Bolton on Dearne the first three being held previously by Rozelline.

It is demonstrated that Domesday Book provides an inadequate record of mesne tenancies in existence in 1086 but it is not certain whether the erratic recording of these was related to whether such tenancies were held in thegnage or by knight service or whether the inconsistency with which they were recorded may have been due to local variations in the manner in which the survey was compiled.

"Some of the mesne tenancies recorded in Domesday Book in 1086 can be shown not to have been held by knight service. In that year Alric, a thegn who survived the conquest, held mesne tenancies in the vills of Denby, South Hiendley and Whitley.

In 1166 eight fees in the honour of Pontefract were returned as held by William de Neville, the husband of Amabel, daughter of Adam son of Sveinn son of Alric. These eight fees were of the new feoffment and therefore created after 1135 since 80 years previously Alric had held land which came to form part of these eight fees, it would appear that Alric [ Aluric ]and his son Sveinn (d.1129) continued to hold their land in thegnage but that, before his death in 1159, Adam, son of Sveinn must have had the mode of his tenure converted to knight service. "

Further we discover:

“Of fees of the new feoffment the eight knights’ fees which had belonged to Adam son of Sveinn, which in 1166 were in the tenure of William de Neville, his son-in-law, appear to have been assessed at the rate of 12 carucates making a knights fee, an equation specified in three charters of late 12th and early 13th century date.” Note: A carucate was in theory the area that a single eight ox plough-team could plough in a single year. It has been suggested that a Bovate in Yorkshire was probably between 8 and 15 acres but could be as low as 4 or as many as 28.

In 1166 Denby was held by Adam de Montbegan, husband of Maud, Sveinn’s grand-daughter......
suggested that Thomas and Margaret’s holdings were descended from William de Neville and Adam de Montbegan the immediate heirs by marriage of Adam son of Sveinn........ The descent of the mesne of Dalton can be traced back to the pre conquest period as in 1086 it was held by Sveinn, Adam’s father and in 1066 by Alric, .

! If Adam de Svein and Rozelin were Co-heir's then it implies that both of them descended from Alric. These Co-heirs then enjoyed the knights fee's of several estates under De Perci. Which also tells us that Alric aided the Normans in 1066.

Alric was a Saxon not a Dane!

Hopefully I will find the answer!

The entry for Skelmanthorpe in the Domesday Book of 1086 states:[1]
Manors & Berewick. In Turulsetone and Berceworde and Scelmertorp, Alric and Aldene had nine carcucates of land to be taxed, and there may be five ploughs there. Ilbert now has it, and it is waste. Value in King Edwards time 4 pounds. Wood pasture one mile long and as much broad.

So what was life all about for the simple folk in Thrybergh and the rest of England in this period, well the pecking order was as follows.
The Feudal System
Introduced into England by William the Conqueror, this system was used to divide the land in England and also assure William of support from those he gave land to.
The Monarch [ in this case William ] received rent in the form of loyalty and military support from his tenants in chief, who he gave land to.
The lords and bishops who were the tenants in chief, gave knights for 40 days a year to serve in the monarchs army, and also money , prayers , and advice.
Bishops and clergy lower than bishops became Sub- Tenants, gained land in return for aiding the tenants in chief
The Peasants were allocated land and paid taxes by i.e. crops, and also by working on the lords or knights land.
England was divided as follows 20% to William, 50% to Norman Lords, 25% to the Catholic Church, 5% to Anglo Saxon Lords. Important positions of course were given to the Norman's.

It is noted that the Roman Catholic Church played a large role in the politics throughout the ages, and it also became very wealthy. Many of the nobles left property, money and land to the church, plus the church collected a tithe tax from the people, which was 10% of what they grew. The barn used to store this tax became known as a tithe barn. The church also had its own Laws which we know as cannon law. Education was provided by the church, but only to children of wealthy Parents. The Church at this time taught that women were inferior, and should be content to be just good mothers.

About 90% of people were peasants in this era, the villages and land around them were called Manors, and were owned by a lord. The lords own farm was known as a demesne, and the church land was known as a glebe. The vegetable garden to a house in the village was called a toft.

A Reeve was someone chosen by villages to oversee the farmwork, and negotiate with the lords representative. The word Sherriff comes from the Anglo Saxon "scir gerefa" which means Shire Reeve.

Taxes were imposed for using the mill owned by the lord to make flour, the oven to make bread, the brewery to make beer,, when daughters were married or sons were born, and when the poor unfortunate peasant died, well death duty was around back then.

The peasants serfs or villeins who had the misfortune to be owned by a lord, were indeed slaves, they had to ask permission for most of the events in their lives, getting married , leaving the village, selling belongings, teaching their children.
SERF:
1

A member of the lowest feudal class, attached to the land owned by a lord and required to perform labour in return for certain legal or customary rights.
2

An agricultural labourer under various similar systems, especially in 18th- and 19th-century Russia and eastern Europe.
3

A person in bondage or servitude.

Helpful pages regarding old terms and latin

Definitions

Latin Translations

STATEMENT :

I have no affiliation with any Trade Union, Political body, or organization regarding the information on this site. All information on this site is Factual and correct to the extent of my knowledge. There is no intent to cause offence to any individual. Should you spot an error please let me know and that error will be corrected.

PEASE NOTE:

This site is the result of over 7 years research, and compilation, should you wish to use any of the content for publication of literature please contact me. The poetry and life of James Ross, the story of St. Leonard's Cross, and other items on this site were compiled, and first published on this site in their present context as a study of Thrybergh. If you use this site as a source, out of courtesy, please give credit where it is due as I have done on this site where appropriate.
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