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Penybont and District History Group Notes 1st October 2018 Main Topic: From Waste to Farm: - Encroachment and Enclosure – Maureen LloydGeraint welcomed everyone to the Meeting and thanked the members for the card he had received. Geraint said how pleased he was to see Richard with us and Richard thanked the membership for his card. In the same spirit Geraint mentioned Carol’s brother who has been unwell, and he paid tribute to Pam Baker who died recently. Pam had been the Sister in the male ward at Llandrindod for many years, and was much loved by all who know her. Geraint went on to say that, though the nurses at the hospital today were very good, they did not ‘make them’ like Pam any more. She was a very special person. He remembered Pam on one occasion when he had come to the hospital to take a service. Pam rallied the patients with a hearty ‘Communion will do you good!’ Derek mentioned that the Thomas Shop had been featured on the BBC programme Bargain Hunt, and offered to play it at the end of the session.Elizabeth mentioned that the WI in Dolau were offering a ‘Walk Around Dolau’ on 13th October.Annette mentioned a Quiz Night next Friday at the School/Community Hall in Dolau.Geraint drew our attention to the programme which includes a talk on War Memorials and hoped that members would think about, and bring, memories of the changes that took place in local community life as a consequence of the Great War.On December 3rd Geraint hoped that members would bring along historical items of local interest, and he agreed to see if Michael Winterton, of Antique Roadshow fame, might ask his father, who lives locally, to come and value some of the items.Finally Geraint asked members to think about topics for next year as the programme will need to be drawn up in the near future.Main Topic: From Waste to Farm: - Encroachment and Enclosure – Maureen LloydGeraint introduced Maureen by referring back to our recent walk to Cefnllys Castle and how the landscape, seen from this vantage, might have changed over time. History he said was possibly 9/10 imagination, and 1/10 fact. 2000 years ago, when the Romans set about destroying the Welsh infrastructure, the whole area was probably wooded. 1000 years ago there would have been a few established settlements. Through these settlements land would have been cleared and the beginnings of enclosure would have led to the patterns in the local countryside that we see today. It was reported that Julian Ravest, who gave us the talk on the landscape as viewed by drones, had done more work on Penybont Common over this very hot summer and had identified many more sites where there was evidence of human activity, and in particular ridge and furrow cultivation. Maureen started by saying that in scratching the surface of the vast topic of encroachment and enclosure she had encountered another ‘E’ there was also evidence of Engrossment. Since the late 20th century has seen more in the way of engrossment, where Farms have been joined together to create more efficiency through scaling up, a process of ‘engrossment’ but this is not a new phenomenon, and certainly extending the size of property has been going on since Tudor times and long before.EncroachmentsEncroachment has been a part of agrarian history from the beginning of land cultivation. Pastures were held in ‘common’ and were originally open to all for grazing. The first reference to this land was in the Doomsday Book. In these early days there was no need to establish commoners’ rights. Land was shared in these early days but by the 15th and 16th centuries rights began to be established. The Court Leet, under the direction of the Lord of the Manor, had responsibility for dealing with a wide variety of crimes and disputes including encroachments onto the Common Land. Effectively encroachments often allowed families to live more sustainably off their plot of land. Maureen showed us some excerpts from the Court Leet Book for Manor of Swydd 18th October 1813 to 1864. These Courts generally sat once a year in the Autumn.“29th April 1825 David James gentleman Steward Swydd ManorFirst the Jury and Homage on their oath find and present an amerciament of two shillings and six pence forfeited by Richard Newell for not throwing open an incroachment by him made on the Lords Waste within the said Manor called Rhos Swydd pursuant to an order of a Court held for this Manor on 18th October 1813 and they amerce him in the further sum of 2s/6d for such neglect.They also find and present John Jenkins for continuing an Incroachment made on the Lords Waste called Bunhendrith by Thomas Jenkins and presented at the last Court and amerce the said John Jenkins in the sum of one shilling for such offence.They also present the following persons for making incroachments since the last Court on the Lords of the Waste within the said Manor and amerce them in the respective sum following unless they shall respectively throw open the same before Michaelmas next namelyThomas Worthing for erecting a cottage and inclosing about an acre of land within Rhos Swydd Common the sum of 2/6. [Margin note Recd 1/6 off Thos Worthing, 1s off Pow Rogers].Thomas (Pow) Rogers for inclosing about one fourth of an acre of land on the Common called Coed Swydd the sum of 1/-.Jonathan Burton for inclosing about one acre of land on Rhos Swydd aforesaid the sum of 1/-.”A number of interesting factors come from this extract.Swydd Manor includes Rhos Swydd and Coed Swydd, and there is also reference to Bunhendrith. What is the extent of Swydd Manor? What are the duties of David James, the Steward of the Manor, and who does he have allegiance to? Maureen wondered whether the Manor was strict over encroachment or sympathetic. Fines were imposed but it would seem from the entries that they were sometimes ignored.Of note is Thomas Worthing who, not only encroached onto the land, but built a cottage.Maureen then showed a couple of tables listing all the encroachments 1813 - 1864:The first shows a list of very small encroachments that includes those above, and the otherwise distinguished gentleman John Cheesement Severn who is associated with an encroachment near the Severn Arms.The second table, above, shows how the Court was also involved in making decisions to do with building of roads and paths. Some people, like John Ludlow, appear on both lists. The house, Ludlow, appears to be rented from the Manor, but John Ludlow seems to have encroached his interests onto the Common.Maps showing Rhos Swydd and Coed Swydd Commons0-290830In looking at Rhos Swydd Common the main encroachments seem to have been on the Western edge of the Common. Shady Grove is mentioned for encroachments by Jonathan Burton, but also for roads, but it looks as though this cottage, and Sunnyside, probably originated as encroachments.It would appear from the very limited amount of encroachment in the area that at this level this was not seen as a problem. There was probably a trade-off between loss of common land and the benefits of having extra skilled agricultural labour in the vicinity, or just keeping the labour in the area more able to live off their plot of land. Tenant farmers with more than one son would only have enough land to keep one son. Other children who found work locally would need to look for small plots of land to supplement their income by growing their own food. Encroachment would allow this to happen and thereby keep valuable young people in the area who might also work on the Squire’s land.EnclosureIf encroachment is about people nibbling away at the edges of the common, enclosure is about land management, efficiency, profitability, and political endeavour.To begin to understand the importance of enclosure it is necessary to explore how land use has evolved with the changing needs and aspirations of society over time. Prior to the Romans coming in the 1st century AD the Welsh tribes, in this area the Ordovicies, probably used land in the interest of the tribal needs and all land was seen as a ‘common’ asset. Disputes might have arisen been tribes and the need for land could give rise to conflict. What we now know as ‘common land’ was considered ‘waste land’ and was at this time largely used for the sport of hunting and in this way the land became the territory of the Princes of Wales.This use of land probably persisted over the next period until the Normans came and the Marcher Lords began to manage the Welsh Marches. This more feudal system gave rise to 3 types of land use:Demesne land which was reserved for the use of the Lord of the manor – In this area we had described the ‘Park’ which was associated with the Castle at Cefnllys.Land which was given over by the Lord of the Manor for sale or rent – In this area John Price and more latterly the Severn’s had the lands associated with Penybont Hall.Waste Land within which commoner’s rights evolved around pasture, agriculture, gleaning, etc. – In this area Rhos Swydd Common is revealing more and more examples of ridge and furrow cultivation.The use of the wasteland was not a matter for individuals but was closely bound up in local customs where decisions were made about what and when the land might be used for differing purposes. On Rhos Swydd Common there is a distinctive example of Strip Field culture that was discussed on our Notes of 5th October 2015. This agrarian system serves romantic visions of a rural idyll but it was not very efficient. At best it supplemented the earnings of people who worked for other people. At its worst people did not pull their weight and yields were very low. In the strip field system farmer might have several strips in different places within the overall field. These might vary from year to year, and each strip might be subject to a crop rotation system.During the 16th and 17th centuries there was a growing movement to develop a more productive system of agriculture in the country. This was driven by private individuals, the gentry, who would enclose land which they saw as benefiting the peasants by providing them with continuous work. Improvements in agricultural practice also gave rise to this movement alongside a desire to compete with the Dutch who were by then exporting food to Britain and around the world.There were two approaches to enclosure in this non-parliamentary period:Enclosure by informal agreement is the earliest method. Probably it would only involve a few people. There are some examples from Tudor enclosure and depopulation commissions and subsequent prosecutions for illegal enclosures.Formal agreements were usually between the Lord of the Manor and one or two other farmers or landowners and usually drawn up by a local solicitor. Sometimes they were followed some years later by another agreement or a parliamentary enclosure. Sometimes these agreements were enrolled in the Court of Chancery or one of the other recording courts. These early agreements were usually for the enclosure of open fields. They were often concerned with parts of a manor or a parish, very rarely would a complete lordship be enclosed.The Agrarian History of England & Wales P203: In certain counties much common-field land was enclosed before 1500. 16th century writers regarded the counties of Suffolk, Essex, Hertfordshire, Kent, Devon, Somerset, Cornwall, Shropshire, Worcestershire, & Herefordshire as completely, or largely enclosed.Rising population from middle of 15th century onwards led to the rising price of land. While some enclosure started as early as the 13th century, this movement was linked to a concerted political drive to legislate for enclosure. This period of ‘Non-Parliamentary Enclosure’ led to State intervention in the 18th Century. During the 18th century, enclosures were regulated by Parliament; a separate Act of Enclosure was required for each village that wished to enclose its land. The process leading to enclosure had a number of steps:Give notice to submit a Bill ie Apply for an Act of Parliament for enclosure.After 1774 a notice of an intended enclosure pinned to church door or published in newspaper.A meeting of all the ‘proprietors’ (both freeholders and copyholders) called.After a petition to parliament and permission given the county MP was instructed to prepare an enclosure bill and present it to parliamentCommissioners were appointed and in the early years there could be as many as 24 of them (Broyle Park in Sussex 17th century, including a baron, two baronets and two knights). From mid 1740s onwards, five commissioners became the norm for many years. After the Towcester enclosure in 1762 the number dropped to three. The first peak of parliamentary enclosure was 1770s dealing mainly with open arable fields.There was a long term economic depression after the Napoleonic wars from 1815 that slowed down the rate of enclosure.The process of obtaining an Act of Enclosure through Parliament was complex and here again there were a number of stages: The Bill would need to describe the ‘State of Property’ – This would cover the area of land and the degree of consent within the Parish.Procuring the Act – The two houses of Parliament would need to consider each enclosure project (had to appear before the Parliamentary committees). The Commons heard each Bill three times and then refer it to a Commons committee. If after the third reading there were no major problems, its name was confirmed, and it was carried to the Lords. There it would be referred to a Lords committee. If after this there were no objections it would be carried back to the Commons where it would be passed as an Act. The new Act would first appear in handwritten form and then later a number of printed copies would be produced. This could then be taken as the Completion of the Award.In 1801, Parliament passed a General Enclosure Act, which made the process slightly easier and enabled any village, where three-quarters of the landowners agreed, to enclose its land.There were several General Acts of Enclosure in the 19th century and these fell under two different categories:Public Acts of Parliament – usually sponsored by the government to deal with matters in the public interestPrivate Acts – sponsored by individuals or groupsFrom 1801 the passing of the General Enclosure Act had standardised the procedure although a Private Act was still needed for the local detail.In 1836 another General Enclosure Act was passed to deal solely with the enclosure of open arable land. The 1840 act extended this to common meadow and pasture.In 1845 General Inclosure Act appointed national enclosure commission with local commissioners.To find out more about Acts of Enclosure Maureen provided the following reading list:Reading list: WE Tate: A Domesday of English enclosure acts and Awards.John Chapman: A guide to Parliamentary Enclosure in WalesME Turner: English Parliamentary Enclosure: its Historical Geography and Economic History (Folkstone 1980)J Chapman: The Nature and Extent of Parliamentary Enclosure (Agricultural History Review, 31 (1987) p25)JR Wordie: The Chronology of English Enclosure 1500-1914 (Economic History Review), 2nd ser. 36 (1983))GE Mingay investigated small farmersME Turner: List and Index Society Home Office acreage Returns (HO67) 1801R Kain: An Atlas and Index of the Tithe Files of Mid-Nineteenth century England (1986). Tithe Files are at PRO Kew.A Guide to Parliamentary Enclosures in Wales by John Chapman University of Wales Press 1992.WalesWelsh enclosures generally were much later than those in England. A lot of the early English enclosures were enclosing common fields and converting arable to pasture. During the Tudor period there was quite a lot of objections to these, suggesting it was one of the principal causes of depopulation. There were two main periods of enclosure in the 19th century: the early enclosures such as Cascob, Clyro, Diserth, Gladestry, Llanfihangel nant melan, Pilleth, New Radnor, which all happened while the Napoleonic Wars were on. After the end of those wars (1815) agriculture became very depressed and the next surge of enclosures did not come until 1860s. Maureen showed a map that indicated the Acts that were passed across Wales after 1770. Awards amounted to just over half a million acres and these varied across the different counties:CountyAwardsArea in acresAnglesey86,765Breconshire2043,835Caernarfonshire1355,880Cardiganshire1545,252Carmarthenshire2829,402Denbighshire2497,488Flint2233,535Glamorgan137,838Merionethshire848,805Monmouthshire1314,677Montgomeryshire1980,878Pembrokeshire109,166Radnorshire3452,359All WALES227525,880There is a significant difference in the density of common land between Wales and England. 8.4% of Wales is common land amounting to about 432,000 acres, whereas 3% of England is common land yielding 988,000 acres.One of the factors that affected to rate of enclosure in Wales was the lack of local Surveyors. The rate of enclosure in Wales did speed up n the 19th century when more Surveyors were available.Radnorshire Maureen compared Radnorshire with Breconshire. In Radnorshire 52,000 acres (61,000 acres according to Parker) out of total of 300,000 acres, which is in the region of 16 – 20%, were enclosed in 34 Acts, whereas in Breconshire 43,835 acres out of total area of 469,000 acres less than 10%, in 20 Acts.If we take Parker’s acreage this corresponds to the following Acts of Enclosure:Gladestry (Colva)18101813960New Radnor181118141552Diserth1812?1600Llanfihangel Nantmelan181218202156Pilleth1812?800Casgob181318161500Clyro1813?2000Rhayader1828182976Llanfihangel Helygen18401843195Bleddfa184418535000Knighton (I)18441848800Llanbadarn Fynydd184618577000Evenjobb18471849297Presteigne1848185192Beguildy184918572192St Harmon184918602890Knighton (II)1853185971Boughrood1859?701Llanddewi Ystradenni18601862614Llanfihanel Rhydieithon186118642823Radnor Forest (Clud)186118674413Llandrindod186218702026Nantmel (II)18621867690Nantmel (I)186318714068Nantmel (III)186318702852Norton18641867705Whitton18641870728Cefn-llys (I)18651869111Heyope186818731107Old Radnor18681870352Cefn-llys (II)18801885128Glascwm (II)18801885341Betws Diserth18821885685Glascwm (I)18821885834Taking the more local awards, in red, Maureen displayed these enclosures:Name of AwardOrderAwardAcresName of area enclosedLlanfihangel Rhydieithon186118642823?Llandrindod186218702026Swydd Neithon manorCefn-llys (I)18651869111Cefnllys commonsCefn-llys (II)18801885128Hendy BankGlascwm (II)18801885341Llandegley Rhos CommonMaureen then discussed these 5 enclosures in more detail:Llanfiangel Rhydithon, 2823 acres, Order 1861, Award 1864Maureen pointed out, in looking at the map of Llanfiangel Rhydithon that where one finds straight lines this tends to indicate enclosure. In this case there were two parts to the enclosure: Part 1Craig Bank. Craig Pool. Quarry Mawr Bank. Cloggia Tumps bordering parish of BleddfaCastle Holes Cwm Gerwen road to Cascob bordering parish of CascobPart 2Old Hall Bank. Wernycae Dingle. Bwlch Bryn Golan. Cwm Saes. Winllan. Quarry Dingle to the right is Radnor Forest.Cwm Boch. Esgaer. Soldiers Tump to the right is the road to Harleys & Radnor bordering parish of Llandegley.Winllan. Thislly Hollow. Penrochell Common. Bryn My GellanRoad from Llanfihangel village crossroads by Penrochell Common Radnor Arms under road. Bryn My Gellan.Pen Rhiw Garn Hill. Bryn My Gellan border below is parish of Llandegley.Road to New Radnor through Cefn y Graig Bank.The references in Part 1 sparked off discussion about the need for water holes and the right to use them, which still applies to today. Annette said that the drought in the summer this year highlighted how important this was to farmers who had established rights.The detail of the enclosure are illustrated in the following table:NameNo of allotmentsArea in acresSir John Walsh Bart672Colonel Digby392William Thomas28 Thomas Watkins of Vronlace, Llandegley7282John Cheesement Severn35William Thomas of Penybont5399William Thomas of Llysfryn, LR1328Evan Ruell of New House LR96.25John Cheesement Severn of Penybont Hall26,2954John Ruell Snr of Treforgan LR76John Ruell Jnr of Treforgan LR31John Palfrey of Cwmygaist LR32,50125Thomas Price & Edward Price of Llyssyn LR31James Price, William Price & Richard Price of Llyssyn LR2, 128William Owens of Cilmynewydd LR84,102,105,109103Thomas Moore of Old Hall LR43,45,73,74,75,86,87518John Layton New House LR9 Robert Baskerville Mynors of Evancoyd, Walton56,57,5847John Lloyd of Kings Head LR91.25Reps late Mary Pateshall385Edward Lloyd of Cwm Dolley81105Thomas Jones of Cellws LR3176Harry Hughlings of Halifax, Yorks82,107132George Cole Francis, Yorks11,15,18,40,4193Williams Griffiths of Mountain LR34,366Thomas Hargest of LR (Brookhouse)90.25Catherine Jones Burton widow80144David Davies & Edward Davies of Ivington Court Leominster 23,2561Richard Bore of Lower Farm, LR8,14,16,19,21,22,5489It is interesting to note the local names of Watkins and Ruell who are still active in the area today. Thomas Wakins was a diarist and he wrote a book about the area. Also in the list we see William Thomas from the Thomas Shop and John Percy Severn from Penybont. Also of note are the number of people who lived in other parts of England and as far away as Yorkshire.The features of the enclosure were:Reserve and set out to Her Majesty the Queen all mines and minerals.Thomas Moore of Old Hall – Lord of the Manor of South Ruralt – Nos 49,78 & 76 – 232 acres 1/14th part of the residue of the lands to be mon watering places for the use of all the owners and occupiers of land in the said parish of Llanfihangel Rhydeithon to water their cattle that is to say:A common watering place in the Graig Pool numbered 61 with an approach thereto from Road 48 as shown upon the said Map Part 1.One other common watering place in a rill of water in allotment 93 and numbered 99 with an approach thereto from Road 88 as shown upon the said Map Part 2Private watercourses for use of allotment 78 and another one for William Owen at Hill Top Tenement.List of roads private and public.Swydd Neithon Enclosure Order 2026 acres, 1862, Award 1870, This was a particularly important enclosure as a section of it led to the development of Llandrindod Wells.The Manor of Swydd Neithon which appears to take its name from Swydd Dinieithion (the commote of the fortress on the Ieithon). There were plans for enclosure in 1812 but it was 50 years later that an enclosure order was applied.This former crown manor was purchased by James Watt of Doldowlod in 1826The boundary award was between the Manor of Swydd Neithon and the adjoining manor of upper Elvell including the Mesne Manors of Aberedw Gareg otherwise called Colwyn (A ‘Mesne Lord’ is a landlord who has tenants holding under him, while himself has holding from a superior Lord), in the county of Radnor. Scale of map 6 chains to one-inch Map in 4 parts and covers Parishes of Llandrindod, Cefnllys, Llanbadarn, Llandewy Ystradenny & Llandegley.Part 1 Llandrindod & boundary mapPart 2 Parish of CefnllysPart 3 Parish of Llanbadarn (inc Penybont).Part 4 Lands in LLandegley & parish of Llandewy Ystradenny.A rent charge of ten shillings was payable out of the allotment for the labouring poor. These numbered 97 people from part 2 on the map and the rent was payable unto Rev Thomas Thoresby, Rector of Cefnllys.Also rent charge of ten shillings for labouring poor numbered 214 on map part 3 unto John Cheesement Severn. Cefnllys I Enclosure Order 111 acres - Order 1865, Award 1869The valuer was a George Owen of Oswestry and the enclosure as it related to:Lord Ormathwaite 1/14th as Lord of the Manor and also the major part of the common John Percy Severn - 8 ? acresRev Thomas Thoresby, Llanbadarn Fawr – 4 acresRev John Price Jones, Leominster – ? acresCefnllys I enclosure: Tithe Map of Mynydd PriddThis is the Tythe Map of the enclosure of Mynydd Pridd and Penybont is in the top right-hand corner. The enclosure follows the roads as they were at the time but these roads have now changed. The plantation can be clearly seen and is the same now as it was then.The Enclosure Map was:Putting this against a modern map:Brynthomas at the bottom of this map reminded Geraint that there were at one time Point-to-Point races from the Bridge at Brynthomas to Penybont, and back.The narrow strip within the enclosure was the old road from the Castle, over the Radnor Forest, and into England. This is now a bridle path.Cefnllys II, 128 acres (Hendy Bank Common) - Order 1880 Award 1885Award: Commissioner Stephen WilliamsThe enclosures were:Sir Joseph Russell Bailey Baronet the Lord of the Manor of Gareg No 4 – 8 acres being 1/14th of the lands to be inclosed.Charity Trustees of Boughrood No 2 – 37 acresThe representatives of the late Thomas Lewis Vaughan No 1 – 49 acresEvan Powell Welson No 3 – 20 acresFrom Cefnllys Church through to Hendy Bank was open ground for anyone to access, and as late as the 1950s from Pye Corner through to Hundred House was all open. Neil’s wife’s family were affected by the enclosure.Some of the continuing rights on Hendy Bank have been a source of concern in recent times in relation to the proposed Wind Farm in this area.Glascwm II 340 acres (Llandegley Rhos Common) Order 1880 Award 1885The straight lines show how the land was fenced according to the terms of the enclosure.Maureen then gave the sources where she gained the information for her talk:Powys Archives Enclosure Awards.Tithe Maps.The Agrarian History of England and Wales Joan Thirsk.Enclosure records for historians Steven Hollowell.Parliamentary Enclosure in Radnorshire by Keith ParkerRadnorshire Transactions 2003.A Guide to Parliamentary Enclosures in Wales by John Chapman University of Wales Press 1992.The Swydd Neithon Enclosure and the Development of Llandrindod Wells by I E Jones Radnorshire Transactions 1973.The Enclosure Movement in Radnorshire by J Mostyn.There was considerable discussion about the impact of the enclosures on the community. They led to centuries of conflict in the countryside. Right were changed, cottagers on common land sometimes lost their homes, even villages lost out. In Radnorshire the worst effects were not felt. Probably more importantly roads were often lost. Geraint thanked Maureen for a highly stimulating talk.The next Meeting will be in Monday 5th November when Geraint will lead a discussion on the impact on the Community following the end of the Great War in 1918. Unfortunately, Nathan Davies no longer works for the County Council.Geraint reminded people to bring to the December Meeting items of historical and local interest. ................
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