Hertfordshire Genealogy

Guide to Old Hertfordshire

 

The Manor of Berkesdon

Aspenden

 

Places

Aspenden

The Manor of Berkesdon

At the time of the [Domesday Book], the manor of Berchedene was held by Earl Eustace and Hardwin de Scalers. It consisted of one hide and one virgate, two carucates in demesne, three carucates of arable land, half a carucate of meadow, and pannage for thirty hogs. There was amill worth two shillings and eightpence a year, and six bondmen. Two villanes, a priest, and severn bordars had two carucates. The total value was three pounds ten shillings.

According to Chauncy, the lands above mentioned were shortly after the Conquest united into one manor, which came into the possession of Richard de Anestie, who gave it to God, and the Church of the Holy Trinity, in London, at which time it constituted a parish of itself. On the Dissolution of Religious Houses, this manor was confiscated to the Crown, and was held, during the reign of Edward VI by Andrew Judd, by the yearly rent of £12 12s 11d. In 1583 one portion of the estate was purchased by John Brograve, Esq., who annexed it to his manor of Westmill, and the church which formerly stood here was demolished. The other moiety of the manor was conveyed by Andrew Judd to Edward Halfhide, of Tannis, in the parish of Aspenden, from whom it passed successively to Andrew Grey, Sir Gilbert Kniveton, and Sir Stephen Soame, Knt.  Sir Peter Soame, 3rd Baronet, great-grandson of Sir Stephen Soame, Knt., sold Berkesdon together with the manor of Aspenden, in 1782, to John Boldero, Esq., who settled it upon his daughter, Hester, on her marriage with Sir Stephen Lushington, 1st Bart., from whom it has descended to Sir Henry Lushington, 3rd Bart., his grandson.

Cussans, History of Hertfordshire, 1872

The location of the manor would appear to be in open country to the west of Aspenden as my modern street map of Hertfordshire shows a small wood called "Berkesdongreen Spring" close to the house called Tannis Court and not far from Wakeley (marked as site of medieval village). Not far away is a moat - which could well be the site of a medieval manor house. This location is supported by Sellar's map of 1676 which shows Barsdon Green in about the same location, while Andrew Bryant's map of 1822 shows a Berkesden Gn. on a road (no longer marked on modern map) south of Tannis Court Farm and close to a small wood which appears to be the one shown on modern maps.