Poor parishes of 1428

POOR PARISHES OF 1428

There is printed below a list (fn. 1) of very small parishes, compiled in 1428 when the collectors of a levy on parishes had to report to the Exchequer all parishes with fewer than ten householders, the limit below which exemption from the tax was allowed. The list for Wiltshire is longer than for some counties of equivalent size, but it seems to include some places which had never had a church or chapel. There are a number of places which occur in this list which have already been noted above (p. 296) as being at the foot of the ladder in 1334 and 1377. Sopworth, however, had been some way from the foot even in 1377. Many names in this list are no longer represented by any substantial settlement although a few have prospered in later years. The tax collectors authenticated their return for Axford by adding to the name of the sole inhabitant, one Robert Erle, 'nisi unus inhabitans'. Unless otherwise stated, the parishes have been assigned to the hundreds in which they were included in 1334. They were, of course, originally returned by deaneries. The words in brackets after the vills bear the same meaning as is set out on p. 295.

Parishes with Fewer than Ten Households in 1428