coronation of King Charles I. and married Jane, the natural daughter of Robert Earl of Sussex; she outlived him, and after married Dr. Lewis; he left it at his death to
John Ratcliff, Esq. his eldest son, who sold it to
Sir Francis Bickley about 1657, who was buried in a vault of his own making, in Mortimer's chapel in the year 1670, leaving
Sir Francis Bickley, Baronet, his son and heir, whose son,
Sir Francis, had three wives;[1] by Debora, daughter of Sir Cornelius Vermuyden, Knt. he had Sir Francis Bickley, Bart. now living, who sold the estate to
Sir James Ash's mother, who left it in trust to Mrs. Mary Windham, for the use of Sir James Ash's male issue, but that failing, it came to
Joseph Windham Ash, Esq. who is now [1737] lord and sole patron. The advowson of the third part being purchased by Mrs. Windham, of Sir Algernoon Potts.
The style of the court is, Atleburgh Hall with its members. The fines are at the lord's will, and the eldest son is heir.
The Warepound, or Frowick court, is the superiour court, all the other manors being held of it;[2] it is always kept on Whitsunday, very early in the morning, by a tree which was on a hill in the street, (but is now cut down,) and is commonly called the Scolding Court, it being obliged to be over and done with before sunrise, according to custom, or else the whole rents of the court are forfeited for that year. In the 38th of Queen Elizabeth, Robert Earl of Sussex paid 16d. for the manors in this town, held of this court, and 2d. for the college lands, which are held of it also, as are several of the capital messuages, by the rents of pence and halfpence only, the whole being freehold, and the rents amounting in all to 2s. 2d. ob. This always belonged to the hundred of Shropham, as it now does, together with the leets of the whole town, its hamlets, and whatever belong to the manors of this town lying in Besthorp, for all which the annual leet fees, joined together, are 6s. 4d. ob. a year. The lord of the hundred hath also a hundred court belonging to this town, to be kept every three weeks, with full power to end and determine all suits, and pleas of debt not exceeding 40s. in which any resident in this town is concerned, and power to levy, in as ample a manner as the county court: to him belongs also the market, which is held on Thursday, and was formerly remarkable for the number of fat bullocks and sheep which used to be exposed and sold here every other market day, but now this is wholly lost, and the market itself is very near it; there are three fairs kept every year, the first on Maundy Thursday, but by what authority, or to whom it belongs, I know not; the second on Ascension-Day; this belongs to Mortimer's manor, being granted in 1310 to Sir Constantine Mortimer; the third belongs to the lord of
- ↑ His second wife was Mary, daughter of Sir Humphry Winch, by whom he had three sons now living, Capt. John Bickley, the Rev. Mr. Humphry Bickley, now rector of the two parts of Atleburgh, both single, and Mr. Joseph Bickley, who is settled in Virginia, married and hath issue; his third wife was widow of Pointer, by whom he had no issue.
- ↑ The Originals whence the following accounts are extracted, are all in my own hands.
