Hundred Rolls
Encyclopedia
The Hundred Rolls are a census
of England
and parts of what is now Wales
taken in the late thirteenth century. Often considered an attempt to produce a second Domesday Book
, they are named for the hundred
s by which most returns were recorded.
The Rolls include a survey of royal privileges taken in 1255, and the better known surveys of liberties and land ownership, taken in 1274 - 5 and 1279 - 80, respectively. The two main enquiries were commissioned by Edward I of England
to record the adult population for judicial and taxation purposes. They also specify the services due from tenants to lord
s under the feudal system of the time.
Many of the Rolls have been lost and other have been damaged, but a minority survive and are stored at the National Archives in Kew
. Where they survive, they are a major source for the period. Those known in the early nineteenth century were published in 1818, while more recent discoveries are being collated by the University of Sheffield
.
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and parts of what is now Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
taken in the late thirteenth century. Often considered an attempt to produce a second Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
, they are named for the hundred
Hundred (division)
A hundred is a geographic division formerly used in England, Wales, Denmark, South Australia, some parts of the United States, Germany , Sweden, Finland and Norway, which historically was used to divide a larger region into smaller administrative divisions...
s by which most returns were recorded.
The Rolls include a survey of royal privileges taken in 1255, and the better known surveys of liberties and land ownership, taken in 1274 - 5 and 1279 - 80, respectively. The two main enquiries were commissioned by Edward I of England
Edward I of England
Edward I , also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England from 1272 to 1307. The first son of Henry III, Edward was involved early in the political intrigues of his father's reign, which included an outright rebellion by the English barons...
to record the adult population for judicial and taxation purposes. They also specify the services due from tenants to lord
Lord
Lord is a title with various meanings. It can denote a prince or a feudal superior . The title today is mostly used in connection with the peerage of the United Kingdom or its predecessor countries, although some users of the title do not themselves hold peerages, and use it 'by courtesy'...
s under the feudal system of the time.
Many of the Rolls have been lost and other have been damaged, but a minority survive and are stored at the National Archives in Kew
Kew
Kew is a place in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames in South West London. Kew is best known for being the location of the Royal Botanic Gardens, now a World Heritage Site, which includes Kew Palace...
. Where they survive, they are a major source for the period. Those known in the early nineteenth century were published in 1818, while more recent discoveries are being collated by the University of Sheffield
University of Sheffield
The University of Sheffield is a research university based in the city of Sheffield in South Yorkshire, England. It is one of the original 'red brick' universities and is a member of the Russell Group of leading research intensive universities...
.
Sources
- Cam, HelenHelen CamHelen Maud Cam was an English historian of the Middle Ages, born at Abingdon, Berkshire ....
, Studies in the hundred rolls: some aspects of thirteenth-century administration, Oxford: Clarendon press, 1921 - Cam, Helen, The hundred and the hundred rolls; an outline of local government in medieval England, London, Methuen 1930