Description:This is one of a number of court rolls of the parish of Halesowen which is now in Worcestershire. In the 13th Century, the parish was partly in Shropshire and this included the Manor of Hales. The Manor is listed in the Domesday Book , being described as the manor of Hala.
Over subsequent years, the manor ‘passed through several hands’ until in 1214, King John granted the manor to the Bishop of Winchester for the purpose of establishing the new Abbey of Hales. This was 52 years before the first manor roll was written. The court rolls came to the Library in 1926 as part of the records of the estates of the Lyttelton family of Frankley (later of Hagley Hall); many of which had previously belonged to Halesowen Abbey. The minute book for the Public Libraries Committee [BCC/1/AT/1/1/16] records that they were received as a generous gift from Lord Cobham.
The court rolls mainly record matters that involve any monies owed to the lord of the manor, concerned more with the amount of the fine than the nature of the offence. They are written on parchment sheets and sewn together at the ends.
This particular court roll was chosen by one of our Archivists, Peter Dore, who found this document of interest as the extract here records the name of individuals who were accused of selling beer that was too weak, which was an offence at the time and something many of us would consider offensive!
[Hagley Hall Box 1 346201]