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Inquisitions Post Mortem

"An inquest held by the king's escheator or his deputy after the death of a tenant-in-chief of the Crown to establish the extent of the estate and to confirm the rightful heir. A jury of 12 local men of high repute gave information under oath. Records from the 13th century onwards are kept at the Public Record Office, under C 133-142 and E 149-150. Calendars and indexes are available for many reigns, and some county record societies have published detailed calendars, especially for the period 1270-1350. They are arranged to a fairly consistent format, and as well as showing what estates are held in chief by an individual, they can be used to illustrate broad contrasts between places and regions."
Oxford Companion to Local and Family History. David Hey Oxford University Press 1996

More information on pages 506-508 of Ancestral Trails by Mark D Herber published by Alan Sutton 1997. This points out that the County Palatinates (Lancaster, Chester Durham) are held elsewhere in the PRO. It may be noted that the IPMs for the Palatinate of DurhamDurham do not cover land outside Durham.

More information at http://www.medievalgenealogy.org.uk/guide/ipm.shtml .

On-line sources

Extracts

Stephen de Eure

John de Euere, or Eure, knight ^b

Writ, 20 June, 41 Edward III
YORK.    Inq. taken at Northallerton, Sunday before the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, 41 Edward III
    Stokesley.  He died seisedof no lands in the county, because he demised all his lands in fee to Robert his son on Sunday after Corpus Christi, 38 Edward III, to wit, the manor of Stokesley, as appears by his charter of that date. All the lands &c. which Robert has by his father's gift are held of Ralph de Nevill by service of two knights' fees, except 10a. of land in Grenhowe which are held of Peter de Malo Lacu, as of the right of Elizabeth his wife, by service of rendering a clove yearly at Midsummer. Margaret de Euere, wife of the said John, has a third part of the premises in dower.

He died on Saturday in the fourth week of Lent, 40 Edward III. [21st March 1365/6] The aforesaid Robert his son, aged 26 years or more  [September 1367], is his heir.

NORTHUMBERLAND.    Inq. taken in the castle of Newcastle upon Tyne, Thursday after the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, 41 Edward III.
He died seised of no lands &c. in the county, because he demised them all to Robert his son (as above). All the lands &c. (unspecified) which Robert has of his father's gift are held of David de Strabolgi, Earl of Atheles. Margaret de Eure, wife of John, has a third part of all the lands &c. in dower.
Date of death and heir as above,
C. Edw. III. File 193. (11.)

Eure, Robertus de ^a

Inq. p.m. taken 21 May [1369] {1370¹}at Durham. Ralph, aged 19, is his brother and next heir.

Wotton in Werdale Rutynford Hopyland Bradley

}

manors of

Sonnyngside in Walsyngham,         land and tenements in
Bermetonhalle, manor of

At the IPM at York 28 August, 41 Edward II, following the death of Ralph de Neville, Robert de Eure was said to hold the manor of Stokeslay [Yorkshire] by service of 4 knights fees.

Eure, Margaret widow of John de Eure ^a

Inq. p.m. taken 3 Aug [1377] {1378¹} at Durham. Ralph aged 24, is her son and next heir. She had held her lands in the dower of her Inheritance of Ralph de Eure, by the grant of Robert de Eure.

Bradley, manor of
Sunniside, land called

Hopiland Retyford

}

Manors of, held of the heirs of Stephen de Birden

Hamsterley, land in: held of the manor of Wotton
Wotton, a rent issuing out of the manor of

Eure, Ralph ^a

Inq. p.m. taken 7 Sep [1422] at Derlyngton. William, aged 26, is his son and next heir. Long defore his death he had conveyed his manors or Kimblesworth and Bradley, and lands between Herperley burn and Stanhope Park to trustees to the use of his son Robert Eure and Elizabeth his wife, and the heirs of the said Robert by the said Elizabeth, with remainder over to the heirs of the body of the said Robert, and to the right heirs of him the said Ralph Eure. Further by another deed he had conveyed the lands in Brafferton to Hugh Foster and Marjory his wife, to them and the heirs of his body, remainder over to his own right heirs.

Wotton in Werdale, with	}	}
Hamsterley
Bermetonhall			manors of
Rutynford, with	}
Hopiland

Escombe, lands and tenements called Shalesfield, Seirsleyker, Stoklouyng and land for a pond in.
South Bedburn, messuages, lands, and tenements called Bedburnhall, Gibbesclos, Westshipley and Grymesclos in.
Wotton, land called Brandonfield in.
Northbedburn, land called Matnele in.
Derlyngton, land called Hell in.
Blackwell, land and tenements in.
Wulfrid, land called the acre of Saint.

Escombe	}
Shotton		lands and tenements in
Shaldford

Evenwod, land and tenements in.
Cokerton, land and tenements in.

Neuland		}
Fauleys with	}		the vills of; in Wolsyngham
Ladle Park

Lamesley, tenements in.
Knicheley, vill of.
Grenecroft, a moiety of the vill of.

Langley and	}	the manor and vill of.
Le Waterfall

Auckland, Bishop, tenements in.
Redworth, a rent issuing out of land in.
Eden Parva, land and tenements in ; held of Walter Hawk.
Wyndleston, land and tenements in ; held of the prior of Durham.
Berforth, land and tenements in ; held of William Bowes.
Satley, land and tenements in ; held of William Madison.
Hunwyck, lands and tenements in ; held of William Hoton.
Bermton, lands and tenements in ; held of the lord [dominus de] of Skiryngham.
Fysshburn, land and tenements in ; held of William Claxton.
Hetton, land and tenements in ; held of the heirs of William Laton.

Seton and	}	land and tenements in ; held of John Hadham.
Slynglawe

Fery on the Hill, land and tenements in ; held of the prior of Durham.
Wodom, a rent issueing out of lands and tenements in ; which lands are held of the heirs of John Whitworth.
Wishawe, land and tenements in ; held of William Hudleston and Elizabeth his wife.

Auckland, Bishop	}
Durham		burgages in
Derlyngton

Kymblesworth next Durham	}	manors of
Bradley

Herperlyburn and	}	lands and tenements extending between ; on both banks of the river Were
Stanhop Park

Brafferton, lands and tenements in.

(Pontificate of Thomas de Longley)
Reg. Vol II., fo. 214
Portf. 165. No. 1.

Later inquisitions in book 45 of the records

William Eure - Inq. ad. inquir. taken 4 April [1459] at Les Toftes next Raly relative to the working of the coal mines granted to William Eure and his heirs for the term of one year commencing 8 January 1457-8.
Coal mines of
    Rale,
    Caldhirst
    Hertkild
    Hethereclough alias Tollawe
    Wollawe
    Evenwood

Thomas Eure - Inq. p.m. taken 10 June [1475] at Durham. William, aged 6, is his son and next heir. Jointly with Margaret his wife, still surviving, he had been seized of the undermentioned lands.
    Shotton, land in
    Auckland, tenements in.
    Seton            |    land and tenements in ; held of John Hadham
    Slynglawe    |
    Gatesheved, a tenement in ; held of John Broun.
    Gatesheved, tenements in

 Robert Eure - IPM 25 March [1488] - Isabella, aged 11, is his daughter and next heir.
Margaret Eure, widow of Thomas - IPM 8 April [1500] -William, aged 30, is her son and next heir.
William Eure - Inq. v. off 9 June [1506] - Margaret, aged 14, is his daughter and next heir. Jointly with Anna his wife, still surviving, he had been seized of his lands ...
William Eure - Inq. v. off 5 june [1507]. Margaret, aged 15, is his daughter and next heir. By deed dated 6 Aug 1504 he had conveyed to Ann Evers his wife still surviving, his lands ....

Isabella Melott - daughter of Robert Eure and wife of Roger Smyth - IPM 2 November [1535]. Robert Melott, aged 30, is her son and next heir

Notes

1    The printed transcription gives the date as [1369]. but Fordyce say the 24th year of Bishop Hatfield - which should be 7th August 1369 to 6th August 1370, hence the calendar date would be 1370AD.  This correction should not apply to the date of Margaret's IPM but her will being clearly dated 1378AD and the uncertainity of the exact start of Bishop Hatfield's Episcopate means that this date should be 1378.

The subject of these Inquisitions must not be left without mention ....

References

a    Abstracts from Inquisitions Post Mortem - Appendix I to the 45th report of the Deputy Keeper of the Public Records 1884)

b    Vol XII Edward III http://www.archive.org/download/cu31924011387903/cu31924011387903.pdf

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