THE NORTH CRAWLEY ENCLOSURE AWARD 1773
ENCLOSURE – WHY DID ENCLOSURE HAPPEN
From the 8th Century to 18th Century farming, farming tools and equipment barely changed.
In most villages there was a Lord of the Manor with landed property and 3 open fields for the villagers divided into strips, usually measuring “A Chain” wide and “A Furlong” in length.
22 yards x 220 yards = 4840 square yards = 1 Acre
These could be divided into “Roods” (A quarter of an Acre) or a “Perch” (40 Perches make a Rood)
The 3 open fields would be rotated so for example:
Field 1 – Corn, Wheat or Barley
Field 2 – Beans
Field 3 – Lie fallow (uncultivated, unused)
There were often complicated ownerships and on common land, complicated Rights of Pasturage.
The Industrial Revolution brought new inventions: In 1701 Jethro Tull invented the seed drill.
Ploughing improved – metal plough shares with wider spans replaced old wooden ploughs and they could be comfortably worked with two horses.
Turnip Townsend in Norfolk experimented with new crop rotations with no wasted “fallow year”.
He would do a 4 year crop rotation of Wheat/Barley/Turnips/ and the clover and sown grass to put Nitrogen back in the soil.
Improvements to Breeding and Management of Livestock occurred. Agricultural prices rose in the 1760’s, 1780’s & 1790’s.
Rich landowners wanted Go Ahead Farmers with no restrictions to increase rents from their lands.
George 111 realised agricultural production in the country had to increase to feed a growing population
ENCLOSURE INVOLVED 2 PROCESSES
- RATIONALISATION OF THE OPEN FIELDS SYSTEM WITH RIGHTS OF PASTORAGE
- BRINGING INTO CULTIVATION, UNCULTIVATED LAND AND COMMONS
HOW WAS IT DONE
There were no parish councils, churches and church councils and the Squire of the Manor ran almost every aspect of the village. It is interesting to note that in the Doomsday Book of 1086 there are references to only 3 churches in Buckinghamshire prior to the Norman Conquest, St. Rumbold in Buckingham, St. Osyth in Aylesbury and St. Firmin in North Crawley.
Usually the existing rich landowners would get together to petition Parliament, often buying out any opposer’s beforehand. It would then go through the usual Parliamentary Process, however no Bill would succeed unless it was supported by the larger part of the Owners of Land. Opposition and Petitioners against the Bill would be heard in person or by Counsel, however in practise what life would be like afterwards in the village is anyone’s guess.
The enclosure was carried out by Commissioners who measured the plots and produced “The Award”.
The clerk would ask all common rights holders where they would like their new allotments and usually an equitable solution would be found. In North Crawley almost all the new allotments of small quantity would be close to their home or home close.
Fencing was ordered and the entire cost, usually £3000 of £4000 was paid by landowners in proportion. Fencing was usually supplemented by a ditch and a bank and as time went by a quickset hedge appeared.
A letter exists from John Bent of Whaddon for fencing:-
Whaddon
March ye 8 1768
Honoured Sir,
The measure of the Sid of Bechley-leys by the Chase is 138 Pole as is worth Eight Shillings ye Pole Work and Stuff (work only exclusive of caridge 3s-6d per Pole) to make a strong Ruff mound with three rails on the Ditchbank as comes to work and stuff 55 4 0
Work only 24 3 0
I am Honoured Sir your most
Obleiged & obedient
Humble Servant
John Bent
To this there was added in another hand “The Dechem and trowsen (trimming), the Hedge of the Bank the Dich six fut wide and sloping to too fut and a half at the botam and Raring the Bank being 138 pols at
1 shilen per polle £6 18 0
A pole equals 5½ yards
40 Poles to the Furlong
People were generally required to complete hedgerows within 12 months and in addition legal costs were roughly £1 an acre. Fox Hunting landlords created artificial covers such as spinneys from 2 to 20 acres and Enclosure lays down the pattern of roads we recognise today.
The North Crawley Enclosure Award of 1773 describes the road system in the village.
The Midlands was the most affected area in the Country by Enclosure where it’s heavy clays produced good pasture.
By 1800 2,500,000 acres had been enclosed and altogether by 1850 some 4,000,000 acres of countryside was enclosed. The number of Georgian farmers were only a fraction of the number of Medieval or Tudor farmers that had previously existed , and the exercise left a lot in poverty until the Industrial Revolution.