Maldon—A History

By Charles Phillips

Maldon – A History is the story of Maldon, which is the second oldest town in Essex, from pre-historic times until the present day. It has information on Bronze and Iron Age Maldon, Roman Maldon , Anglo-Saxon Maldon including the Battle of Maldon, Medieval Maldon including the granting of the first charter of the borough in 1171 by King Henry 2, its monastic institutions, Maldon’s port and its involvement in wars, Maldon at the time of the reformation, its involvement in the civil war, its Parliamentary representation, the town in the 18th and early centuries including the building of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation, the dissolution and subsequent reinstatement of the town’s charter, the Napoleonic Wars, the building of the two railways to the town in the 19th century and their closure in the 20th century, the rise of municipal institutions in the 19th and 20th centuries, Maldon’s police force and abolition and subsuming into the Essex County Police force, industrial developments including its iron foundries and salt works, Maldon during the two world wars and the abolition of the borough in 1974. Also included is the parish of Heybridge which subsequently became a part of the borough as well as the hamlet of Beeleigh. It was researched using previously published works and contemporary documents.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse UK
• Release date: Feb 7, 2020
• ISBN: 9781728398259

Charles Phillips

Charles Phillips was born in 1953 and lives in the village of Stock in Essex. He went to school in Chelmsford and then joined the civil service from which he retired in 2005. Hi main interest is transport, the First World War and history in general. He has written a number of books including Great Eastern Since 1900 (Ian Allan, 1985) and 'The Story of Billericay. (History Press, 2011).

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© 2020 Charles Phillips. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse   02/07/2020

ISBN: 978-1-7283-9826-6 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-7283-9825-9 (e)

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Contents

Dedication

Introduction

1   In the Beginning

2   Norman Conquest to Reformation

3   The Reformation

4   16th Century Maldon

5   17th Century Maldon

6   18th Century Maldon 1700-1815

7   Maldon 1815 to 1848

8   Maldon 1849 to 1889

9   Maldon 1890 to 1914

10   Maldon in the First World   War 1914 to 1919

11   Maldon Between the Wars

12   Maldon in the Second World War

13   Maldon Since the End of the Second World War

Sources and Acknowledgements

Dedication

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To Angela for her encouragement in making

me get this book published.

To my late mother Margaret Phillips for first

taking me to Maldon in 1964.

Introduction

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T his is an outline history of the second oldest town in Essex – Maldon.

Maldon along with Saffron Walden is one of the least spoilt towns in Essex. The town is best remembered as the subject of the Anglo-Saxon poem ‘The Battle of Maldon’. But there is more to the town’s history than just that famous poem. Its history can be traced back to prehistoric times. There were very few events in English history that did not in some way impinge on or have some connection however loose with Maldon even in a very small way whether it be the Roman conquest of England, the war between the Anglo Saxons and the Danes, the Norman Conquest, the Peasants’ Revolt, the Reformation, the Civil Wars, the Anglo Dutch Wars the Napoleonic Wars, the Industrial Revolution and the two World Wars of the 20th century. Sadly there are hardly any people of national fame who are still remembered today that were in some way connected with Maldon. One who was was Samuel Pepys of diary fame was in 1669 made Captain of the Maldon built ship the Jersey.

Part of Maldon’s attraction is its buildings. All Saint’s church with its unique triangular tower and St Mary’s church by the river. The remains of St Giles’ Leper Hospital. The Moot Hall. The Plume Library. The Blue Boar, The Rose and Crown and The Swan public houses. The former Maldon East railway station. Another part of the attraction is the river and the quayside. Whilst there is in the surrounding area the attractions of Beeleigh Abbey and the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation stretching all the way to Chelmsford.

Within the definition of Maldon I have also included Heybridge as for all and intents and purposes it is a part of Maldon.

I first discovered Maldon at the age of 11 in August 1964 when my mother took me there on a day trip by bus. I’ve been back quite a few times. On two occasions I’ve walked the Chelmer and Blackwater from Chelmsford to Maldon. Sadly I never travelled on the branch line from Witham to Maldon and the branch line from Woodham Ferrers to Maldon had closed before I was born. I regret never travelling on the Witham to Maldon branch line. I like Maldon and that is why I’ve decided to write the history of it.

I wish to thank Angela Bill for encouraging me to get this book published.

Charles Phillips

7th February 2020

1

In the Beginning

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T he origins of Maldon go back to about the year 2500 BC, as archaeologists have found at Elms Farm, Heybridge on low ground beside the former course of the River Blackwater evidence of a farmstead with circular post constructed structures and an associated cremation cemetery including a ring-barrow, from which flint tools and pottery were recovered. The archaeologists also found flint arrowheads which showed that the inhabitants of the farmstead also engaged in hunting. At the same site archaeologists also found the remains of two people who in about 1500 BC were buried beneath an earth mound that was surrounded by a ditch.

Evidence of salt extraction in the Bronze Age period in the area has been found in the ‘Red Hills’ which are located along the north bank of the River Blackwater. The red of the ‘Red Hills’ was caused by the burning activities on the clay soil.

Evidence has been found of a fortified hill top settlement dating from the Iron Age within an area whose ramparts ran from approximately St Peter’s Hospital Spital Road, West House London Road, Gate Street, Beeleigh Road, Dykes Close and Highlands Drive Estate. Excavations have found Iron Age pottery dating from about 300 BC and evidence of occupation.

In 1971 and 1972 excavations of a large reddish mound or patch mark known as a ‘red hill’ east of the road leading from the Maldon-Goldhanger road to the River Blackwater causeway to Osea Island found seawater evaporation briquetage (burnt clay and pottery shards of the evaporation pots and the tanks), late Iron Age and Roman shards. The earliest seawater briquetage was radio-carbon dated to within 63 years of 239 BC.

Archaeologists found at the Elms Farm site at Heybridge evidence from about 50 BC of an Iron Age settlement occupying a site of about 60 acres or 50 hectares. The settlement lasted into Roman times and started to decline in in the third and fourth centuries AD, but was not finally abandoned until the late fourth century or even the early fifth century and was not occupied again until 1996. The site was excavated in 1993 to 1995 in connection with the new development. They found evidence of a main road running from north to south (linking what is now Witham to Colchester) and three side roads running to the east. The village appears to have been divided into three parts. The northern side appears to contained domestic activity and a market place, the central part contained a wooden temple (built approximately AD10) and a small square shrine and the south side contained industrial activity. Weights have been found indicating the measurement of merchandise. The different parts contained fairly large individual plots which each contained a main structure which fronted on to the road. Environmental evidence has suggested the presence of paddocks for livestock within the settlement. Outside the village to the north and east were cemeteries for the dead of the village. Being near the mouth of the river Blackwater it would seem that it was a small port.

One problem that one encounters generally with history is not what has survived, but what has not survived. For example no one knows very much about Iron Age roads. The late Donald Maxwell in his book ‘A Detective in Essex’ (1933) suggested that Maldon was the starting point of two salt track ways leading from the Maldon area to London and to Hertfordshire. That is two pre Roman roads. In those days salt was a very valuable commodity. At one time it was used as a currency. It was and to some extent still is used as a preservative. Also as a flavouring. Another use is cleaning wounds.

In AD 43 Britain was invaded by the Romans under the Emperor Claudius, whose general Aulus Plautius was the first Roman governor of occupied Britain. The Romans under Julius Caesar had briefly invaded Britain in 55 BC and 54 BC. However the invasions were not successful from the Roman point of view

At that time Maldon was part of the kingdom of the tribe known as the Trinovantes, whose capital was at Colchester.

During the period of the Roman occupation of Britain which is held to have lasted from 43 AD to 410 AD it is known from archaeological evidence that the shrine in Maldon was replaced by a new circular one in about 150 AD, whilst in about 250 AD the wooden foundation wall of the temple was replaced by a masonry foundation. Roman Maldon’s prosperity declined after about the end of the first century AD and during the second century several houses were burned down. As mentioned previously the village lasted into the late fourth or even early fifth century AD when the site was abandoned. Throughout the period of decline the temple remained more or less intact.

Both before the 19th century, during the 19th century and the early part of the 20th century various Roman objects were found in or in the vicinity of Maldon. For example the building of the railway line from Woodham Ferrers to Maldon in the late 1880s resulted in the discovery of hundreds of coins and a large amount of pottery and tiles in the vicinity Langford Junction. In 1873 a coffin thought to be of Ancaster stone was found near The Towers, which was the then residence of Edward H Bentall. A few months before this a lead coffin was found.

In about 100AD the Romans are known to exploited the sea salt resources on Osea Island and at Maldon and in 200AD saltpans at Heybridge and nearby Goldhanger are known to have been in existence.

A road is known to have existed running from Colchester to Maldon. A road is also known to have existed that ran from Maldon to Danbury and it is not impossible that this led to Chelmsford. The problem is that over the centuries the sites of many ancient roads has been lost. It has been suggested that the Romans made the Rivers Chelmer and Blackwater navigable by means of flash locks. A flash lock comprised a single gate, which was a set of boards called paddles supported against the current by upright timbers called rymers. The rymers normally kept the level of the water above it to navigable levels. Boats moving down stream would wait above the lock until the paddles were removed, which would allow a ‘flash’ of water to pass through the lock carrying the boat or boats with it. Going upstream boats were winched or towed through the lock with the paddles removed. Great skill was needed in both removing the paddles in a timely manner and navigating a boat through the lock. For hauling the boats the Romans would have relied on human power in the form of slaves. The technical term for the haulage of boats by human power is bow hauling.

From the aforementioned information it seems that Maldon was an Iron Age and later Romano-British port having a market for its agricultural hinterland and a religious function which was centred on its temple. It also seems to have undertaken a large range of small scale manufacturing activities. As to what its name was, we do not know.

As to what happened at Maldon after the Romans abandoned Britain is not known. In the beginning it would seem from the evidence available for Britain as whole that at first life went on as during the Roman occupation. The county that is now Essex was eventually settled by the Saxons from Lower Saxony in what is now Germany. Essex took its name from being the kingdom of the East Saxons. This kingdom of the East Saxons covered a rather larger area than the present county of Essex. Essex has as a county contracted over the years and would be even smaller than it is now had the original proposals for the re-organisation of local government in the early 1970s taken place.

As to how long the conquest of the area took we do not know, as records from the period are scarce. It would seem that for the most part the conquest took the form of a gradual infiltration into the area rather than a violent conquest. That is not to say that there was not some violence involved in the conquest. Nor would it be right to say that there was no violence after the conquest. In 552 the West Saxons invaded the Thames Valley and attempted to reach the Thames estuary. However their efforts were thwarted by the East Saxons.

From archaeological excavations carried out in 1972 at Crescent Road and in 1993-94 at Elms Farm of Saxon buildings there is known to have been an occupation by the Saxons from the 5th to 6th centuries in the area of Maldon at the low lying area at the head of the Blackwater estuary. This occupation was of a rural nature rather than an urban nature. It is also known that between the 6th and early 10th centuries there was settlement on the rural sites around the Blackwater estuary, such as Chigborough Farm Little Totham and Slough House Farm Great Totham. At the latter when excavations were carried out in 1988 and 1990 four timber wells were found. Two of these were found to contain timbers dating from the early 6th and early 7th centuries. Metal working debris and early Saxon pottery was also found. From evidence at both these sites it is known that large fish traps were being built.

Another enemy that the East Saxons faced were the Vikings who came from Denmark and Norway.

At this point it is worth describing England in the late 650s AD as it has some relevance to the history of Maldon. At that time there were three large kingdoms. Northumbria which covered an area from just south of the River Humber and the River Mersey to the River Forth in Scotland. Mercia which covered the middle of England from Northumbria to the Thames Valley including Surrey and from the Welsh border to near the Humber. Wessex, which covered all of southern England east of the Cornish border to the Sussex Border. There were some smaller kingdoms. Lindsey in the eastern part of what is now Lincolnshire. Cornwall. Sussex. Kent. Essex including Middlesex. East Anglia which included Norfolk, Suffolk and parts of Cambridgeshire. The smaller kingdoms usually sided with either Mercia or Wessex in any disputes.

The first Viking raids on Britain began about the year 787. At first the Vikings were content merely to plunder Britain, but later they decided to permanently settle in the country. They overran Northumbria. They beat the resistance of the East Anglians. In 877 they seized the eastern part of Mercia. However at the Battle of Edington Wessex under the leadership of its king Alfred (or Ælfred) the Great defeated the Danish warlord Guthrum. Following further hostilities between the forces of the two rulers a treaty was signed between the two rulers in 885 or 886. Meanwhile in 883 Mercia had become a vassal state to Wessex. Under the treaty between Alfred (or Ælfred) the Great and Guthrum Wessex kept its dependencies of Cornwall, Sussex and Kent and the western part of Mercia as well as London. The rest of the England including Essex became under rule of the Danes. This rule was known as the Danelaw.

Despite signing the treaty with Guthrum, Alfred (or Ælfred) the Great still had to contend with other raiders from Denmark. In 899 Alfred (or Ælfred) the Great died and was succeeded by his son Edward the Elder. A major consideration of Edward was conquering the lands that had been seceded to the Danes under the treaty between his father and Guthrum. In 911 he built a burh or fortified enclosure at Hertford. In 912 he moved into Essex and camped at Maldon whilst a burh was being built at Witham. It is from the following year that the earliest known name of Maldon is known. According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle it was then called Maeldune meaning hill marked by a cross. As to whether there was already a settlement at Maldon when Edward camped there in 912 is not known, but the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle suggests that there was. As mentioned earlier when excavations were carried out at Slough House farm at Great Totham in 1988 and 1990 four timber wells were found. Two of these were found to contain timbers dating from the early 6th and early 7th centuries. Metal working debris and early Saxon pottery was also found. The Saxons initially at least preferred to build settlements on low ground and tended to avoid hills, but also away from cemeteries as the Saxons associated cemeteries with ghosts.

A burh was built at Maldon in 916 and in the following year a Danish attack was beaten off. It is thought by some that the burh may have used the remains of the site of the fortified Iron Age hill top settlement and that they been reinforced. Nothing is known of the internal layout of the burh except that the alignment of the present London Road seems to represent two of the entrances.

In 920 Edward was again at Maldon superintending its fortifications. In the autumn of 921 a large force of the English assembled from Kent, Surrey and English Essex and entering the Danish part of Essex, beset Colchester and fought against it until they reduced it and slew all the people, and took all that was therein except the men who fled away over the wall. The Danes from East Anglia with the Vikings made reprisals at Maldon and beset Edward’s ‘burgh’, but the townspeople held it until relief arrived, when they sallied forth and slew great numbers. With great promptitude Edward led a great force from operations at Towcester and Huntingdon and repaired the ruined fortifications at Colchester thus sealing his possession of the whole of Essex.

After the creation of the burh it would seem that the Saxon town was centred near the burh’s east gate. It is possible that there was a Saxon predecessor to the medieval St Peter’s church at that end of the town. From the gates of the burh the main street of the town ran east down the slope to the Hythe and St Mary’s church. What are now the Spital and Fambridge roads came in to join the main street in front of the burh’s gate and what are now Cromwell Hill and Market Hill roads led down to the crossing of the Blackwater at Fullbridge. It is here that there was a small market place. Evidence has been found of a rectangular timber hall dated to the tenth century beneath the site of the former Tesco building running parallel to the High Street. This was succeeded by a sequence of timber buildings which faced on to the Saxon street frontage on the former Tesco and former Lloyds {now Lloyds TSB] sites. These were dated to the eleventh century. At the former Chequers Hotel site timber buildings dated to the eleventh century were excavated. From this it is known that there were buildings on the southern side of what is the High Street in the tenth century. It is not known if there were buildings on the northern side. If there were evidence of them has either been lost or so far has not been found during any excavations. However as St Peters Church is immediately opposite these sites there may well have been further buildings on the northern side. It is also not known how far east the Saxon Maldon extended. The High Street runs east down to the Hythe where it is quite probable that there were quays in Saxon times. The Church of St Mary (or its predecessor on the site) at the Hythe was late Saxon in origin.

It may be asked why Maldon developed as a town in Saxon times. The answer to the question is water. After the Romans left the network of roads that they built when into decline. The quality of them and of newer ones that were developed in response to the creation of new settlements varied from the very good to the very bad. Because of this the use navigable rivers and where appropriate the coastal waters were the preferred means of transport and any settlement such as Maldon and Colchester that was situated either on such a river or on or near the coast had an advantage over a settlement that was situated inland away from a navigable river. According to the Victoria History Essex Volume 9 – the Borough of Colchester, Maldon was a more important port than Colchester in the 10th century as it was more accessible than Colchester and what little foreign trade Essex had went through it.

Maldon for a time had its own mint. This dated from the early to mid-920s as the earliest known coin known to have been minted in Maldon is a silver penny dating from the reign of Athelstan (924-39. This mint survived past the conquest into the reign of William 2nd (1087-1100). None of these coins have been found in Maldon, but a lot have been found in Scandinavia which shows that there was still a large Viking presence in the area. The location of the mint has not been found. It is very probable that it was on the king’s land.

Heybridge also developed in Saxon times on the opposite side of the Blackwater from Maldon. It was originally called Tidwoldington, which was according to the Rev Philip Morant in his ‘The History and Antiquities of the County of Essex’ published between 1763 and 1768, undoubtedly named from a Saxon landowner by the name of Tidwold or similar spelling. A perusal of dictionaries of Anglo Saxon English do not provide possible alternative suggestions for the origin of the name.

In 991 the famous Battle of Maldon took place. It is worth understanding as to how it came to take place. Edward the Elder died in 924 and was succeeded by his eldest son Athelstan who died in 939 without immediate successors and was succeeded by his half-brother Edmund 1st. Edmund 1st reigned until 946 when he was murdered at a feast in his own hall. He was succeeded by his brother Edred, who reigned until 955. Edred brought up as his heirs the two sons of Edmund - Edwy and Edgar. Edwy who succeeded Edred became entangled in court factions, and Mercia and Northumbria broke away in rebellion and gave allegiance to Edgar from 957. In 959 Edwy died and the whole country became united under Edgar. Edgar reigned until 975. His death led to a succession dispute between rival factions supporting his sons Edward and Ethelred. The eldest son Edward was murdered in 979 at Corfe, Dorset, by his supporters of his half-brother Ethelred. Ethelred reigned until 1016. However for the whole of his reign his late half-brother became a posthumous rallying point for political unrest. Known as the Unready meaning that he was unwise Ethelred failed to win or to retain the allegiance of many of his subjects. His reign was plague by Viking raids.

At the time of Ethelred’s accession the greatest figure in Scandinavia was Harold ‘Gormsson’, king of Denmark, who according to his own words ‘won for himself all of Denmark and Norway and made the Danes Christians’. Harold was a rather autocratic monarch and amongst other things which did rather give rise to resentment he acted rather forcibly in making the Danes Christians. Many of his subjects refused to accept Christianity and shortly before 988 his son Swein put himself at the rebels head and drove his father out of Denmark.

It is very likely that among the first Viking raiders to England were men who resented the autocratic king Harold and the imposed Christian religion. The first raids on England took place between 980 and 982. There was then a gap until 988, when the Vikings attacked the south western counties. In north Somerset the raiders attacked and burnt the village of Watchet. Streonwold, the local English thane called for help from the surrounding population and a battle was fought. The Vikings won the battle and Streonwold was killed. (A thane or thegn was an old English term for one was part of the household and military elite of the king or a lord).

Although the raids were naturally somewhat disastrous for those who lived in their path they didn’t have any great effect on the country as a whole. What they did though was bring England into diplomatic conflict with the Duchy of Normandy. Normandy had been conquered by the Vikings in the 9th century. By the late 10th century it was no longer possible for Scandinavian adventurers to found new families in the Duchy, but the Norman aristocracy was still conscious of its Scandinavian ancestry and was very well disposed to Vikings and so the Normandy ports were open to the Viking raiders returning from raids on England. By the summer of 990 the royal courts of England and Normandy had become openly hostile to each other. News of this hostility reached Rome and the Pope (John 15th) dispatched an envoy to arrange a treaty between them. On Christmas Day 990 the envoy presented his commission to King Ethelred, who shortly afterwards with the aid of his council drew up a set of terms that could be presented to the Normans. In the late winter of 991 the bishop of Sherborne (in Dorset) and two of the king’s thanes escorted the envoy to Rouen where the Duke of Normandy (Richard 1st) agreed to the terms.

At the beginning of August 991 another group of Viking raiders appeared off the English coast. In the second week of August following a profitable raid on Ipswich they sailed down the Orwell to the coast and then along the coast to Bradwell where they entered the Blackwater estuary, sailed up it and occupied a place somewhere near Maldon. News of the Viking raids would have reached the people of Maldon and surrounding area. Defence of the area was in the hands of Byrhtnoth who was an ealdorman of Essex. An ealdorman was a royal official often related to the king, who presided over civil matters at shire courts. He was in Saxon times the chief personage and the king’s deputy in a county. Byrhtnoth was related by marriage to King Edmund 1st. News of the arrival of the Vikings spurred Byrhtnoth to action. He called together the fyrd, which was the Anglo Saxon militia and marched them to confront the Vikings. Having given them advice and encouragement he then took his place amongst the warriors of his household.

Regardless of where the actual battle took place it seems to have taken place alongside a river at a crossing place which was accessible only at low tide. Before the battle Byrhtnoth drew up his men in battle order on the western side of the crossing place. Because it was high tide there was no possibility of a battle straight away. A spokesman for the Vikings shouted across the river offering peace in return for gold. Byrhtnoth shouted back promising spears instead of gold. Some arrows were then fired which struck down some men. The two sides stood tense and expectant waiting for the tide to ebb. When the tide did ebb the first Viking warrior who attempted to cross was struck down and killed by Wulfstan, who with two other Saxon warriors barred the way. The Vikings thwarted by the Saxons determination to defend the causeway started to plead with their leaders to give battle. Byrhtnoth was confident that he could deal such a blow to the Vikings that they would flee the land and so cleared the causeway so that they could cross. The Vikings waded across and formed up in battle order.

Byrhtnoth rode back and forth along the lines of his men exhorting them to stand firm before the forthcoming onslaught of the Vikings. There then came the swish of swift sharp spears seeking the flesh of enemies. As the blood began to flow with the Vikings rushed forward to clash with the Saxons.

Wulfmaer the nephew of Byrhtnoth fell early during the battle, but for a time the Saxons held their own. Byrhtnoth was very clearly the object of the Vikings anger and following several wounds his sword fell from his hand and he sank into the hands of two of his warriors. He then lifted up his eyes and commending his soul to God died. At this point Godric who Byrhtnoth had shown favour to seized Byrhtnoth’s horse and fled the battlefield followed by others who chose dishonour rather than loyalty to their fallen leader. There were some however who were determined to fight on to avenge Byrhtnoth’s death and invoking his name and their unshakeable allegiance to him they fought on with renewed vigour. However one by one they fell until in the end they yielded victory to the Vikings.

The triumphant Vikings cut off Byrhtnoth’s head and left the battlefield. Later monks from Ely cathedral took Byrhtnoth’s body and buried it in their cathedral.

A lot has been made of the decision of Byrhnoth to allow the Vikings to cross the causeway, but one has to look at things from his point of view. Byrhnoth would have been aware that by continuing to defend the causeway the Vikings could have been prevented from landing. But had they been prevented from landing there Byrhnoth would have known that they would have sailed off and gone and raided another part of England. A decisive defeat of the Vikings was only possible there and then if they could be brought to battle. Had such a victory occurred it might have altered the course of the war against the Vikings by reversing the series of defeats that had been suffered by the Saxons. The actions of Byrhnoth can only be judged on the military calculation as to whether or not his forces were likely to defeat the Vikings. Byrhnoth was a season soldier who was hardly likely to lose his military head in an unnecessary gesture of heroism. The death of Byrhnoth undoubtedly had an effect on the course of the battle. One cannot say if the Saxons would have won if he had not been killed.

In the poem ‘The Battle of Maldon’ none of the invading army that defeated the Saxons are named. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle accredits was Olaf Tryggvason, who was a descendent of Harold Fairhair king of Norway with leading the invading army, but Professor Sarah Foot writing in the BBC History Magazine for July 2013 said that an independent source mentioned the involvement of an Essex nobleman in a treacherous plan that Swein Forkbeard the king of Denmark and the lord over Sweden and Norway ‘should be received in Essex when first he came there with his fleet’. According to Professor Foot this suggests that it was Swein that lead the invasion. In his favour was that he was newly established as king of Denmark and had the substantial power and the resources of his realm behind him.

After the Battle of Maldon the Vikings who had carried out the raids on Ipswich and Maldon carried on with their raids and compelled the local rulers of Kent, Hampshire and western Wessex to buy peace from them. By the end of the year they had entered into a treaty with government of England by which in return for provisions and a large sum of money they agreed to keep the peace towards the king and his subjects and to join with them in attacking any other Viking raiders who attacked England. The text of the treaty shows that the greatest man amongst the Viking raiders was Olaf Tryggvason, who in 995 made himself king of Norway. However this claim would seem to be contradicted by the independent source for the Battle of Maldon mentioned by Professor Foot.

As to when the poem ‘The Battle of Maldon’ was composed there is some dispute with some authorities arguing for a date near to the time of the battle and others for a date in the eleventh century. At this distance in time from its composition it is extremely unlikely that one will ever know.

Another source of dispute is the site of the Battle of Maldon. It has been accepted for many years that the Battle of Maldon in 991 took place at Northey Island. In 1973 an American team undertook a geological survey of the island and came to the conclusion that battle took place in the area of the present day causeway to the island. Since the battle the topography of the area has seen very dramatic changes due to marine transgression and later regression. It would seem most likely that the site of the battle is on the seaward side of the present day sea wall on land which has subsequently reverted to saltings. However Maldon Archaeological Group wondered if there were other places that were candidates as sites for the battle besides Northey Island and carried out an investigation of all the possible sites and published their findings 1998. The main sites that were investigated were Barrow Hills at Great Totham, Heybridge, Langford, Fullbridge, South House Farm on Northey Island (the accepted site of the battle), Wintersleet Farm at Beeleigh and Osea Island. In addition the group also looked at Asheldham and Othona Fort at Bradwell. Whilst the group felt that the first seven were possible sites of the battle it did not discount the other two sites as being possible sites.

The threat of an invasion by other Vikings in 992 caused Ethelred to mobilise his fleet. It would seem that Olaf Tryggvason did not give him any help. In 993 the English commanders in Northumbria and Lindsey (Lincolnshire) were left to their own devices when a hostile Viking fleet descended on them. In 994 Olaf Tryggvason with Swein the son of king Harold of Denmark invaded England. The results of the invasion were inconclusive as some of the English nobles were prepared to accept Swein as king of England. Peace was brought from the Vikings for £16,000 which was a very considerable sum of money in those days. This though was not the end of the wars between England and the Vikings which after a break of two years restarted continued. Cornwall, Devonshire, west Somerset, Dorset, Hampshire, Sussex, Kent and even south Wales were visited by the Vikings by the end of the tenth century. There was then a break of a year after which the Vikings invaded west Sussex and south Devonshire. In the spring of 1002 a truce was signed for which £24,000 was paid in tribute money by the English to the Vikings. A few weeks later Ethelred married for the second time. His new wife was Emma the sister of Duke Richard (2nd) of Normandy. The marriage was, unbeknown at the time, of great importance to the history of England. In that same year Ethelred made the mistake of ordering that all Danish men in England be killed on St Brice’s day (13th November) because he had been told that they had intended to kill him and his advisers and take over the country. One of those killed in the massacre was Gunnhild the sister of Swein, who was now king of Denmark. In revenge 1003 Swein mounted the first of a series of devastating raids on England. In 1013 Ethelred fled England to Normandy and the English nobles who had got rather disillusioned with Ethelred acknowledged Swein as king. His reign though was short as he died in 1014 and Ethelred returned. Ethelred died in 1016 and was succeeded by Swein’s son Cnut. Cnut reigned from 1014 to 1035 and was succeeded by his two sons Harold Harefoot, who reigned from 1035 to 1040 and Harthacnut who reigned from 1040 to 1042.

Harthacnut was succeeded in 1042 by Edward the son of Ethelred and Emma. Edward, who is known as the Confessor, reigned from 1042 to 1066. Edward died without issue and at a Witenagemot (meeting of wise men) following his death elected Harold Godwinson king. Harold was a son of Godwin, the powerful Earl of Wessex and in 1045 on the latter’s death succeeded him as Earl of Wessex. There is some dispute regarding his succession as Edward is thought by one school of thought to have promised the succession to William, Duke of Normandy but on his deathbed is supposed to have commended his widow Edith (the sister of Harold) and the kingdom to Harold’s protection

In 1064 Harold had apparently been shipwrecked in Ponthieu in Normandy and had been captured by Count Guy 1st of Ponthieu and held hostage in the latter’s castle at Beaurain. Duke William had arrived soon afterwards and ordered Guy to hand him over. Harold then accompanied William to battle against the latter’s enemy Duke Conan 2nd of Brittany, whom they beat. William knighted Harold and Harold then swore an oath to support William’s claim to the English throne.

In early January 1066 on hearing that Harold had been crowned king William began plans to mount an invasion. On learning of this Harold assembled his troops on the Isle of Wight, but in early September with provisions running low Harold disbanded the army and returned to London. At this same time Harald Hardrada of Norway, who also claimed the throne of England invaded the country, making his landing on the Tyne. Harold defeated the Norwegian invaders at the Battle of Stamford Bridge in Yorkshire on 25th September. On 27th September the Norman fleet sailed for England and arrived the following day, landing at Pevensey in Sussex. Harold on learning of this marched his army south. In the subsequent battle the Saxons were defeated and he was killed.

Having conquered England William wanted to know who held what land, the number of working persons there were, what animals there were and what money could he expect to receive from the land. In the December of 1085 William met with his council at Gloucester and commissioned a survey of his land. For the purpose of the survey the country was divided into seven regions. Essex was included with Suffolk and Norfolk as part of one of the regions. Royal Commissioners were sent out to gather the information. I have to stress that the Domesday Book as the survey was known was not a population census. For the benefit who are unacquainted with pre decimalisation currency the pound (£) was made up of 240 pennies (d). The shilling (s) which was made up 12 pennies and was a twentieth of a pound did not come into existence until 1504, but to avoid too much confusion I will use the denomination shilling even when it did not exist.

The basic unit of the land holding in the Domesday Book was the manor. This was an estate varying in size and according to the website The Domesday Book Online was equivalent to a single holding, with its own court and probably its own hall, but not necessarily a manor house as we think of it. We do not know the names of the manors of Maldon, but from later records it seems that there were amongst others a Great Maldon and a Little Maldon.

According to the Domesday Book in the Half Hundred of Maldon the king owned a house and pasture for 100 sheep and a sokeman (a non- noble land-holder) with 40 acres of land who had a bordar (a peasant of very low status). Before the Conquest there was plough, but at the time of the Domesday Book there was half a plough. A plough at this time referred to the taxable amount of land that could be ploughed by eight oxen. Half a plough meant half a plough land. Before the Conquest it was worth 10 shillings, but it now worth 5 shillings. Also in the Half Hundred of Maldon the king had 180 houses which the burgesses held and 18 derelict messuages (tenements), 15 of which held half a hide (60 acres) and 21 acres and the other men did not hold more than their houses in the borough. (A tenement in this context was a holding of land held by a superior lord). Among the men they had 12 horses, 140 head of cattle, 103 pigs and 336 sheep. From the king’s hall had issued (income) 6s 8d and from the land of Swein 4s and from the 2 houses of Eudo the steward 16d which the king had not received since he had come (conquered) into the land. From the sokeman Ranulf Peveral had customary dues every year of 3s but in King Edward’s time his predecessor had commendation (a form of vassalage – allegiance). The whole lot together rendered (payment in kind) £13 2S in King Edward’s time and when Peter received £24, but then £16 by weight.

In the Hundred of Dengie in the land owned by the king at Maldon there were two freemen (free man – a non- noble land-holder) with ten acres. Of these Ranulf Peverel had five acres and Hugh de Montfort had five acres. Before the Conquest they were worth 10d, but at the time of the survey they were worth 12d.

In the Half Hundred of Maldon Swein of Essex held half a hide of land that before the Conquest Robert fitzWymarc held. One Gunnar held the land of Swein. In the land the king had 4 shillings of customary dues and these provided aid with the other burgesses to find a horse for the host and in building a ship, but Swein had the other customary dues. Both before Conquest and at the time of the survey there was one border, one plough land and it was worth 20 shillings.

In the Hundred of Dengie Ranulf Peverel held Maldon in demesne (land whose produce that was solely devoted to his own use) which Siward had held as a manor before the Conquest and as five and a half hides and ten acres (670 acres). Before the conquest there were 16 villans (peasants of higher economic status than a bordar) but at the time of the survey there now nine. There now ten bordars (peasants of lower economic status than a villan). Both before the Conquest and at the time of the survey there were three slaves and two ploughlands in demesne. The men before the Conquest had ten ploughlands for themselves, but at the time of the survey they had five ploughlands for themselves. There was ten acres of meadow, woodland for 50 pigs and one mill. Both before the Conquest and at the time of the survey there were two horses. At the time of the survey there were three cows, four calves, 140 sheep and 29 pigs. Both before the Conquest and at the time of the survey it was worth £12.

In the Half Hundred of Maldon Ranulf Peverel held half a hide (60 acres) and 24 acres of land in demesne which Siward held before the Conquest as a manor. Before the Conquest there was one border, but there were now three bordars. It was worth 5 shillings and the land was included in the £12 from Maldon.

In the Hundred of Dengie the canons of St Martin-le-Grand in London held Maldon from Count Eustace of Boulogne which a free man held before the Conquest as one and a half hides (180 acres) and 30 acres. Later Engelric held it. As both before the Conquest and at the time of the Conquest there were six bordars (peasants of low economic status) and two slaves and two ploughlands. There was woodland for 30 pigs and pasture for 100 sheep. It was worth £4 (80 shillings) before the conquest but was now worth £5 (100 shillings). In demesne there were two pigs, 14 sheep and 100 sheep. It was worth £4 (80 shillings) before the Conquest but was now worth £5 (100 shillings).

The burgesses of Maldon (and Colchester) rendered £20 for the mint in the town(s) and Waleran arranged this. And they summoned the king as guarantor to the fact that he pardoned them £10 and Walkeline the bishop held it and he demanded £40 from them.

In the Hundred of Thurstable the canons of St Pauls in London held Tidwoldington, as Heybridge was then know, both before the Conquest and at the time of the survey. It was eight hides (960 acres) and as one manor, however Ralph Baynard held half a hide (60 acres) and the Hundred Court did not know if how he should have it. Both before the Conquest and at the time of the survey there were 16 villans, four bordars and four slaves. Before the Conquest in the demesne there were two ploughlands, but at the time of the survey one and a half ploughlands. Before the Conquest the men had eight ploughlands, but at the time of the survey they had three ploughlands. There was woodland for 60 pigs and there was 30 acres of meadow. There was pasture for 160 sheep. Before the Conquest and at the time of the survey there a mill and a salt pan. There was one horse, eight head of cattle, 12 pigs, 150 sheep and three hives of bees. The value of the land both before the Conquest and at the time of the survey was £8.

2

Norman Conquest to Reformation

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P rior to the Reformation the Church and the religious houses played in great part in the life of Maldon and Heybridge and I will start with these before turning to the civil life of the borough.During this period Maldon had two religious houses. The House of the Premonstratensian or Norbertine Canons at Beeleigh Abbey and the Friary of the Carmelite or White Friars situated in the parish of All Saints.

The Premonstratensian Canons were founded at Prémontré near Laon in 1120 by Saint Norbert, who later became Archbishop of Magdeburg. They first settled in Essex at Great Pardon near Harlow. The exact date is not known, but it was before 1172, when in August of that year Robert, abbot of Perhendune appears as a witness to a charter of Robert de Marci to St Johns’ Colchester. In 1180 the Canons migrated from Great Pardon to Maldon. Robert Mantell the lord of the manor of Little Maldon granting land to them In Maldon, Totham and Goldhanger, plus the churches of St Peter and All Saints in Maldon, St Lawrence in Dengie and half the church of St Margaret in Bures. The foundation of the abbey seems to have been considered by the church as a new foundation, as the patronage of the abbey remained from henceforward until the dissolution with his heirs, the lords of the manor of Little Maldon.

At first the Abbey was called the ‘Abbey and Convent of Maldon’. It was not called Beeleigh until the 13th century. The name Beeleigh is said to be of Anglo Saxon origin and means a clearing in the trees where bees are kept. Beeleigh is a hamlet within the parish of St Peter’s Maldon. Although in present day usage a convent is associated with a community of women, in the past it referred to either a community of priests, religious brothers, religious sisters, or nuns, or the building used by the community.

According to Volume 2 of the Victoria History of Essex (1907), in the Taxation of 1291 the temporalities (secular possessions) of Beeleigh Abbey were valued at £41 17s. 9½d. yearly. The Abbey received monies from Goldhanger, Parndon, Maldon, Purleigh, Burnham, Stow, Tollesbury, Great Totham, Woodham Mortimer, London; Woodham Walter, Moulsham, St. Lawrence, Tolleshunt Tregoz, Langford, Chignal Zoyn, Magdalen Laver, Tillingham, Wickford, Writtle, Norton, Ulting and Roxwell. £6 7s 10d coming from Maldon. Pensions in the churches of Laindon (worth £2) and Great Parndon (worth £1) also belonged to the abbey. The Abbey owned the advowson of the rectory of Laindon. (Advowson is the right of a patron [advowee] to present to the Diocesan Bishop (or in some cases the Ordinary if not the same person) a nominee for appointment to a vacant ecclesiastical benefice or church living. An ordinary is an officer of the church who by reason of office has ordinary power to execute the church’s laws. St Lawrence’s was appropriated to the Abbey and a vicarage was endowed. However in 1438 the rectory was restored to the church. The two churches of St. Peter and All Saints, Maldon which were granted to the Abbey by Robert Mantell, were united in 1306, when a vicarage was ordained.

Hugh de Neville granted the advowson of the church of Great Wakering, which was confirmed by his brother John and again on 4 July, 1291, by Edward I. The church was appropriated to the abbey in 1284 by the bishop, who however reserved the collation of the vicarage to himself. In 1307 the prior of the House of Cluniac monks at Prittlewell Priory claimed that he held the fourth part of the church of his own advowson; but the bishop reported that the church belonged to one rector and that the abbot and convent had long held it to their own use. The last church to be acquired by the Abbey was that of Ulting, which was granted by Robert Fitz Walter and appropriated in 1299.

The same volume of the Victoria County History of Essex says that in 1257 Dame Hawisia de Neville, wife of Sir John de Gatesden, granted 40 marks to Roger., the then abbot, and the convent to purchase land for the maintenance of a canon to celebrate divine service. The abbot and convent acknowledged the grant under their seal; and in 1258 the Premonstratensian chapter confirmed the agreement and admitted her to participation in the prayers of the order.

I should explain that Dame was once the style of address applied to wives and knights and baronets, but its usage was replaced by the style Lady in the 17th century. A mark was not an English coin, but it was used as a unit in accountancy and was the weight of metal originally valued 128 silver pennies.

At Easter in 1265 the abbot Andrew and the convent agreed with the executors of the will of the Archdeacon of Essex, Master Stephen de Sandwych, to celebrate certain services for his soul.

In his will Henry de Wengham, who was the bishop of London from 1259 until his death in 1262, left 360 marks to the abbot and convent of Beeleigh to find two chaplains in St. Paul’s cathedral, London, to celebrate mass for his soul. Each of them was to have six marks yearly, and four marks to be distributed on anniversary of the day of his death between the canons and the servants of St Paul’s cathedral and 25 shillings, to the poor on the same day, and half a mark to the chapter of St. Martin le Grand, London, and every year. The abbot bound himself and his convent to the observance this on the feast of St. Catharine the Virgin (25th November) in 1298, However neither the abbots of the convent seem to have kept to the observance and lawsuits on the matter are recorded on the De Banco (common plea) rolls until a later agreement was made between the dean and chapter of St. Paul’s and John Boston, abbot, and the convent in 1451.

There arose in 1269 contentions and discords between the abbot of the time, Reginald, and the convent (community). In consequence of this on 6th November the King (Henry 3) took the abbey into his protection and committed the custody of it to John le Moine and William de Aumbly. It is very likely that Reginald was removed as abbot, as his predecessor Andrew appears again as abbot in 1272; protection being granted to him on 30 July that year . Edward I (1272-1307) dated letters patent from Beeleigh on 10th September, 1289.

The visit to the abbey in 1289 by Kng Edward 1 and Queen, Eleanor of Castile was the only recorded royal visit to the abbey. The King and Queen were present when masses were celebrated in the abbey for the soul of Hugh Fitz Otho, the King’s steward who had been a benefactor of the abbey. The royal couple gave three shillings and eight pence in alms offering and seven shillings and six pence for pittance for the abbot and the convent.

During the reign of King Edward 1 the abbot of Beeleigh was summoned to Parliament. However the abbot was not summoned to Parliament under any of Edward’s successors.

A person associated with Beeleigh Abbey and Maldon was St Roger of Beeleigh. St Roger Niger de Biliye as he was known was born at about the time that the abbey of Beeleigh was founded. His father’s name was Ralph and his mother’s name was Margery. The early surname Niger usually refers either to the complexion of the skin or the colour of the hair, but Roger had a younger brother Walter who is also recorded as Niger. This suggests that the name was an existing surname inherited from his father. De Biliye denotes an association with Beeleigh either because he lived there or because his parents entrusted him to the canons to educate him and prepare him for a career in the church or both.

In 1192 Roger was in residence at St Paul’s in London, where he was a prebendary (administrator) of Ealdland (old land that has remained long untilled) in Tillingham, which provided him with an income. In 1218 he became the Archdeacon of Colchester. The Archdeaconry also had its administrative base at St Paul’s cathedral and a corresponding seat within the cathedral. Following the death of the Bishop of London, Eustace de Fauconberge, in 1228 Roger was chosen as his successor. Roger was not the only member of his family to have a connection with St Paul’s. His younger brother Walter became a canon of the cathedral.

Roger was actively involved in secular and administrative work involving St Paul’s cathedral and played a leading role in conducting services in it. On 20th January 1230 whilst celebrating high mass a terrible storm arose which so frightened the people there in the cathedral that they thought that it and its steeple would fall down. There then followed such a terrible taste in mist and smell that the people rushed to get out of the building. Roger assisted by one canon calmly finished the service. When the air began to clear the people returned to the cathedral and were humbled by the sight of Roger who had remained calm throughout.

Roger was also actively involved in the affairs of church and state. He defended the church against King Henry 3, incurring the King’s displeasure. However he also found himself out of favour with the Pope (Gregory 9) and was summoned to Rome to answer for his actions. On the way he was robbed of his money and jewels in Parma. He was prominent at the consecration of Edmund Rich as Archbishop of Canterbury in 1234, the coronation of Queen Eleanor of Provence (wife of King Henry 3) in 1236 at Westminster Abbey and the baptism of her son the future king Edward 1 in 1239. Roger carried out a lot of work on St Paul’s cathedral which culminated in the consecration of a new choir in 1240. Following, Roger who was suffering from failing health retired to Bishop’s Hall in the parish of Stepney and died there on 29th September 1241 and was buried in St Paul’s cathedral, except for his heart which was removed from his body before burial and taken to Beeleigh Abbey.

Roger’s tomb in St Paul’s cathedral was quite soon seen as a special place and according to a contemporary St Albans monk and chronicler many miracles were worked at it. In a manuscript dated 1249 Roger is referred to as ‘Sanctus’ – Saint Roger. By the 13th century canonisation was a solemn judgement that was reserved by canon law to the pope. Roger’s canonisation was never formally requested by the Holy See and he was therefore one of a number of notable medieval people for whom a popular local cult was established, but was never official recognised by the Holy See. In the regnal year (i.e. a year of the reign of a sovereign) 1248-1249 the abbot of Beeleigh Abbey agreed that he and his successors would ‘find and maintain one cereum (wax candle) to burn every day at the mass of the Blessed Virgin Mary and at the great mass of the high alter in the church of Maldon before the heart of St Roger for ever’. On 22nd July 1391 Pope Boniface 9 granted relaxation from Purgatory of six years and quadragene (the 40 days of Lent) to penitents who visited the Beeleigh on the feast of St Roger (29th September) and give alms to the church of the monastery.

In 1403-1404 the Abbot Thomas Cokke became entangled in the conspiracy of Maud de Ufford the Countess of Oxford, who lived at Great Bentley and John Colschestre, or Pak the Abbot of the house of Benedictine monks at Colchester and Abbot Thomas de London the prior of Augustinian or Austin canons of St Osyth to depose King Henry 4 (1399-1413) by way of a French invasion and replace him with King Richard 2 (1377-1399), whom Henry had deposed. After Richard had been deposed he had first resided in captivity in the Tower of London and then in Pontefract Castle where he is thought to have starved to death around the middle of February 1400. After his death rumours existed that he was still alive.

When the conspiracy was discovered the Countess of Oxford was arrested and sent to the Tower of London in May 1404. However following the intervention of King Henry’s Queen (Joanna of Navarre) she was pardoned by the King in November 1404. On 5th June 1404 a warrant was issued for the arrest of Abbot Thomas, who surrendered shortly after the issue of the warrant and wrote out a confession of his involvement before the King’s Commissioners. According to Christopher Foyle a commission was appointed in August to investigate the conspiracy and Abbot Thomas was probably found guilty on some charges as were one may infer were the other two abbots involved because in November 1404 they were each granted a pardon at the insistence of Queen Joanna. Abbot Thomas did not live very long afterwards as an inquisition taken on 24th July 1405 before the sheriff and one of the coroners of Surrey found that John Ultyng, a fellow canon of Thomas Cokke, late Abbot of Beeleigh on the Friday after the Feast of the Annunciation (25th March) of that year had poisoned Thomas Cokke at Southwark. Cokke had died eleven weeks later. A warrant was issued on 29th July for Ultyng’s arrest, but it seems likely that he cleared himself of the charge as a canon of Beeleigh with the same name became Abbot of Durford the following January.

Within the archives of the Premonstratensians are a number of mentions of Beeleigh.

The earliest mention of Beeleigh is in 1310 when it is recorded that the Abbot was present at the Council of the Order at Revesby in Lincolnshire to inform the Abbot of Prémontré in France that payment of tribute to the mother house was forbidden by the Statue of Carlisle of 1307. The Statue forbid religious foundations from sending money to their mother houses abroad.

On 8th April 1454 the Abbot together with the Abbots of Durford and Titchfield was present at Bayham Abbey in Sussex at a meeting held