George C. Brodrick

“ But the county of Surrey does not appear to have been held in force by the Romans, and we cannot flatter ourselves that any patrician colonist established a villa like that of Bignor, in or near Peper Harow. We may safely imagine the legions marching along the familiar ridge of the Hog's Back, so admirably constructed by nature for a military road, but the remains of Roman stations hitherto discovered in Surrey are mostly situated on the sandhills which run parallel with the range of chalk downs from east to west. ”

“ It is also to be observed that the upper part of the park is traversed on the plan by rows of trees, evidently "survivals" of the old hedge-rows, some of which trees still retain their vigour.
We may be sure that divers small freeholds now forgotten have been absorbed into the present estate of Peper Harow. The Inquisition of 1313 attests the existence of "five free tenants" at that period, and free tenants are mentioned in the Inquisition of 1354. ”

“ Augustine; for no church is recorded to have stood at Peper Harow when "Domesday Book" was compiled, and after the conversion of the Anglo-Saxons the word "hearge" was superseded, first by *"minster," and then by "church." It may be added that "harrow" is more naturally rendered as "a place of worship" than as "estate" in such compounds as Harrowden or Harrowgate ”

“ Unfortunately the old parish registers of Peper Harow were destroyed when the parsonage-house was burnt down in the incumbency of Dr. Mead, between 1661 and 1687, and the new register contains no entries of archæological value. Manning has compiled with great industry a tolerably complete list of the rectors since 1304, as well as of the patrons by whom they were presented. This list is of some importance as showing in whom the advowson, which generally ran with the manor, was vested at different epochs. ”

“ The arable land was estimated at three carucates, which Manning considers as equivalent to 300 acres, two-thirds of which were included in the demesne, and one-third was in the hand of four villains and three cottars. One mill and seven acres of meadow are also mentioned as belonging to the demesne. According to the last Ordnance Survey, the present extent of arable and pasture land in the parish of Peper Harow is about 400 acres, exclusive of the park. ”

“ There can be no doubt that Oxenford was granted to Waverley Abbey by Richard de Aquila before 1147, since the grant is confirmed by the Papal Bull of the date already mentioned. Like Wanborough, it was a grange or outlying farm, the best land of which the monks doubtless knew how to fertilize by irrigation from the brook which flows along it. In the reign of Henry VIII. it was made over to Sir William Fitzwilliams, together with the other spoils of Waverley Abbey. ”

“ The first three of these entries clearly exhibit the contingent furnished by Peper Harow to the Surrey train-bands, which is larger than its existing population would have led us to expect. As we know that in 1642 a suspected design of seizing Portsmouth for the King was frustrated by the Surrey train-bands, called out by the Parliament, it is probable that John Lucas, mentioned in the fourth entry, may have been concerned on the one side or the other. ”

“ Two-thirds of the land ultimately found their way into the hands of Lord Holies, Mr. Froude, and the first Lord Midleton. The other third was purchased so late as 1822 from the Stillwells of Mousehill. The new farm-buildings close by the gatehouse represent Mr. ”