S 328

A.D. 858. Æthelberht, king, to Wulflaf, his minister; grant of 5 sulungs (aratra) at Wassingwell in exchange for 5 sulungs at Mersham, Kent, with conversion of the latter into folkland. Latin with English, bounds in Latin.

Archive: Canterbury, Christ Church

MSS: BL Cotton Aug. ii. 66 (s. ix med.; BM Facs., ii. 33; Thompson 1912, facs. 221, incomplete)

Printed: K 281; Thorpe, pp. 119-21; B 496; Earle, pp. 125-8; Pierquin, Recueil, pt 2, no. 35; Robertson, Charters, pp. 16-17 (no. 10), part only, with translation.

Translated: Whitelock, EHD, no. 93 (pp. 530-1).

Comments: Bond 1878, p. 7, contemporary; Maitland 1897, pp. 244-5, 255; Sweet, OET, pp. 436-7 (no. 28); Vinogradoff 1893, pp. 12-13, 16; Thompson 1912, p. 511; Stevenson 1914, p. 692 n. 16, contemporary; Wallenberg, KPN, pp. 197-203, identifies Wassingwell with Westwell, Kent; Robertson, Charters, pp. 277-8; Parsons 1939, pp. 14, 23-9, genuine and contemporary; Ward 1940, argues that Wassingwell included both Eastwell and Westwell; Ward 1946/1; Forsberg 1950, p. 202, on bounds; Sisam 1953, p. 124 n. 1; John 1960, pp. 36-7, 52; Whitelock 1960-1, p. 1010; John 1966, p. 71 n., pp. 106-8, 113-17, on issues of land-tenure; Hart 1970/1, p. 21, on endorsement; Stenton 1971, p. 311; Vollrath-Reichelt 1971, pp. 204-7; Witney 1976, pp. 261-2, on swine-pastures; Chaplais 1978, pp. 15-16, on endorsement and script, scribe also wrote S 332, 1196, 1197 (part) (= 1981 XIV, pp. 15-16); Sawyer 1978, p. 153; Whitelock, EHD, pp. 372, 530, original; Brooks 1984, pp. 360-1 n. 70, scribe also wrote S 316, 332, 344, 1195-7; Chaplais 1985, pp. 46-7, on production; Keynes 1992, p. 70 n. 74, on endorsement; Reynolds 1992, p. 218, on bookland/folkland (= 1994, p. 330); Lapidge 1996, pp. 449-50, on latinity.

Endorsements:
(1) in a contemporary hand: + Ðis siondan ðes landes boc et Wassingwellan
(2) in a hand of s. xii: commutatio terrarum inter Eðelbeartum regem 7 Wullafum . latine

+ Regnante in perpetuum domino Deo nostro omnipotenti sabaot ego Eðelbearht rex cum consensu ac licentia meorum secularium optimatum divinorumque personarum liventi animo dabo et concedo meo fideli ministro Wullafe aliquam partem terre juris mei hoc est . v . aratra in illa loco ubi Wasngwelle nominatur in bicissitudinem alterius terre hoc est et mersaham hanc terram supranominatam et wassingwellan ego Eðelbearht ab omni servitute regali operis eternaliter liverabo sicut ante fuerat illa prenominata terra et mersaham hec sunt etenim marisci que ad eandem terram rite ac recte pertinent quos 'h'ega ante abuerat id est an wiwarawic quæ ante subjecta erat to wii 7 to leanaham 7 et febresham . i . sealtern 7 . ii . wena gang mid cyninges wenum to blean ðem wiada 7 . iiii . oxnum gers mid cyninges oxnum an wiwarawic . xxx . statera kasei et item . x . statera in alia wiwarawic 7 . xx . lamba 7 . x . fehta hec autem terra suprascripta et wassingwellan his notissimis terminibus antiquitus circum jacentibus ab occidente cyninges folcland quod abet wighelm 7 wulflaf ab aquilone cuðrices dun heregeðeland ab oriente wighelmes land a meritie biscepes land to cert . ii .que molina ad illam eandem terram pertinentia una an wassingwellan alia an hwiteceldan hec sunt pascua porcorum quot nostra lingua denbera nominamus hoc est lamburnanden orricesden teligden stanehtandenn et illa silva sandhyrst nominatur que pertient to wassingwellan hancque livertatem huic eodem agel'l'ulo illoque wullafe similiter et wassingwellan cum consensu ac licentia meorum optimatum liventer largitus sum ut omnium regalium tributum et vi exactorum operum et penalium rerum principali dominatio furisque conprehensione et cuncta seculari gravidine absque expeditione sola et pontium structura et arcium munitionibus secura et inmunis permaneat si autem aliquis quod absit diabolika fraude deceptus et mundana cupiditatæ inlectus hoc infringere vel irritum facere conaverit sciat se a consortione katholicorum segregatum et in die magni æxaminis quando celum et terra moventur coram Christo et exercitu celesti nisi ante emendaverit rationem redditurum esse hactum est autem anno dominice incarnationis . dccclviii . indictione vi his testibus consentientibus ac conscribentibus quorum his nomina infra karaxantur .

Hec sunt prata to wassingwellan stocmed healf be norðan hegforde be sturemeda sue ðer to limpað .

+ Ego Eðelbearht rex hanc meam donationem cum signo sancte crucis Christi rovoravo et subscribo .
+ Ego Eðelmod dux consentio 7 subscribo .
+ Ego Eastmund pedesecus consentio 7 subscribo .
+ Ego Wullaf consentio 7 subscribo .
+ Ego Eðered consentio 7 subscribo .
+ Ego Sigenoð consentio 7 subscribo .
+ Ego Beagmund consentio 7 subscribo .
+ Ego Ese consentio 7 subscribo .
+ Ego Dun consentio 7 subscribo .
+ Ego Oslac consentio 7 subscribo .
+ Ego Dudda consentio 7 subscribo .
+ Ego Mucel consentio 7 subscribo .
+ Ego Burgnoð consentio .
+ Ego Eðelweald consentio .
+ Ego Eadwald consentio .
+ Ego Lulla consentio .
+ Ego Acka consentio .
+ Ego Cynelaf consentio .
+ Ego Eðelhere consentio .
+ Ego Wighelm consentio .
+ Ego Noðmund consentio .
+ Sigemund consentio .
+ Hunfreð consentio .

+ Ðis siondan ðes landes boec et wassingwellan ðet Eðelbearht cyning Wullafe sealde his ðegne wið oðrum sue miclum lande et mersaham se cyning sealde 7 gebocade wullafe fif sulung landes et wassingwellan wið ðem fif sulungum et mersaham 7 se cyning dyde ðet land et mersaham him to folclande ða hie ðem landum iehwerfed hefdan butan ðem merscum 7 butan ðem sealtern et fefresham 7 butan ðem wioda ðe to ðem sealtern limpð .