Godbald 2

Godbald ‘of Brickhill’ (Bucks.), fl. 1066
Male
DWP
4 of 5

Name

Godbald
Godbald 3

Summary

Godbald 2 had a small estate in north-east Buckinghamshire TRE assessed at 1 hide and with a probable value of 20s; he had power of alienation over his land.

Distribution map of property and lordships associated with this name in DB

List of property and lordships associated with this name in DB

Holder 1066

Shire Phil. ref. Vill DB Spelling Holder 1066 Lord 1066 Tenant-in-Chief 1086 1086 Subtenant Fiscal Value 1066 Value 1086 Value Conf. Show on Map
Buckinghamshire 14,48 Brickhill Godbold Godbald 'of Brickhill' - Walter Giffard Ralph de Lanquetot 1.00 1.00 0.60 B Map
Totals

Profile

Godbald 2’s small estate was at Bow Brickhill, on rising ground overlooking where Watling Street crosses the River Lovat (or Ouzel) in north-east Buckinghamshire.  He was one of four men holding land there TRE whose small estates were grouped into a single manor held by a subtenant of Walter Giffard (Walter 3) after the Conquest, but there is no evidence that the four men were associated other than by the proximity of their lands.  DB records that all four men could sell their lands, indicating that they were not in dependent tenure, and gives the total TRE value for the combined manor as 100s, which if divided in proportion to each man’s holding would render Godbald’s hide worth 20s.

This was the only estate held TRE by someone of this name recorded in DB and there is no reason to consider Godbald 2 in connection with anyone else.  Indeed, although fairly common after the Conquest his appears to be the only recorded insular instance of the name before then (Forssner 1916: 118), and it remains a puzzle as to how someone with a continental name came to be holding such a small and solitary estate.

Bibliography


Forssner 1916: Thorvald Forssner, Continental-Germanic Personal Names in England in Old and Middle English Times (Uppsala, 1916)